Gleasondale, Massachusetts: Difference between revisions
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{{short description|Village in Massachusetts, United States}} |
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{{Use mdy dates|date=July 2023}} |
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[[Image:1888 Central Mass.gif|thumb|300px|1888 [[Central Massachusetts Railroad]] map]] |
[[Image:1888 Central Mass.gif|thumb|300px|1888 [[Central Massachusetts Railroad]] map]] |
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| ⚫ | '''Gleasondale''' is a village straddling the border between the towns of [[Hudson, Massachusetts|Hudson]] and [[Stow, Massachusetts|Stow]] in [[Middlesex County, Massachusetts|Middlesex County]], [[Massachusetts]], United States. It is located along the [[Assabet River]]. For many decades it was home to various mills, though it is now primarily residential. According to the [[Geographic Names Information System|Geographic Names Information System (GNIS)]], Gleasondale is a "populated place" named after Benjamin W. Gleason and Samuel J. Dale.<ref>{{cite gnis|id=611231|name=Gleasondale|access-date=2009-05-04}}</ref> |
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[[Image:Gravity Rock 4, Gleasondale MA.jpg|thumb|right|300px]] |
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| ⚫ | '''Gleasondale''' is a village |
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| ⚫ | Until its closure in 1965, the Gleasondale |
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==History== |
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This settlement began circa 1750 with the construction of a dam and lumber mill on the Assabet River. The area was originally known as Randall's Mills. In 1813, the Rock Bottom Cotton & Woolen Company built a wood-framed textile mill at Randall's Mills and the emerging village and new post office became known as Rock Bottom. The current five-story brick mill building was built in 1854 after the original wooden building burned. The name of the village was changed to Gleasondale in 1898. |
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[[Native Americans in the United States|Indigenous people]] lived in what became central Massachusetts for thousands of years prior to European settlement. Indigenous oral histories, archaeological evidence, and European settler documents attest to historic settlements of the [[Nipmuc]] people near and along the Assabet River.<ref name="johnson1">{{cite web |last1=Johnson |first1=Eric S. |title=Ancient Winters: The Archaeology of the Flagg Swamp Rockshelter |url=https://www.sec.state.ma.us/mhc/mhcarch/archresources/Ancient_Winters_REPORT.pdf |publisher=[[Massachusetts Historical Commission]] |access-date=23 July 2020 |location=Boston |date=2011}}</ref> Nipmuc settlements on the Assabet intersected with the territories of three other related [[Algonquian languages|Algonquian-speaking]] peoples: the [[Massachusett]], [[Pennacook]], and [[Wampanoag]].<ref name="mcadow105">[[#mcadow1990|McAdow 1990]]: pp. 105–109</ref> |
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European settlement in what would become Gleasondale began around 1750 when a certain Whitman family and Ebenezer Graves constructed a dam and lumber mill on the [[Assabet River]].<ref name="davidmark"/> The Whitmans—who owned the land and mills—sold them to Timothy Gibson in 1770, who in turn sold them to Abraham Randall a few years later.<ref name="davidmark"/> For many years the area was known as '''Randall's Mills'''.<ref name="davidmark"/> In 1813 the Rock Bottom Cotton & Woolen Company built a wood-framed [[textile mill]] at Randall's Mills and the emerging village and new post office became known as '''Rock Bottom'''.<ref name="davidmark"/><ref name="mcadow72">[[#mcadow1990|McAdow 1990]]: p. 72</ref> In 1815 Randall sold the mill to Joel Cranston and Silas Felton, business partners based in Feltonville, a village of [[Marlborough, Massachusetts]], which would later become the town of Hudson.<ref name="davidmark"/> In 1830 Cranston and Felton sold the mill to Benjamin Poor.<ref name="davidmark"/> In 1849 business partners Benjamin W. Gleason and Samuel J. Dale purchased the mill.<ref name="davidmark"/><ref name="mcadow72"/> They built the existing five-story brick mill building in 1854 after the original wooden building burned on May 8, 1852.<ref name="davidmark"/><ref name="mcadow72"/> In 1898 the village was renamed Gleasondale in honor of Gleason and Dale, and the brick mill building became known as Gleasondale Mills.<ref name="davidmark"/><ref name="mcadow72"/> |
