West Springfield is a city in Hampden County, Massachusetts, founded in 1669 as the most western town in the colony. It was originally inhabited by the Pocomtuc tribe and called Woronoco. It became known as the “Whip City” for its whip-making industry in the 19th century. Today, it has a population of about 28,800 and is part of the Springfield metropolitan area. It has a service-based economy, with sectors such as education, health care, manufacturing, and retail. 

West Springfield also has a rich history, culture, and natural beauty, with attractions such as the Westfield River, Storrowton Village Museum, and the Eastern States Exposition. The town’s common, where insurgents drilled during Shays’s Rebellion, was earlier the campsite of three American armies during the American Revolution. West Springfield was also the site of the first liquid-fueled rocket launch by Robert H. Goddard in 1926, which is commemorated by a park and a monument¹²³