Townsend is a town in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States.

[3] The town was named after Charles Townshend, English secretary of state and an opponent of the Tories.

[4] The town initially used the same spelling as its namesake, but the "h" was dropped in patriotic fervor in response to the Townshend Acts of 1767.

The headwaters of the Squannacook River rise in the town's western hills.

Townsend has the largest land area of any town in Middlesex County.

Students are also allowed to choose to attend Nashoba Valley Technical High School, located in Westford.