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The Town of Kingston, a coastal community in Southeastern Massachusetts located about 35 miles from Boston, was established in 1726 and has an open town meeting form of government. It is principally a residential community with a small number of professional fishermen and cranberry growers. 
A large proportion of the residents are commuters, many of whom use the Old
Colony rail service to Boston. Today, much of the town's commerce centers around retail business including the Independence Mall with its 100 stores located off Route 3. The town's early history as a part of the Plymouth Colony settled by the Pilgrims has spawned an active historical society that maintains the Major John Bradford House for public viewing and for summer brunches on its lawn. Public lands owned by the town on Kingston.
Monument honoring Kingston Civil War dead sits on the green in front of Town Hall and directly across from the church.
mills, mature lumber for ship building, and bog iron for their forges and foundries. The small town named Kingston quickly became almost
self-sufficient.
Now that same town is gearing up to celebrate, in 2001, its 275th anniversary. And what is on everybody’s mind is GROWTH. In the past 25 years Kingston’s population has more than doubled and now reaches over 10,500; the town, located in Plymouth County, has been the fastest growing community in the Old Colony region of Southeastern Massachusetts. Several factors have brought this about - towns north of Kingston had already experienced growth as citizens of Boston moved to the suburbs; the presence of five state highways running through the town
make it easily accessible; development of the Southeast Expressway (Route 3) made commuting to Boston possible; and most of all, the recent restoration of the Old Colony railroad has made commuting possible without relying on increasingly congested highway driving. The Plymouth and Brockton bus line provides additional transportation, and commuter boat service from Plymouth to Boston is in the works. Further growth is inevitable.
To address this challenge, the town has recently adopted an ambitious Master Plan. Through implementation of this plan the citizens hope to preserve Kingston’s small-town atmosphere, honor its rich history, and preserve large areas of open space, while at the same time providing its citizens with the economical, educational and cultural services they require. The median selling price for one-family homes in 1997 was just under $150.000.
What will a newcomer to Kingston find? An attractive town with many well-cared for 19th century homes in the older areas, along with a number of new developments of large single family homes on one and two-acre lots. Tree-lined streets.
Cranberry bogs. Several “strip malls” and one large shopping mall. A new fire station under construction. A second elementary school also under construction. Sewerage planned for several sections of the town where it is most needed. A continually growing hospital in Plymouth, five miles 
away. A fine public library. Tentative plans for a new and enlarged Town Hall. Several ponds and a large lake, Silver Lake. A well-equipped police department which
works with the fire department to provide all citizens with 911 emergency service. Excellent drinking water. A citizen’s group, the Jones River Watershed Association, works to protect that valuable water supply. More than 1,000 of the town’s 12,000 acres protected from development, protecting the town’s quality of life. And a citizenry which still gathers once or twice a year in the auditorium of the elementary school for the traditional New England Town Meeting.
A word about schools. Kingston students from kindergarten through grade six attend the elementary school, now bursting at the seams and eagerly awaiting completion of the new building, which will be on the same site. At that time kindergarten through grade three will be housed in one building, and grades 
four through six in the other. High school students are part of the Silver Regional School system which serves young people from four towns - Kingston, Pembroke,
Plympton and Halifax. A feature of the school is its strong vocational program. This school is also experiencing growth, and discussions are under way to determine whether to expand the present high school building or to separate the region into two parts, one serving Kingston, Halifax and Plympton, with Pembroke, the largest town, building its own school system.
