3rd District

Gardner, MA

Communities of the 3rd District

View Congresswoman Niki Tsongas in a larger map

About the Third District

The Third Congressional District of Massachusetts spans approximately 776 square miles and includes thirty-six cities and towns across parts of Middlesex, Essex, and Worcester counties. The current population of the Third District is approximately 735,500 people.

The Third is a truly revolutionary district. The American Revolution began in Concord in 1775 and the Merrimack and Nashoba Valley mill towns of Lawrence, Lowell, Haverhill, Gardner, and Fitchburg, helped spark the Industrial Revolution of the 19^th century.

The district is home to two national historical parks, the Lowell National Historical Park and the Minute Man National Historical Park, that celebrate these legacies.

The region has a strong military tradition, with important installations at Devens and Hanscom. This district was also home to Edith Nourse Rogers, the first woman to represent Massachusetts in the U.S. House of Representatives. Rogers, who was elected to Congress in 1935 and holds the distinction of being the longest serving woman in the House of Representatives, was a powerful advocate for veterans and was one of the principle authors of the original GI Bill.

With growing businesses that specialize in state-of-the-art clean energy and military technology, and some of the Commonwealth’s most creative and budding institutions of higher education, the Third is also a hotbed of innovation.

Linking all of these historic towns are the District’s beautiful rivers that not only provide clean drinking water and recreation but have fueled economic renewal and progress. The Nashua River flows north where it meets the Merrimack River in southern New Hampshire. The Assabet and Sudbury Rivers flow together into the Concord and the Concord meets the Merrimack in Lowell, connecting the regions of the district. 

Massachusetts and Third District facts:

• Massachusetts quick facts
   
• 3rd District quick facts
   
• Congressional District Map of Massachusetts
   
• Metro Boston Community Snapshots