South Lancaster is a census-designated place (CDP) in the town of Lancaster and close to the Town of Clinton in Worcester County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 1,642 at the 2020 census.
Geography
South Lancaster is located at (42.437841, -71.688444).
According to the United States Census Bureau, the CDP has a total area of 3.4 km (1.3 mi), of which 3.4 km (1.3 mi) is land and 0.76% is water.
Demographics
2020 census
As of the 2020 census, South Lancaster had a population of 1,838. The median age was 42.6 years. 22.0% of residents were under the age of 18 and 18.3% of residents were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 91.3 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 86.1 males age 18 and over.
100.0% of residents lived in urban areas, while 0.0% lived in rural areas.
There were 735 households in South Lancaster, of which 31.8% had children under the age of 18 living in them. Of all households, 49.4% were married-couple households, 15.2% were households with a male householder and no spouse or partner present, and 28.7% were households with a female householder and no spouse or partner present. About 29.6% of all households were made up of individuals and 13.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.
There were 676 households, out of which 32.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 57.0% were married couples living together, 8.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 30.6% were non-families. 25.1% of all households were made up of individuals, and 14.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.58 and the average family size was 3.11.
In the CDP, the population was spread out, with 24.9% under the age of 18, 6.6% from 18 to 24, 30.4% from 25 to 44, 24.2% from 45 to 64, and 14.0% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 39 years. For every 100 females, there were 93.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 84.6 males.
The median income for a household in the CDP was $48,750, and the median income for a family was $56,319. Males had a median income of $41,917 versus $31,429 for females. The per capita income for the CDP was $23,341. About 4.6% of families and 5.3% of the population were below the poverty line, including 1.9% of those under age 18 and 23.3% of those age 65 or over.
Religion and education
A significant portion of life in the village centered around Atlantic Union College, a Seventh-day Adventist (SDA) institution of higher learning founded in 1882. The college was closed in 2018 after failing to rebuild after losing accreditation in 2011. The village is home to the Southern New England Conference of Seventh-day Adventists and the Atlantic Union Conference of Seventh-day Adventists, along with the SDA church owned South Lancaster Academy. The college music department was housed in the Nathaniel Thayer Estate, which was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1976 and was the Thayer Performing Arts Center until its closure in 2020.