Hello all! Yes, this is a day early and with good reason!
Our Open House this Sunday, July 10, will feature a very special celebration of Frederick Law Olmsted's "Forgotten Emerald Necklace" in North Easton. This year, Olmsted would have turned 200 and celebrations of his work will take place across the United States. We want to do our part to recognize this genius of place and space and his work here. There are two periods where Olmsted is involved in transforming North Easton. In the early 1880's, working closely with architect Henry Hobson Richardson, Olmsted used his talents in several familiar places: The Old Colony Railroad Station, The Rockery, Oakes Ames Memorial Hall, and the Frederick Lothrop Ames Gate Lodge. Work was also done at Langwater and possibly Queset around this period. In the early 1890's, Olmsted could be found working on the Ames Estates Springhill and Sheep Pasture, as well as the estate of Hobart Ames. The later work is influenced by the growing involvement of his children as the senior Olmsted was busy with the World's Fair and beginning to show a decline in his faculties with advancing age. There are two ways to discover Olmsted's work this Sunday. The Museum will feature an exhibit of his work in town, with an emphasis on Springhill. The best way to experience Olmsted is through a walking tour conducted by our own Ed Hands. This two-part tour will begin promptly at 1:30 p.m., departing the Museum for a walk to the Governor Ames Estate and Langwater. You will return to the Museum for some refreshments, then depart again for a trip to the Rockery and the Oakes Ames Memorial Hall. We are very grateful to Oliver Ames and the Ames Family for arranging for the Society to tour the landscape at Langwater. The Museum will be open from 1-5 p.m. Next, we have a very special announcement from our friends at the Ames Free Library, with thanks to William Ames: The Ames Free Library is pleased to announce that a new sculpture will be installed early next week on the library's campus. Sculptor Phoebe Knapp, of Billings Montana, created 'Tablet' in 2004. The statue stands 12 feet in height, and is made out of walnut, metal, and copper coated black iron pipe.' Tablet' resembles an open book, and was chosen to represent the importance and lasting grandeur of the written word. It will be placed outside of the Ames Free Library at the west end of the Children's room. The wood is from walnut trees planted along the El Camino Real in California starting in the late 1700s and cut down for various reasons in the early 2000s. El Camino Real is a 600-mile commemorative route connecting the 21 Spanish missions in California along with a number of sub-missions, four presidios, and three pueblos. Its southern end is at Mission San Diego de Alcalá and its northern terminus is at Mission San Francisco Solano The installation is made possible by the generosity of two Easton residents who left funds in their estate plans to the library: Elizabeth Ames and Warren Moffit. Elizabeth served as secretary of the Library's Board of Directors for 20 years, and Warren was a lifelong resident of Easton; he and his family were dedicated patrons of the library. On Thursday July 14th at 11:00 there will be a talk by the artist at the installation site and a reception afterwards at Queset House. We hope you will join us for this celebration of their wonderful generosity and of the arts here in Easton. Until next week, Frank
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Greetings, and a very happy Fourth of July to all! After a rainy start to the long weekend, it looks like it will be all fireworks, beaches, and barbecues on tap for Sunday and Monday! One of the dominant structures in South Easton is the former Morse mill located at 7 Central Street. Sharing a parking lot with Hennesey’s Package Store, the building serves as a landmark for directions to points south. It seems that many people know the building, but with our 1899 Morse Car now on display, it seems a good time to take a look back at that location and then take a look at the same area today. The Morse Privilege, so-called, really began with the arrival of E.J.W. Morse to South Easton in the 1820’s. He partnered with other people to produce cotton thread at various small mills around the area, probably using each of the smaller buildings to perform separate operations in the manufacturing process. This was not very efficient. By at least 1830 Morse moved a small mill from a nearby location (site of Stonehill College) and began to manufacture cotton thread at the Central Street location, very near the dam and the intersection of what is now Water Street. The business grew, and at one time it was the oldest cotton thread company in the United States. Around 