Dighton, Massachusetts, is in national spotlight. Here's what residents say about the town

DIGHTON — Dighton has found itself at the center of a national firestorm as police, FBI and media descended on a quiet semi-rural road Thursday in a place normally better known for bucolic, picturesque scenery and an annual cow chip festival than massive law enforcement operations.

So we thought we’d ask some Dightonians how they would describe the town and what they’d want the rest of the world to know about it.

Robert Woods, who served as veterans agent in town for 10 years, said he moved to Dighton in 1992 because he married “a Dighton girl.”

"Dightonians are friendly and compassionate. They've very welcoming neighbors. I love everything about Dighton. It has a nice, small-town atmosphere with very pleasant people and a New England charm. And they take very good care of their veterans, 100%. Always have and always will," Woods said.

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"Dighton is such a special place that people will put square wheels on their cars so they'll never have to leave."

But Dighton had anything but a small-town feel on Thursday when all eyes were on Maple Street — and helicopters were circling overhead.

U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland announced Thursday afternoon that an employee of the U.S. Air National Guard, Jack Teixeira, had been arrested by the Justice Department in connection with the alleged removal and transmission of classified intelligence documents.

And that arrest was made at about 1:30 p.m. on Maple Street in the North Dighton neighborhood where Teixeira’s family lives.

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Where is Dighton, Massachusetts

For those who don’t know, Dighton is a semi-rural largely working-class town in Southeastern, Massachusetts. And as anyone in town will tell you, North Dighton is a section of Dighton, not a separate town.

What Dighton looks like

Dighton is home to Bristol County Agricultural High School, known in these parts as “Bristol Aggie,” where students from communities around the region study everything from arboriculture to large animal science to landscape design and natural resource management. And yes, the school supplies the cows for the venerable cow chip festival.

Like bingo...only with cows. So just what is the Dighton Cow Chip Festival?

The town has a long winding border with the scenic Taunton River and boating is very much a part of the culture. In fact, Bristol Aggie's sprawling, pastoral campus is right near the bridge that links Dighton to Berkley, an even smaller town on the other side of the river.

What is the population of Dighton?

The town is small with a population of 8,150 as of 2021, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

Conservative culture wars have come to Dighton

The town tends to lean in a conservative direction politically, voting for Donald Trump in both the 2016 and 2020 presidential elections.

And lately, Dighton has found itself in the crosshairs of the same kind of culture wars that have cropped up in communities across the country in recent years.

Last year, the town banned the flying of the LGBTQ Pride Flag and other flags at Town Hall, with Woods leading the opposition to a plan to fly the flag.

And in recent months, the Dighton Public Library has come under scrutiny for some of the books on its shelves, with some residents, including Woods and the head of the Dighton Republican Town Committee, voicing concerns that children might have access to books they consider inappropriate on topics like gender or sexual identity, race and policing.

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What are the demographics of Dighton

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the median household income in Dighton is $100,307, somewhat higher than the Massachusetts state average of $89,036. The town is 92.4% white non-Hispanic or Latino, .4% Black, 3.4% mixed race and 1.6% Hispanic or Latino. Dighton has 422 veterans and 89% of the homes are owner-occupied. In Dighton, 95.1% of residents have at least a high school diploma and 31.5% a bachelor’s degree or higher.

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While Police Chief Shawn Cronin was unavailable to discuss the crime rate overall in the town, the 2020 town report is telling: For the entire year, there were only nine reported burglaries and breaking and enterings, two auto thefts and zero robberies.

Dighton shares a regional school system with its neighboring town Rehoboth. And high school students generally either attend Dighton-Rehoboth Regional High School, which is in Dighton, Bristol Aggie or Bristol-Plymouth Regional Technical School in the nearby city of Taunton.

Jack Teixeira graduated from Dighton-Rehoboth Regional High School in 2020, CBS is reporting.

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Why residents love Dighton

Former Selectman Ken Pacheco said he and wife moved to Dighton 37 years ago because of what he called an excellent school system. They were living in Berkley at the time and their daughter was heading to high school, and they preferred to not see her go high school in the town of Somerset, which shares a school system with Berkley.

Now their daughter is a health specialist liaison for the police department and the Board of Health where she now lives.

"It'a a great school system," Pacheco said. "D-R High School had a high 20% ranking at the time. It still is a great, quality school system."

But that's not the only reason he would call Dighton a nice place to live.

"It's a great, small community. It's a historic community. It has the best-plowed streets in the area. Other towns I won't mention by name aren't as good at that maintenance as Dighton is. Dighton residents are patriotic. They love this country. They're law-abiding. Our Memorial Day attracts a lot of people. Dighton is very good to its veterans,” Pacheco said.

Of Teixeira's arrest, Pacheco said, "It's a shame that this has happened here.”

“I was taken aback that he had been arrested. He's not the typical Dightonian. It's a good, quiet town. He's innocent until proven guilty. If he is guilty he doesn't represent the typical Dightonian."

Where does the name Dighton come from

Named for the wife of one of the town's founders, Dighton was incorporated in the spring of 1712 and has a land area of 22.4 square miles. It remains a mostly rural town with only a few industrial sections near its closest city, Taunton.

With reporting by Taunton Daily Gazette Local Editor Rebecca Hyman

This article originally appeared on The Taunton Daily Gazette: Dighton MA: What everyone should know about the Jake Teixeira hometown