Westwood began as West Dedham, a small collection of farms owned by Dedham residents. At the time of incorporation in 1897, the population was only twelve hundred people. Westwood grew rapidly in the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, as Bostonians from Beacon Hill built large houses and developers purchased tracts of land to build homes on small lots. Before the highways and railroads, stagecoaches and trolleys traveled the town's two post roads-High and Washington Streets. At one time, Westwood even had an airport. Today, the community has more than thirteen thousand citizens.

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