1878, a second, larger mill building was added. This building was constructed of brick (the original mill, originally wood and expanded with other wooden structures over the years, stood at the west end of the new building). With a modern building able to hold modern machines, powered by steam and water, the company continued to thrive. Morse Thread was a trusted brand. The company developed, and patented, Silkateen, a thread which produced a silk-like finished product, as well as other inventions and improvements. After two generations, the company was sold to a major thread firm in England, and by the early 1890’s the building no longer was used to produce thread. A third generation Morse, Alfred Bryant Morse, around 1881 built a steam engine with two friends, William Hadwen Ames and Hobart Ames (on display at the Museum, courtesy of the Morse family) and built a larger, second engine a few years later. With an empty factory and lots of ideas (not to mention a high degree of mechanical aptitude and genius - Morse only completed the eighth grade before working in the business) Morse began a company called the Easton Machine Company. That machine shop began production of highly complex, specialized machinery for making lace, taffy, etc. A terrific fire around 1897 destroyed the old wood mill buildings, and heavily damaged the brick building. Morse rebuilt the brick building, extending it towards the dam, and continued production. Around this time, he took an interest in cars. He began tinkering with a prototype that became our Morse car, and even leased the building to the Cameron Brothers for a while as they began to develop their Eclipse steam powered auto. (This later company was undercapitalized, leading to a number of financial issues, moving around, and eventually failing. Another attempt by the brothers produced the Cameron car, again a short-lived venture.) Morse, with the success from his lace-making machinery and a yearly payment from the former sale of the thread business, was in a strong financial position to try car manufacturing. From 1902 to about 1917, several versions of his Morse Car were produced by the Easton Machine Company. The success of his car business, as well as other machine shop business, created a need for more Manufacturing space, so he built a new mill across the street, which later housed Crofoot Gear for many years. Our old photo is taken from a postcard. The caption “Mill No. 1” at the bottom indicates that the second building existed and dates this photo to around 1912. The brick thread factory is the main attraction here, well-maintained, and features the company sign prominently. Central Street runs alongside the building. A chimney rising from the rear indicates the location of a power plant for the factory. Along the front facade of the building, a large door was cut into the brick, and a cement ramp installed to allow automobiles to enter and leave the building. The second floor housed most of the machinery, and the first floor was used for assembly of the cars. Morse could make parts for other cars as well, so this became a very early repair garage for other people to have their early automobiles serviced. Note the peaceful trees that helped to shade the roads. Today, the building stands as a reminder of what once was. Covered with ivy, 7 Central Street now houses people rather than autos. During the Depression, the Morse family consolidated their business into Mill #2, and the old mill was sold to the Brockton Tool Company, who for decades produced plastic and rubber molds for the shoe industry. The 1980’s move by many American shoe companies to off-shore manufacturing left a hole from which the company could not recover, and before 2000 the building was sold. Today it remains a quiet reminder of two once-thriving businesses. Street lights, traffic signals, and stark pavement now surround the plant in the midst of a very busy intersection with Washington Street. For many years I worked right in front of the old car doors and cement ramp. Opening those doors on hot summer days provided at least a little respite from the heat inside the building. At the left of the new photo are a few trees on a lawn. When I worked at Brockton Tool in the 1970’s and into the late 1980’s, the people who owned the property across the street allowed the workers to have their lunch there every day under those trees, giving us a shady and cool place to eat before the factory buzzer went off and called us back inside for our afternoon shift. Until next week, stay well, and stay cool!
Frank Hello! June closes with a beautiful weekend of sun and warm, summer temperatures. This weekend would be terrific for sunning on the beach, working in the yard, cooking out, or taking in a ball game.
