Creative Experiences

Under-Resourced Cities & Towns

In order to promote more equitable distribution of resources, Mass Cultural Council is focusing on communities in Massachusetts that fall behind other communities in several key measures.

Under-resourced Communities include:

• Gateway Cities
• Cities or towns of any population size where:
  • The median household income is below the median household income for the state as a whole, and
  • The rate of educational attainment of a bachelor’s degree or above is below the rate for the state as a whole.

The following 116 cities and towns meet this definition:

Acushnet
Adams
Agawam
Amesbury
Athol
Attleboro
Ayer
Barnstable
Becket
Bernardston
Blackstone
Blandford
Bourne
Brockton
Brookfield
Buckland
Carver
Charlemont
Chelsea
Cheshire
Chester
Chicopee
Clarksburg
Clinton
Colrain
Dalton
Dartmouth
Dennis
Dudley
East Brookfield
Easthampton
Erving
Everett
Fairhaven
Fall River
Fitchburg
Florida
Gardner
Gill
Gloucester
Granville
Greenfield
Hancock
Hardwick
Haverhill
Hawley
Heath
Hinsdale
Holland
Holyoke
Hudson
Huntington
Lanesborough
Lawrence
Lee
Leominster
Lowell
Ludlow
Lynn
Malden
Marlborough
Mashpee
Methuen
Middleborough
Middlefield
Milford
Monson
Montague
New Ashford
New Bedford
New Braintree
New Salem
North Adams
North Brookfield
Northfield
Oakham
Orange
Oxford
Palmer
Peabody
Peru
Phillipston
Pittsfield
Quincy
Revere
Rowe
Royalston
Salem
Salisbury
Sandisfield
Saugus
Savoy
Sheffield
Southbridge
Spencer
Springfield
Taunton
Templeton
Tisbury
Wales
Ware
Wareham
Warren
Warwick
Washington
Webster
West Brookfield
West Springfield
Westfield
Westhampton
Westport
Weymouth
Winchendon
Worcester
Worthington
Yarmouth