Tewksbury, Massachusetts

More than a century before you were born, a nearly blind orphan named Anne Sullivan spent four brutal years in the state almshouse right here in Tewksbury, and she walked out of it to become the teacher who unlocked language for Helen Keller. That is the kind of town Tewksbury is: a quiet place on the Shawsheen River with a much bigger story than its size suggests. About 31,000 people live here now, between Lowell and the highways, and the town still governs itself the old New England way, by Town Meeting. This guide shows you how Tewksbury runs today: the open Town Meeting, the Select Board, the appointed Town Manager, the legislators who carry your voice to Boston and Washington, and the data behind it all.

The Tewksbury Civics Handbook

A plain-language guide to how your town works: who represents you, how decisions get made, and how to make your voice heard. Read it online.

Read the Handbook →

Tewksbury at a Glance

31,342Residents (2020)

1734Incorporated

5Select Board Members

3,271Students

Sources: Massachusetts DESE, district profile · US Census Bureau (data.census.gov).

County: Middlesex. Tewksbury sits along the Shawsheen River in the Merrimack Valley, tucked between the city of Lowell and the Interstate 93 and Route 495 corridor.
Government: open Town Meeting with an elected five-member Select Board and an appointed Town Manager, John Curran, who has run the town since December 2024.
Schools: Tewksbury Public Schools, about 3,300 students across six schools, led by Superintendent Nancy Milligan.

How Tewksbury’s Government Works

Tewksbury runs on open Town Meeting, one of the oldest forms of self-government in the country. Any registered voter in town can walk into Town Meeting, stand at a microphone, and cast a vote on the budget and the bylaws. Voters also elect a five-member Select Board to set policy between those meetings and a School Committee to oversee the schools. The Select Board hires a professional Town Manager to run the town day to day. So the levers are split on purpose: residents elect the officials, Town Meeting votes the money, the Select Board sets direction, and the Town Manager carries it out.

Town Meeting

The legislative body. In open Town Meeting every registered voter can attend, speak, and vote directly on the annual budget, the bylaws, and major spending. It is direct democracy in one room.

Select Board

Five members elected town-wide. They set policy, appoint many boards, and hire and supervise the Town Manager. There is no single elected chief executive.

Town Manager

The appointed chief administrator. Runs the departments, builds the budget, and answers to the Select Board. Hired under contract, not elected.

School Committee

Five members, elected by the voters of the district the schools serve. It sets school policy, approves the school budget, and hires the Superintendent.

Residents elect the five Select Board members and the five School Committee members.
The Select Board hires the Town Manager and sets town policy.
Town Meeting votes the budget and the bylaws up or down.
You take part: speak at a Select Board meeting, or stand up and vote at open Town Meeting once you are a registered voter.

Explore the Tewksbury Edition

Civic Calendar

Select Board: meets on Tuesday evenings in the first-floor meeting room at Town Hall, 1009 Main Street, and the meetings are open to the public.
Town Meeting: the Annual Town Meeting is held in the spring, and Special Town Meetings can be called during the year for urgent business.
Town elections: Tewksbury votes in April. The 2026 annual town election was held on April 11. The next is in April 2027.
State and federal elections: even-numbered years. The 2026 primary and general are this fall.

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 Middlesex County, and that includes Tewksbury. They appear on your ballot. Now you know what to look for.

District Attorney, Middlesex District

Marian T. Ryan

In office since 2012
Official site

Sheriff, Middlesex County

Peter J. Koutoujian

In office since 2011
Official site

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.

Officials for any Massachusetts town

Your First Civic Action in Tewksbury

You do not need to be old enough to vote to be heard in this town. Here is how to go from watching to taking part.

Pick the right body. Town policy and the Town Manager run through the Select Board. The budget and the bylaws belong to open Town Meeting. Anything about the schools goes to the School Committee.
Find the meeting. The Select Board meets on Tuesday evenings in the first-floor meeting room at Town Hall, 1009 Main Street. Agendas are posted in advance on the town website.
Know your members. Five Select Board members are elected at large by the whole town, so every one of them answers to you.
Speak. Residents may address the Select Board during public comment, and any registered voter can stand up and vote at open Town Meeting.

Town Hall: 1009 Main Street, Tewksbury, MA 01876. Main line 978-640-4300.
Town Clerk & agendas: registrars 978-640-4355. Select Board agendas and minutes are posted at tewksbury-ma.gov.
Public schools: Tewksbury Public Schools, 978-640-7800, tewksbury.k12.ma.us.

Local government works best when residents show up. Find your Select Board, speak at a Tuesday meeting, or cast your vote at Town Meeting.

Meet Your Select Board

Take Action in Your Town

Sources

This guide draws on public sources, refreshed July 2026: U.S. Census Bureau, Massachusetts DESE School and District Profiles, Massachusetts Legislature (malegislature.gov), and the official Tewksbury government website.