Sixty-five years ago that is exactly what was going on at Frothingham Park. In the summer of 1957, someone took a photo of a baseball game being played at Frothingham. The photo is taken from the hill near the Sheridan Street gate, and overlooks the outfield towards home plate. Though the photo is printed in black and white, one can easily see why playing ball at Frothingham Park is such a special experience! The field is well manicured, the basepaths smooth, the infield and outfield grass short and sturdy. Dozens of people are watching from the concrete stands. Others find the shade of the beautiful trees is the best place to watch from. Since the trees are well leafed out, I think this might be a summer game, perhaps our beloved Easton Huskies. How many of us have trekked to the Park to watch the Huskies, or our Oliver Ames High School teams, or Little League teams play? Even better, how many of us played in any of those games? With its beautiful baseball field, shade trees, natural beauty, and welcoming water fountain, Frothingham Park has no equal when it comes to a great place for sports. Today the Park is still a wonderful place to play in, or watch a baseball game. This photo, taken from approximately the same location as the 1957 photo, looks over that same green outfield towards the area of home plate. The field itself, aptly named for the late Robert "Buddy" Wooster who took such great care of the field, the park, and played games there, is as nicely kept as ever. The trees have matured since that 1957 photo was taken, providing even more beauty and shade. Driving by one can still catch a good ballgame, and certainly catch memories of heroics of years past. Does anyone remember Ken MacAfee hitting a ball onto Sheridan Street, over the iron fence? That must have been a truly Ruthian blast! Today the Park provides a safe playspace for young people, basketball, tennis, and pickleball courts, a track and paths for walking. A new pavilion adds a nice piece to an already inviting area. How many people packed a picnic lunch and escaped to the shady places at the Park to escape the summer heat? The Park is many things to many people, and a true treasure to our town since its establishment in 1930 as a gift from Mrs. Mary Ames Frothingham in memory of her late husband, Congressman Louis A. Frothingham. By the way, Mr. Frothingham was an excellent athlete and one of the best baseball players ever at Harvard. During the Great Depression, the Park was an anchor for so many. During this past pandemic, the Park once again proved its importance to so many people as a place to play, a place to relax, and a center of our community. Until next week, stay well, Frank Hello from beautiful Easton! The weather continues to play its cards like a true New England deck – warm one day, then showery and muggy, and today sunny but cool!
My father was a fine man, so it’s easy for me to have good memories of him as Father’s Day approaches. I encourage you to think of a special man who made a difference in your life, whether it was dad, a teacher, a coach, a neighbor, an uncle or grandparent. And men, let’s all be role models for the young ones who are looking up to us. The Museum had a very busy and successful reopening last weekend! Both Saturday and Sunday found our place filled with lots of visitors stopping in to see the Morse car and new exhibits at the Museum. I look forward to our July and August open houses, and catching up with many of you as the summer unfolds. Let me run a few numbers by you today. Can you guess what these represent: 733 44 of 46 19 4 2 3 5 These numbers belong to now retired Oliver Ames High School Girls Basketball Coach Elaine “Laney” Clement-Holbrook, who is being honored next weekend by her alma mater Bridgewater State University. She racked up 733 career wins, and is the winningest girls basketball coach in Massachusetts history; her teams qualified for the state tournament in 44 of 46 years of coaching; she won 19 Hockomock League titles; 4 Division 2 South Sectional Championships, 2 Division 2 Eastern Massachusetts Championships, 3 State Championships (2006, 2010, 2022); and is a member of 5 Halls of Fame (Dedham High School, Bridgewater State University, New England Basketball, Massachusetts Basketball Coaches, and the Oliver Ames High School Hall of Fame.) She was also the Head Coach for the East Team at the 2017 McDonald’s All-American Game in Chicago. Other accolades include the Oswald Tower Award for Professionalism and Ethics, multiple All-Scholastics in regional awards, and she was the first female president of the Massachusetts Basketball Coaches Association. Don’t forget that through all of this, she was an excellent and well-loved biology teacher at OAHS! Next weekend Laney will be honored by Bridgewater State University, Dr. Frederick Clark, President, during Commencement Exercises at Gillette Stadium. As one of four honorees (Dr. Carlos Santiago, U.S. Rep. Ayanna Presley, and Ms. Barbara Stevens are the others) Laney will be recognized as a “stellar student athlete at BSU who went on to a much-heralded coaching career” and whose “record of accomplishment and sustained excellence is unsurpassed.”