Pembroke, Massachusetts

Pembroke is a town in Plymouth County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 17,837 at the 2010 census.

The southwestern section of Pembroke is also known as Bryantville. For geographic and demographic information on the village of North Pembroke, please see the article North Pembroke, Massachusetts.

History

The earliest European settlers were Robert Barker and Dolor Davis, who settled in the vicinity of Herring Brook in 1650. Up until that time, the Wampanoag and the Massachusett were the only residents, fishing and farming along the rivers; they called the area Mattakeesett, which means "place of much fish", because of the annual springtime run of herring in the local rivers. The land was part of the Major's Purchase, a large tract of lands bought from Josias Wampatuck of the Massachusetts by a group of English investors. The area was once a part of Duxbury, before incorporating as a separate town in 1712, and was ultimately named for the town of Pembroke, Wales, the name of Brookfield being rejected because it was already in use by the town in Worcester County that still bears this name.