Town Edition
Worcester County
Hardwick, Massachusetts
Photo: Pvmoutside, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
In 1762 the voters of Hardwick met in town meeting and settled the question that mattered most about their brand new fair by ruling that it be held in the middle of the town. They meant the hilltop common, and more than 260 Augusts later the Hardwick Fair is still on that exact grass, the oldest agricultural fair in the country. A decision ordinary residents made before the United States existed still decides where this town spends its summer, and the same open Town Meeting that made it still votes your budget today. This guide shows you how to get into the room.
Hardwick at a Glance
Sources: Massachusetts DESE, school and district profiles · US Census Bureau (data.census.gov).
- County: Worcester. Hardwick sits in the hills west of the Ware River and is made up of several villages, including Hardwick center, Gilbertville, Wheelwright, and Old Furnace.
- Government: open Town Meeting, with an elected three-member Select Board and an appointed Town Administrator, Justine Caggiano.
- Schools: the Quabbin Regional School District, which Hardwick shares with four neighboring towns, serving about 2,126 students and led by Superintendent Colleen Mucha.
How Hardwick’s Government Works
Hardwick runs on an open Town Meeting, which means there are no elected Town Meeting members at all: every registered voter in Hardwick is a member, and any of them can walk in, speak, and vote on the budget. Voters also elect a three-member Select Board to set policy between meetings and Hardwick’s seats on the regional School Committee that oversees the schools. The Select Board hires a professional Town Administrator to run the town day to day. So the money is voted by whoever shows up, the direction is set by the Select Board, and the daily work is carried out by the Town Administrator.
Town Meeting
The legislative body, and it is not a committee. Every registered voter in Hardwick is a member. Town Meeting adopts the annual budget, passes town bylaws, and approves major spending. This is direct democracy in its literal sense.
Select Board
Three members elected town-wide. They set policy, sign the warrants that decide what reaches Town Meeting, appoint residents to many town boards, and hire and supervise the Town Administrator.
Town Administrator
The appointed chief administrator. Runs the departments, builds the budget, and answers to the Select Board. Hired under contract, not elected.
School Committee
The regional committee for the Quabbin district, elected by the voters of the five member towns. It sets school policy, approves the school budget, and hires the Superintendent.
- Residents elect the three members of the Select Board and Hardwick’s seats on the School Committee.
- The Select Board hires the Town Administrator and decides what goes on the Town Meeting warrant.
- Town Meeting votes the budget and the bylaws, and every registered voter present can vote.
- You take part: register at 16, vote at 18, and once you are registered you are already a member of Town Meeting.
Civic Calendar
- Select Board: meets on a published calendar at the Myron E. Richardson Municipal Building, 307 Main Street, Gilbertville, generally on alternating Mondays at 6:30pm. The agenda is posted in advance, so check the town calendar before you go.
- Town Meeting: the Annual Town Meeting is held in the spring, and the town can call a Special Town Meeting when business cannot wait. Every registered voter is a member.
- Town elections: Hardwick votes in early May. The 2026 Annual Town Election was held on Saturday, May 2, at Hardwick Elementary School. The next is in spring 2027.
- State and federal elections: even-numbered years. The 2026 primary and general are this fall.
Explore the Hardwick Edition
- Town Administrator’s OfficeThe town’s chief administrator
- Select BoardYour three board members
- School CommitteeSuperintendent & committee
- Town DepartmentsWho does what at Town Hall
- Boards & CommissionsWhere residents serve
- LegislatorsYour voice in Boston & D.C.
- Hardwick HistoryLambstown, the mills, and the oldest fair
- DemographicsWho lives in Hardwick
- Non-ProfitsCommunity organizations
- Student DataQuabbin schools by the numbers
Your County Officials
Two of the people with the most direct power over your life are elected countywide. The district attorney decides who gets charged with a crime, and what they get charged with. The sheriff runs the county jail. Both of them answer to the voters of Worcester County, and that includes Hardwick. They appear on your ballot. Now you know what to look for.
Every county in Massachusetts elects its own, and the job is the same everywhere: the charging decisions, the jail. Look up any town in the state and see who holds these two offices there.
Your First Civic Action in Hardwick
You do not have to wait until you can vote to be heard in your own town. Here is how to take a real concern to the people who decide.
- Pick the right body. Town policy, roads, and police or fire go to the Select Board. Schools go to the School Committee. The budget and bylaws are voted by Town Meeting.
- Find the meeting. The Select Board meets on a published calendar at the Myron E. Richardson Municipal Building, 307 Main Street, Gilbertville, and the agenda is posted in advance.
- Know your members. Three Select Board members are elected town-wide, so every one of them answers to you.
- Speak. Meetings are open to the public and residents may address the board. Check the agenda for how to sign up.
- Or skip the trip. Report a pothole, a broken light, or a downed tree to the Highway Department, which is the department that owns the repair.
- Town Hall: Myron E. Richardson Municipal Building, 307 Main Street, Gilbertville, MA 01031. Select Board office (413) 477-6197.
- Town Clerk & agendas: (413) 477-6700, with meeting agendas and minutes posted at hardwick-ma.gov.
- Public schools: the Quabbin Regional School District, 978-355-4668, qrsd.org.
Local government works best when residents show up. Find your Select Board, speak at a meeting on the town’s published calendar, or simply register to vote and take your seat at Town Meeting.