* President Clark’s message about all of the honorees says “This year we recognize leaders whose life’s work, whether done in the hallowed halls of Congress, basketball courts across the country, in our colleges and universities or on the streets, recognizes the inherent dignity of all persons and has been dedicated to lifting up all people and contributing to a more just, inclusive and equitable society.”* Please join me in congratulating Elaine Clement-Holbrook as she receives the Bridgewater State University Honorary Degree and Distinguished Service Award. It is a well-deserved honor. The image below is from the OAHS 2006 Yearbook and highlights Laney as well as the 2006 State Champions! Until next week, Frank (*Source: Generations of Service: The Retired Faculty Club of Bridgewater State University magazine.) Happy Saturday! And a special Saturday it is! In the 1976 Led Zeppelin film "The Song Remains The Same" Robert Plant quietly voices to his bandmates, "All right, here we go!" And here we go as we celebrate fully reopening the Museum this weekend! We will be here today, Saturday, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., and tomorrow, Sunday, from 1-5 p.m. Come in and see our new look, new displays, and our newest addition, the 1899 Morse Car! I am looking forward to greeting you as we "get up to speed." Rear view of our Morse! The engine is housed in the enclosure right behind the canopy. New exhibits include the Morse family and information on the Morse autos!
Friday morning we hosted The Victorian Society, a summer program for architects, and with Professor Richard Guy Wilson from the University of Virginia led the group of about 30 people in a tour of the Richardson buildings and Unity Church. This is the first tour we have done for them in three years because of Covid. Several people from Europe, as well as one from the Netherlands, were part of this outstanding group. Wishing you all the best, and hoping to see you soon, Frank Happy Saturday, and happy Graduation Day! Please join me in congratulating the Oliver Ames High School Class of 2022 as they receive their hard-earned and well-deserved diplomas today. Best wishes to the entire class, and to those graduating today who worked at the Museum: Eagle Scout Abram Kempner, Hannah Murphy, Antonia Ginis, and Lauren Gilgan! Paul Berry suggested this week’s topic and supplied us with a copy of the old image. From 1893 to 1946, this is what you would have seen in the area nearly opposite 250 Main Street. “Sheep Pasture” was the Easton home of Oliver Ames (1864-1929) and his family. Son of Frederick Lothrop Ames, the Harvard graduate had a very successful career in finance, and even at a young age was able to negotiate with some of the most powerful and influential financial giants of his time. When his father died unexpectedly in 1893, young Oliver was given the task of settling his father’s estate, a duty he carried out with excellence. In 1891 Oliver began purchasing land on the opposite side of Main Street from his father’s “Langwater” estate, and in a few years, completed the purchase of the land that would become his own estate. Though Frederick Law Olmsted was brought in to design the grounds, Oliver himself laid out the estate plots and buildings as he wanted. The locations of the Gate House, carriage house, barns, kennels, and other outbuildings were carefully chosen to be convenient to, but out of sight of the main house. As you can see from the old photo, taken around 1915, the house sat near enough to the road to be a dominant landmark. Designed by the firm of Rotch and Tilden, the half-timbered style mansion overlooked a meadow that swept down towards the lower end of Queset River. At one time sheep grazed in this meadow, giving the house its name. Oliver Ames married Elise West in 1890. The many rooms of the house provided space for a growing family of four children (Elise, Olivia, Oliver, and Richard) and stories of growing up there as children are told by Mrs. Parker (Elise, who married William Parker) in the book Growing Up at Sheep Pasture. The house stood until 1946. Oliver and Elise had passed away by then. Son Oliver died a hero in France during World War I, son Richard, a musician, died in France in the 1930’s. Olivia married Henry Cabot, and Elise after marrying William Parker, moved into her great-grandfather Oliver Ames II’s house “Unity Close.” Following their mother's death in 1945, the summer home at Pride’s Crossing was sold. The property at Sheep Pasture stood empty, and the house was vandalized until finally being torn down in 1946. There is one other important feature in this photo. The very large outcropping of granite on the left had a flagpole on top and at the base, a hickory tree stood