The Aberjona River and Horn Pond River were two of the water sources that contributed to the town's growth as most industries were sited on the waterway for both power and as a means of removing waste.

David Cummings established a large scale tanning operation in 1756, a foreshadowing of the town's later dependence on leather.

By 1800 there were 156 dwellings, 22 shoe shops, 2 currying shops, 3 saw mills and seven grist mills.

By 1865, 203 men and 105 women were employed making boots and shoes. There were 21 tanning and currying shops in the town.

That number would grow to 107 in 1938.

Throughout the mid-1800s industry boomed due to investor daring and cheap and abundant supply of labor including children

Along with jobs in the new industries, came occupational hazards such as dermatitis (skin inflammation), respiratory disease, and accidents, especially to young workers

Technological innovation also played a significant role. For example, Goodyear had discovered the "Art of Vulcanizing" rubber in Woburn a few years earlier.

The effects of these developments were also evident in the tanning industry as more efficient and effective chemicals were developed in the tanner's private study and laboratory.

Woburn became a nexus in a growing factory system with a statewide transportation system linking national and international markets for textiles, woolens, paper, and shoes.

At one point, ice was cut from Horn Pond in the winter and was sent to Boston for commercial use.

By the time Woburn's early industries had begun to dry up, industries such as Merrimac Chemical Company had taken their place.

The raw material had changed as well. Leather and textiles were being replaced by companies whose by-products included volatile organic chemicals as well as toxic metals like lead and arsenic.

Industries such as Mass Gear Company would require toxic chemicals to clean their equipment and...

degreasing plants sprang up in the community to meet these demands.

The greenhouse industry added chemical fertilizers to the list of wastes in the Aberjona watershed.

Woburn's population also grew exponentially through the mid 1900's. Several new wells were drilled and 3000 water meters were installed in 1964 to service a population of over 31,000 people.

In recalling Woburn's past, as with so many of America's early communities, one can see a dynamic interchange between people and the environment -

where and how they settled, how they used the land and reshaped the landscape, how they generated economic change.

The story of the childhood leukemia cluster in Woburn in one sense has its origins in the industrial development of the New England region.

The pollution of the soil and water that was widespread throughout East Woburn exemplifies the ignorance and disregard for the consequences of improper industrial and municipal waste handling that goes back many decades, even centuries.

More fundamentally, the type of industrial development in New England and other parts of the world over the past century represents a dramatic change in relation of humans to their environment.

It also represents an ability to alter natural processes in a way that is harmful to both the general environment and to human health.

Children's health, as an indicator of the health of future generations, is a particularly sensitive indicator of these harmful effects.

Chemicals and metals that are new to nature, or which are particularly toxic and persistent in biological systems are the cause of much of contemporary environmental and occupational health problems.

Chlorinated organic compounds, in the case of Woburn in particular, exemplify the type of industrial product that has the ability to disrupt the environment in ways previously seen.

Investigating a community's environmental health requires exploring its past. By necessity, it is a study of both a natural and cultural landscape.

In Woburn, as in many communities throughout the world, understanding the interaction between people and the physical environment shows us how the land shaped human history...

and, with even greater significance, how humans have reshaped the land leaving and indelible mark on our recent past and ever changing present.