Worcester Turnpike Corporation.

The Worcester Turnpike Corporation was incorporated by the Massachusetts General Court in 1806. This was the result of a petition made in 1805 by Aaron Davis (1763-1817) of Roxbury and a number of others who desired the construction of a more direct road from Boston to Worcester. At the first meeting of the proprietors in Boston, a board of seven directors was selected. Among the original directors was Isaiah Thomas (1749-1831) of Worcester, who was also chosen moderator. In 1805 Thomas had paid for a survey of the land between the towns of Worcester and Shrewsbury, as part of the planning of the turnpike. Six hundred shares of stock in the corporation were issued, with a par value of $250 each.

Construction began in 1807 or 1808, and the toll road was completed by 1809. It ran for approximately forty miles, through Roxbury, Newton, Needham, Natick, Framingham, Southborough, Westborough, and Shrewsbury to Worcester. The turnpike was never profitable, and the cost of maintaining it was a continuing burden on the shareholders. In 1826 the road through Roxbury was abandoned; in succeeding years additional sections in Middlesex and Norfolk counties were also abandoned, with maintenance usually being eventually taken up by the towns. Finally in 1841 the charter was repealed.

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