for many years. Father Oliver would blow a whistle there and his children would gather for outdoor walks and rides. From a very young age, the children were taught to appreciate the outdoors, and they spent a fair amount of time with family and staff learning about local flora and fauna. This experience would lead to something significant in the years ahead. You might also note, in the old photo, the trolley tracks in the street. One of the nice features picked up here are the cobblestones that held the tracks in place. Today, standing opposite the old main gate, the scene is very different. The wall that defined the entrance to the estate is still standing. The gates are new, but are of the same design as the originals. Gone is the flagpole and hickory tree. The house has been gone more years (76) than it existed (53) though the once finely manicured outdoor terrace is a gathering place for events and photos, with its beautiful view overlooking the meadow, where the Queset River still flows serenely on its path through South Easton. Rhododendrons, here and elsewhere on the drives through the estate, are a lovely site each summer. Trees and brush now obscure the view of the giant rock. However, in 1973, Mrs. Parker made the extraordinary donation of the property to the Natural Resource Trust of Easton, so that the property could continue as a working farm. There, children and residents would have the same opportunity she had as a child to discover the natural world and develop the same love for it that she had. Wishing you all the best, and again with congratulations to our graduates,
Frank Happy Saturday Morning! Early morning showers won’t dampen our plans for the Memorial Day weekend. Many thanks to all who responded to our request for help! We appreciate those who are able to help as we prepare to reopen the Museum on June 11 + 12. Today our "then and now" photo features a prominent Easton landmark, the Soldier’s Monument. Located at the intersection of Center Street and Depot Street, the area was once known as Monument Square. In 1882 the area immediately adjacent to the monument was a busy area. On the northwest corner stood the Town Hall. Across the street, near the site of the current Center School, was the Town Poor Farm, and the original Centre School, now a music and antique shop. There were two churches in the area as well as parsonages. The Town Pound, a place for stray farm animals to be left for claiming, was also here. Depot Street was an important link in colonial times as it connected two early villages, South Easton and Furnace Village, as well as intercepting Bay Road which was one of the “King’s Highways” and a stage coach route. The location of the monument is also very near the geographical center of Easton and that was important once North Easton began to quickly develop with the arrival of Oliver Ames and the shovel company. Following the Civil War, as people returned to their former way of life, the south was heavily devastated with the loss of cities, towns, plantations, railroads and shipping, and was left with a shattered economy. In the north, the physical losses were not so drastic, with a strong war economy and no loss of infrastructure. However, the effect on returning soldiers on both sides was equally devastating. Many suffered medical issues from wounds or sickness and could not perform their prior work. An untold number of soldiers suffered from depression, PTSD, or other emotional inflictions that could not be diagnosed and had no real treatment options. It took a generation to try to begin to heal the land. The assassination of President Lincoln left an open wound for many years that only added to the hurt felt by a slowly healing nation. In Easton it took almost twenty years before thought could be seriously given to erecting a suitable monument to commemorate those who gave their lives to preserve the Union. On Memorial Day 1882 the Soldier’s Monument was dedicated in memory of the forty-seven men who gave their lives in the war, and in honor of all those who made so many sacrifices and survived. The dedication book records that some two thousand people were in attendance. For years platforms were erected as a parade viewing stand for veteran’s speakers, and other dignitaries, and today (excepting the pandemic when people could not gather) appropriate ceremonies continue to be held in remembrance of our Civil War dead. In our old photo, we look at the monument and behind it Center Street running north towards North Easton. There are urban myths about Civil War memorials in the north, many of which feature a soldier. The myth is that the soldier’s look south to keep watch. A survey of Civil War monuments will show that is not entirely true. In Easton’s case, the monument is placed at the main road in the area and established a true center for government and civic activities, as well as overlooking the parade route from the G.A.R. Hall in Eastondale to the Town Hall.
