Shrewsbury is a town in Worcester County, Massachusetts, United States. Shrewsbury, unlike other surrounding towns like Grafton, Millbury, Westborough, and Northborough did not become a mill town or farming village, rather most of its 19th-century growth was due to its proximity to Worcester and visitors to Lake Quinsigamond. The population was 35,608 according to the 2010 US Census, in nearly 12,400 households.Incorporated in 1727, the town is governed now under the New England representative town meeting system, headed by the Town Manager and five-member elected Board of Selectmen whose duties include licensing, appointing various administrative positions, and calling a town meeting of citizens annually or whenever the need arises.