Palmer is one of thirteen Massachusetts municipalities that have city forms of government but retain "The town of" in their official names.

Palmer is composed of four separate and distinct villages: Depot Village, typically referred to simply as "Palmer" (named for the ornate Union Station railroad terminal designed by architect Henry Hobson Richardson), Thorndike, Three Rivers, and Bondsville.

King was born in Edwardstone, Suffolk, England, and built his home in 1716 on the banks of the Quaboag River.

[4][5] Depot Village became Palmer's main commercial and business center during the late 19th century and remains so today.

By 1900, Boston Duck (which made heavy cotton fabric) had over 500 employees in the town.

The 20th century brought about a shift of immigrants in Palmer from those of French and Scottish origin to those of primarily Polish and French-Canadian extraction.

The city is bordered by Ludlow and Wilbraham on the southwest, Belchertown on the northwest, Ware on the northeast, Warren on the east, Brimfield on the southeast, and Monson on the south.

This effort is to ensure that NER would have its own "flagship" racetrack, as the two tracks it currently uses—New Hampshire Motor Speedway and Lime Rock Park in Connecticut—are heavily used by NASCAR.

Road & Track magazine named Palmer Motorsports Park one of the top 10 racetracks to drive in North America.

[19] The Quaboag Hills Chamber of Commerce is headquartered in Palmer and is the advocate for business and community development in the Quaboag Valley area by providing the 200+ members with a voice in political, social and economic issues.

[21] Pathfinder Regional Vocational Technical High School is also located in Palmer, and serves grades 9 through 12.

These included five operating railroads (Boston & Albany, Central Vermont, Springfield, Athol & North-eastern, Ware River, and Central Massachusetts), one which was built but never operated (Hampden), and one which was not completed (Southern New England) The B&A, CV, and Ware River served Union Station, which was designed by H. H. Richardson.

On January 17, 2024 MassDOT announced that a consultant has been selected to progress planning and design work for the new train station as part of the West-East Rail project.

MA 181 starts at U.S. 20 in the city center, before heading north into Three Rivers and Bondsville.

MA 67 starts nearby the Monson border on U.S. 20 and stays on the extreme east side of Palmer before it heads into Warren.