Today’s photo, taken in front of the former Read house, has raised some questions! The entire length of Depot Street has been under construction for two years now, with relocation of power poles, the widening of a heavily traveled road, additional turn lanes, and sidewalks making up the bulk of the work this year. A major component will be the redesign of the intersection of Center Street, Depot Street, Purchase Street, and Porter Street. Maybe it’s my age showing, but traveling south on Center Street to Depot, and turning west, means turning my head nearly backwards to see oncoming traffic, a very uncomfortable experience. Traveling east can mean a lengthy wait for a break in traffic. Those turning in either direction from Purchase Street run into similar issues. In order to accommodate improvements to the intersection, the Soldier’s Monument will be moved some fifteen feet to the west, allowing Center Street to be relocated to better align with other streets. Lights and turning lanes will certainly be a welcome improvement. The scaffolding around the monument is the first step in preparing it for moving. Untouched since its installation in 1882, the process of moving our memorial will be a delicate one as engineers study how it was originally assembled, how much of it should be dismantled, and of course providing a proper footing and area around the base for viewing. In a few months this familiar spot will change form, and hopefully for the better. Stay well, and enjoy Memorial Day, Frank Happy Saturday morning from historic Easton! The overcast sky and early morning rain will soon burn off as Easton looks to set a record for high temperatures today and tomorrow. Time to get out the fans and air conditioners! On Sunday afternoon OAHS senior Abram Kempner will officially receive the distinguished rank of Eagle Scout. Abram’s project involved creating an online tour of historic spots one can see while walking around North Easton. He took photos, did research, and created this digital platform, which can be found on our website, and can be added to in the future. Working with Abram was a bright spot during the pandemic, and attending his Eagle Scout ceremony is something I am honored to be doing. Thank you, Abram, for a job well done and congratulations on an honor that is well-deserved! We might travel by trolley to North Easton for today's then and now photo. Our picture today was taken just about 1900. If you were to stand on the sidewalk in front of what is now 11 Center Street, and look north towards the intersection of Center, Lincoln and Main Street, you would find yourself in the same location our photographer was standing one hundred and twenty-two years ago. The subject of the photo is clearly the young lad with the horn and cap gun, wildly happy to have his photo taken with his favorite toys. Unfortunately for us, we do not know the boy’s name, nor do we know the name of the photographer. As delightful as this photo is, there is a lot to be discovered in the background. Your eyes might be immediately drawn to the trolley car. This is one of the Easton and Mansfield line trolleys, and the sign on the front indicates it is beginning its journey from North Easton center to Mansfield. You can see the track bed running along the east side of Center Street. The building on the right has a long history. First built around 1870, it was occupied for many years by Elijah Spooner, a tin ware dealer. The building was originally thought to be three stories high, though it is clearly two stories high here, and besides the tin and stove shop on the first floor, provided living space for the Spooner family until they bought a house further down Center Street a few years later. Once that happened, in 1882 the second floor became the home of the “Queset Club” of leading merchants and men in North Easton. The group met in nicely appointed rooms, complete with a pool table and newspapers, “for the benefit and amusements of the members,” of which Spooner was the first president. Various groups used the hall as well. The G.A.R. Post 52 of South Easton met there following a fire that burned their hall in the mid-1880’s. Other local clubs and organizations such as the Sons of Temperance met there too. When this photo was taken the building was occupied by Ryder’s Store, one of many small stores in the center. By 1903 George W. Swanson, a Swedish immigrant, ran a lunch room and pool parlor here, serving spirits as well, into the 1940’s. The building was occupied by the Betty Jean Shop for a number of years, and today houses a yoga studio. The top two floors were removed, possibly following a fire, and the building has been extensively remodeled several times over the past fifty years. Just to the left of that building is a wood frame house. The location of the house in the photo is misleading. At first glance, it looks like the house is on the site of the former telephone building at the corner of Center and Main Street. It is actually across the street, near the site of the current Sundell’s Citgo Station. Owned in the early 1800’s by one of the Andrew’s families in North Easton, the house was home to the Waite family when this photo was taken. A careful look to the left