Welcome to Wilmington

Wilmington is a town in Middlesex County about 15 miles north-northwest of Boston, with I-93 running through it. It pairs Wilmington Center and its Town Common with North Wilmington, the Silver Lake area, stations on both the Lowell and Haverhill commuter rail lines, and more than 1,000 acres of town conservation land.

About Wilmington

Native people used the land around Silver Lake and the Ipswich River long before English settlement. Farmers arrived around 1665, and Wilmington was incorporated in 1730 from parts of Woburn and Reading, with a slice of Billerica east of the Shawsheen River added a few years later. Wilmington minutemen marched to Concord on April 19, 1775.

In the early 1800s Wilmington was a major hop-growing town, and the Middlesex Canal, opened in 1803, ran through it until the mid-1800s. The Baldwin apple was discovered here and named for Loammi Baldwin of Woburn, and a monument on Chestnut Street marks the site of the original tree. The Boston and Lowell Railroad came through in 1835, a tannery on Middlesex Avenue ran into the 1950s, and the town grew quickly after 1950 as Route 128 and then I-93 were built and farmland turned into neighborhoods. Wilmington borders Andover to the north, North Reading and Reading to the east, Woburn and Burlington to the south, Billerica to the west, and Tewksbury to the northwest.

Getting Around

Wilmington station on Main Street is a stop on the MBTA Lowell Line, and North Wilmington station on Middlesex Avenue is on the Haverhill Line, both with trains to North Station in Boston. I-93 runs through town, I-95/Route 128 is just south in Woburn and Burlington, and Routes 38, 62, and 129 cross Wilmington.

Wilmington Real Estate

Wilmington real estate is mostly single-family homes, many built during the town's growth after 1950. Older houses survive too: Georgian and Federal homes from the 1700s and early 1800s around the center on Middlesex Avenue, Greek Revival houses on Chestnut, Lowell, and Woburn streets, and Queen Anne and Shingle Style houses on Church Street. The Silver Lake area grew with tract homes in the early 1900s.

The Wilmington Centre Village, Church Street, High Street, Buck's Corner, and Gowing-Sheldon historic districts are on the National Register, along with the Harnden Tavern and the Middlesex Canal. Areas include Wilmington Center, North Wilmington, and Silver Lake.

Living in Wilmington

Silver Lake, a glacial kettle lake, has the Town Beach on Burnap Street, with Fullerton Park next door. The town manages more than 1,000 acres of conservation land, and water-filled sections of the Middlesex Canal can still be seen in town. The Ipswich River flows east through the middle of Wilmington.

The Harnden Tavern on Salem Street, built around 1770, is now the Wilmington Town Museum, and the Baldwin Apple Monument stands on Chestnut Street. The Town Common and Rotary Park are in the center of town, and Fun on the Fourth brings several days of concerts, a carnival, and fireworks each summer.

Questions About Wilmington

Does Wilmington have a train station?

Yes, two. Wilmington station is on the MBTA Lowell Line and North Wilmington station is on the Haverhill Line, both with trains to North Station in Boston.

What is the Baldwin apple?

The Baldwin apple was discovered in Wilmington and named for Loammi Baldwin of Woburn, who helped spread it. A monument on Chestnut Street marks the site of the original tree.

What kinds of homes are in Wilmington?

Wilmington is mostly single-family homes built after 1950, along with older Colonial, Federal, Greek Revival, and Victorian-era houses around the center and on Church Street.

To see homes for sale in Wilmington, browse the listings below. Thinking of buying or selling in Wilmington? Call (617) 848-9616 or get a free home valuation. Wilmington is part of our North of Boston guide.

Photos: John Phelan, CC BY-SA 4.0 and John Phelan, CC BY 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons.