We analyzed research using Saturday Night Science from Virginia Commonwealth University that mapped Klaverns by city from 1915-1940. This report analyzes the locations of historic KKK organizations to see where they were the most prevalent in Massachusetts.
The city in Massachusetts with the most number of Klaverns was Boston with 2 Klaverns. The city with the most number of Klaverns per capita was Rutland with 0.0004 Klaverns. There were historically 14 Klaverns in Massachusetts, across 13 places in Massachusetts with at least 1 Klavern during the period of reference.
Hate groups can be hard to measure because, typically, there’s no record of where they exist. But there is data on where there were distinct Klaverns of the Ku Klux Klan in each state. These cities have historically been the most racist in Massachusetts based on the number of KKK Klaverns.
This report does not speak to the current people who live there or the current state of the KKK in the same towns or areas.
1 Klaverns · #1 most historically racist in Massachusetts
1 Klaverns · #2 most historically racist in Massachusetts
Athol is a town in Worcester County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 11,584 at the 2010 census.
1 Klaverns · #3 most historically racist in Massachusetts
Located in
Worcester County, Massachusetts
Gardner is a city in Worcester County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 20,228 at the 2010 census. Gardner is home to Dunn State Park, Gardner Heritage State Park, Lake Wampanoag Wildlife Sanctuary, and Mount Wachusett Community College.
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
1 Klaverns · #4 most historically racist in Massachusetts
Located in
Hampshire County, Massachusetts
The city of Northampton ) is the county seat of Hampshire County, Massachusetts, United States. As of the 2010 census, the population of Northampton was 28,549.
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
1 Klaverns · #5 most historically racist in Massachusetts
Located in
Berkshire County, Massachusetts
Pittsfield is the largest city and the county seat of Berkshire County, Massachusetts, United States. It is the principal city of the Pittsfield, Massachusetts Metropolitan Statistical Area which encompasses all of Berkshire County. The population was 44,737 at the 2010 census. Although the population has declined in recent decades, Pittsfield remains the third largest municipality in western Massachusetts, behind only Springfield and Chicopee.
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
1 Klaverns · #6 most historically racist in Massachusetts
Located in
Middlesex County, Massachusetts
Waltham is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States, and was an early center for the labor movement as well as a major contributor to the American Industrial Revolution. The original home of the Boston Manufacturing Company, the city was a prototype for 19th century industrial city planning, spawning what became known as the Waltham-Lowell system of labor and production. The city is now a center for research and higher education, home to Brandeis University and Bentley University. The population was 60,636 at the census in 2010.
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
1 Klaverns · #7 most historically racist in Massachusetts
Framingham is a town in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. Incorporated in 1700, it is located within Middlesex County and the MetroWest subregion of the Greater Boston metropolitan area. The town proper covers 25 square miles with an estimated population of 68,318 in 2010, making it the 14th most populous municipality in Massachusetts. Residents voted in favor of adopting a charter to transition from a representative town meeting system to a mayor-council government in April 2017, and will transition to city status on January 1, 2018.
1 Klaverns · #8 most historically racist in Massachusetts
Located in
Essex County, Massachusetts
Lynn is the 9th largest municipality in Massachusetts and the largest city in Essex County. Situated on the Atlantic Ocean, approximately 10 miles north of downtown Boston, Lynn is part of Greater Boston’s urban inner core. An early colonial settlement and industrial center, Lynn was long colloquially referred to as the “City of Sin,” owing to its historic reputation for crime and vice. Today, however, the city is known for its large international population, historic architecture, downtown cultural district, loft-style apartments, and public parks and open spaces, which include the oceanfront Lynn Shore Reservation; the 2,200-acre, Frederick Law Olmsted-designed Lynn Woods Reservation; and the High Rock Tower Reservation. The city also is home to the southernmost portion of the Essex Coastal Scenic Byway, Lynn Heritage State Park, and the National Register-listed Diamond Historic District.
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
1 Klaverns · #9 most historically racist in Massachusetts
Located in
Plymouth County, Massachusetts
Brockton is a city in Plymouth County, Massachusetts, United States; the population was 95,314 in the 2015 Census. Brockton, along with Plymouth, are the county seats of Plymouth County. Brockton is the seventh largest city in Massachusetts and is sometimes referred to as the “City of Champions”, due to the success of native boxers Rocky Marciano and Marvin Hagler, as well as its successful Brockton High School sports programs. Two of the villages within the city are Montello and Campello, both have the distinction of having their own MBTA Commuter Rail Stations and post offices. Campello is the smallest neighborhood in the city, but also the most populous. Brockton hosts a baseball team, the Brockton Rox. Brockton is one of the windiest cities in the United States, with an average wind speed of 14.3mph.
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
1 Klaverns · #10 most historically racist in Massachusetts
Located in
Middlesex County, Massachusetts
Lowell is a city in the U.S. Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Located in Middlesex County, Lowell was a county seat until Massachusetts disbanded county government in 1999. With an estimated population of 109,945 in 2014, it is the fourth-largest city in Massachusetts, and the second-largest in the Boston metropolitan statistical area. The city is also part of a smaller Massachusetts statistical area called Greater Lowell, as well as New England’s Merrimack Valley region.
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
The receipts
Compare the top ten
Pick a metric. The bars rescale. The red line is Massachusetts’s statewide median.
On the map
Where Massachusetts’s historic Klaverns were
Saturday Night Science
Methodology: How We Measured The Most Historically Racist Places In The Bay State
While there are surveys and public polls on what places might be the most racist, we didn’t want to rely on speculation and opinion. Instead, we looked at the hard numbers from where KKK organizations have existed.
Specifically, we analyzed research out of Virginia Commonwealth University that mapped the Klans in each area and gave a history of their recruitment from 1915-1940.
- Number of historic KKK Klaverns (1915-1940) per current resident
Using Saturday Night Science, we analyzed the locations of historic KKK organizations per capita using current population data.
The full plate
Cities With Historically High KKK Membership In Massachusetts
Click any column to sort. Search by city name.
| Rank | City | Population | Klaverns | Klaverns /100k |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Rutland | 2,478 | 1 | 40 |
| 2 | Athol | 8,340 | 1 | 12 |
| 3 | Gardner | 20,279 | 1 | 5 |
| 4 | Northampton | 28,637 | 1 | 3 |
| 5 | Pittsfield | 44,226 | 1 | 2 |
| 6 | Waltham | 61,908 | 1 | 2 |
| 7 | Framingham | 69,900 | 1 | 1 |
| 8 | Lynn | 91,289 | 1 | 1 |
| 9 | Brockton | 94,267 | 1 | 1 |
| 10 | Lowell | 108,491 | 1 | 1 |
| 11 | Springfield | 153,836 | 1 | 1 |
| 12 | Worcester | 182,511 | 1 | 1 |
| 13 | Boston | 639,594 | 2 | 0 |
Source: VCU Mapping the Klan, 1915-1940; current population data. 13 cities with at least one Klavern.
Summary
There You Have It – The Most Historically Racist Cities In Massachusetts
When you’re looking at the places in Massachusetts with the highest number of historical KKK Klaverns per capita, this is an accurate list.
Below is a chart that lists all cities in Massachusetts with at least one KKK organization from 1915-1940.
The cities with the largest number of KKK Klaverns per capita were Rutland, Athol, Gardner, Northampton, Pittsfield, Waltham, Framingham, Lynn, Brockton, and Lowell.