of the trolley will reveal the water fountain that once stood in the intersection, and cupolas on top of the Ames Shovel Factories overlook the entire scene. If that isn’t enough for your eyes to take in, look at the amount of people in the photo. The period dress is always interesting. Can you find the bicycle hiding in this photo? Today the location appears different, but still very familiar. The trolley tracks no longer run along Center Street, and the brick facade of Harry J. D. Sundell’s Gas Station reminds us of the advances in transportation that hastened the end of the trolley cars. The brick New England Telephone and Telegraph Company building, erected in 1941, now stands right at the corner of the intersection. You might remember it as being the telephone office, but most of us will remember the building as home of the North Easton (later Easton) Co-Operative Bank, which today is the Bank of Easton. The shutters on the building still retain the distinctive “Bell System” cutout, a reminder of what purpose the building was first built for. On the right is the heavily remodeled former Spooner tin shop and Betty Jean Shop, where we bought school supplies and gym uniforms – remember those? Until next week, stay well, and stay cool!
Frank Hello from sunny Easton! The sun is shining brightly this morning as children gather at Shovel Shop Pond for the annual Easton Lions Club Fishing Derby. Hopefully the fish will cooperate and provide fun and fodder for some good fishing stories and memories for these young outdoors boys and girls. This week we venture back into the wilds of the area once known as “Poquanticut” as we take a look at Poquanticut Avenue yesterday and today. The road was accepted by the Town in 1763, and probably began life as a cart path as early as the 1750’s when there was a need to connect the early foundry industry at Furnace Village with supplies of bog iron and charcoal makers to the north and east of the village. The 1825 map of Easton clearly shows a well-developed road with a handful of houses stretched out along its path. One of these houses was built by the Harlow family before 1825. Called the Tisdale Harlow farm, the house was probably built by Reuben Harlow (1773-1823) who married Hannah Fuller before 1800. When their son Tisdale Harlow (1804-1883) was born there were two older siblings, so it is likely that the main portion of the house was built by that time. Following Reuben’s death, the house and farm were inhabited by Tisdale, then his son Tisdale Jesse Harlow (1860-1927). His son Tisdale Harlow (1904-1986) whom I knew for many years, told me that his great-grandfather Reuben built the old farm house on Poquanticut Avenue. The various maps of Easton (1825, 1855, 1871, 1886) all attach the name Harlow to the property. The 1895 map changes the name to William McLeod, who purchased the farm from the Harlow family and later sold it to the Wilbur family, who still owns and runs a farming operation there. When I was a kid in the 1960’s, the farm was called Clover Valley Farm, and was an active dairy farm for many years prior. I also remember a small meat packing plant there for a few years. Today, after a number of years boarding horses and operating a riding stable, the farm has returned to its roots with a herd of cattle populating the fields along Poquanticut Avenue and Chestnut Street. This photo, taken before 1900, looks towards Chestnut Street which lurks just behind the barn. You can see the farmhouse on the right, and the dairy barn on the left. Dead center are two small storage buildings. Although they appear to be in the middle of the road, they are not, as the road takes a hard corner directly in front of them. One gets a good feel for the rural life in Easton that once permeated much of the Town. Picture, if you will, George White and his band of thieves galloping through here on a raid, or returning to their nearby hideout with stolen goods, through an area that was sparsely populated and already had a poor reputation. Picture if you will one hundred years later when men in cars, disguised in robes, drove their cars through here and the back roads of Mansfield in the years before the Great Depression. Their “hideout” was not far away either. Today this area retains much of its rural beauty. The farmhouse is partially hidden on the right by growth along the road, but farmyards and fields on both sides of the road are evident that farming still proudly takes place there by hard-working people. The old dairy barn and a silo stand on the left, and you can see the later long addition to the barn as well. The two old buildings in the center were replaced by a cement block building in the 1950’s. That bend in the road caused a few headaches over the years as cars would not navigate the turn and run into the buildings. When the cement garage was built, several cars ran into the corner of the building, prompting the family to place a large boulder there. Unfortunately, at least one car hit the boulder so hard that it was pushed into the corner of the building. The farm continues nonetheless, and it is the last vestige of the many farms that once populated Easton. Hopefully that will continue for many more years to come.
