LESSON 41 
Town CoMMoNn 
HE object of this lesson is to study the town 
common, a civic feature of first importance in 
New England villages. It is desirable to know 
<* something of its history and uses in order that 
appropriate plans may be made for its present 
) improvement. We should also have in mind the 
possible development of the same idea, perhaps 
with some modifications, in other parts of the country and in new 
communities now building. 
General Discussion* 
One of the most pleasing features of the New England village 
is the town common. It is also one of the most characteristic, for 
while there are “‘court-house squares” and “parks” in most of the 
southern and mid-western towns, these are physically and politically 
very different from the New England town common. 
Public interest in the common may be safely reckoned on in 
every New England town. As the village is the center of com- 
mercial and social intercourse, so the common is the center of civic 
interest. Village improvement nearly always begins with the town 
common. 
Historical Notes 
Existing town commons are mostly rather old — at least not, 
of recent origin. The purposes for which they were set aside have 
* This discussion is revised from a bulletin by the Author, ‘‘The Town 
Common,” Massachusetts Agricultural College, Extension Bulletin 7, June, 
1916. 
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