Until next time, stay well, Frank Hello and a Happy Mother’s Day to all! This weekend let us take time to honor our mothers, grandmothers, aunts, teachers, mentors, and other women who were role models for all of us. Today we take a look at that neat village called Eastondale. Nestled between Washington Street and the Brockton and West Bridgewater town lines, the Eastondale neighborhood has always been a close-knit community. Many years ago, besides homes and farms, you would find within the neighborhood a store, post office, church, social clubs, trolley service, and a railroad depot and freight house among other things. Today Eastondale is gently filled with handsome homes and nicely landscaped vistas. The post office, trolley and train may be gone, but fortunately we have a terrific photo that preserves evidence of two modes of transportation that were important to the neighborhood, and Easton. The photo below, taken around 1910-20 by local photographer Webster W. Bolton, captures the moment a trolley passed below the railroad bridge in Eastondale. That’s right, there was a railroad trestle over Turnpike Street and an underpass for the trolley! A little explanation is required for this. While train service had been established through Easton following the end of the Civil War, there were few connectors between main lines. As the demand for freight grew, connecting lines called “spurs” were established. One of these was a line from the main track in Easton to South Easton, through Eastondale, and into the Matfield section of West Bridgewater. Sometimes called the “Shovel Handle” route, it crossed Pine Street, High Street and Turnpike Street on its way out of town. This spur appears to have been in use in the very early 1900’s. Meanwhile, a new mode of transportation was quickly growing across America. Trolley cars began appearing in Easton in the late 1880’s, and by the turn of the 20th Century there were four trolley car companies operating lines in and around Easton. One of these, the Taunton and Brockton Street Railway Company, began a route from the trolley car barn at West and Belmont Streets in Brockton in 1897. The route ran west along Belmont Street, turned south onto Washington Street at Morse’s Corner, turned east onto Depot Street, and then turned south along Turnpike Street. The tracks ran parallel very near the edge of the road or sometimes in the roadway itself. Trolley service provided more flexibility in travel. With trolley companies merging lines and providing multiple connections, one could easily travel by trolley to practically anywhere. Soon trolleys began moving freight as well as passengers, and even provided mail service three times a day. The competition for business did not sit well with railroads. Railroads did not allow trolley tracks to cross their own tracks. This created an expensive dilemma for trolley companies, who either had to go over or under the railroad tracks. So, along quiet Turnpike Street, an underpass was dug and a bridge erected to allow both rail service and trolley service to co-exist ( the trolley. The photo here shows one of the “Ghost Line” cars (so called because the off-white color cars created a pallor) in the underpass with the railroad bridge above it. You are looking north towards Brockton, and between Hill and High Streets. The railroad spur was discontinued before 1930, and trolley service gave way to the automobile. By 1932, neither train nor trolley ran through Eastondale, and by the end of World War II all tracks and the bridge had been removed and the street leveled. Today, there is barely any reminder of either the train or trolley traffic that once served a busy neighborhood. This photo was taken near 107 Turnpike Street, looking north towards High Street which would be in the distance on the left. On the right near the center of the photo is a newer street called Marisa Drive, and it is here that the underpass and railroad bridge once inhabited the area. All that remains is a slight dip in the road, just at the intersection of Turnpike Street and Marisa Drive, to remind us of what was once a very busy and industrious neighborhood. Until next week, stay well!
Frank |
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Anne Wooster Drury Archives
June 2024
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