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On 31 March 1911 Phineas Feather—a former superintendent at Gleasondale Mills—attempted to murder mill owner Alfred Gleason with a pistol after confronting him about money he felt Gleason owed him.<ref name="davidmark"/> Another superintendent, Charles E. Roberts, disarmed Feather but was wounded in the struggle.<ref name="davidmark"/> A certain Robert J. Bevis and other individuals intervened further; Bevis and Feather were also wounded.<ref name="davidmark"/> No one died from their injuries, and after a stint at [[Bridgewater State Hospital]] Feather was released in 1915.<ref name="davidmark"/> |
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| ⚫ | Until its closure in 1965, the Gleasondale Station—one of two train stations in Hudson—served the village. It was originally operated by the [[Central Massachusetts Railroad|Central Massachusetts Railroad Company]], and later by [[Boston and Maine Corporation|Boston & Maine]]. The station's name is printed as "'''Rocky-bottom'''" in an 1888 map of the Central Massachusetts Railroad.<ref name="davidmark">{{cite web |last1=Mark |first1=David A. |title=Gleasondale, MA, aka Rock Bottom |url=http://www.maynardlifeoutdoors.com/2018/10/gleasondale-ma-aka-rock-bottom.html |website=Maynard Life Outdoors and Hidden History of Maynard |access-date=23 July 2020 |date=17 October 2018}}</ref> |
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| ⚫ | Today Gleasondale has a few residential buildings, plus a small industrial complex in the old mill buildings.<ref name="davidmark"/><ref name="mcadow72"/> It does not have a large enough population to support a post office, and uses the same zip code as Stow, 01775. The dam remains, even though it no longer provides hydropower.<ref name="davidmark"/> |
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{{reflist}} |
{{reflist}} |
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==References== |
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* {{cite book |last1=McAdow |first1=Ron |title=The Concord, Sudbury and Assabet Rivers: A Guide to Canoeing, Wildlife and History |date=1990 |publisher=Bliss Publishing Company, Inc. |location=Marlborough, MA |isbn=0-9625144-0-3 |edition=First |ref=mcadow1990}} |
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==External links== |
==External links== |
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*[ |
*[https://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&source=s_q&hl=en&geocode=&q=gleasondale,+ma&sll=37.0625,-95.677068&sspn=33.29802,56.601563&ie=UTF8&ll=42.423837,-71.508894&spn=0.030285,0.055275&z=14 Gleasondale, MA at Google Maps] |
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*[http://massachusetts.hometownlocator.com/ma/middlesex/gleasondale.cfm Gleasondale Profile at HomeTownLocator.com] |
*[http://massachusetts.hometownlocator.com/ma/middlesex/gleasondale.cfm Gleasondale Profile at HomeTownLocator.com] |
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{{Middlesex County, Massachusetts}} |
{{Middlesex County, Massachusetts}} |
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{{authority control}} |
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[[Category:Villages in Middlesex County, Massachusetts]] |
[[Category:Villages in Middlesex County, Massachusetts]] |
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Revision as of 03:20, 16 April 2024
Gleasondale is a village straddling the border between the towns of Hudson and Stow in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States. It is located along the Assabet River. For many decades it was home to various mills, though it is now primarily residential. According to the Geographic Names Information System (GNIS), Gleasondale is a "populated place" named after Benjamin W. Gleason and Samuel J. Dale.[1]
History
Indigenous people lived in what became central Massachusetts for thousands of years prior to European settlement. Indigenous oral histories, archaeological evidence, and European settler documents attest to historic settlements of the Nipmuc people near and along the Assabet River.[2] Nipmuc settlements on the Assabet intersected with the territories of three other related Algonquian-speaking peoples: the Massachusett, Pennacook, and Wampanoag.[3]
European settlement in what would become Gleasondale began around 1750 when a certain Whitman family and Ebenezer Graves constructed a dam and lumber mill on the Assabet River.[4] The Whitmans—who owned the land and mills—sold them to Timothy Gibson in 1770, who in turn sold them to Abraham Randall a few years later.[4] For many years the area was known as Randall's Mills.[4] In 1813 the Rock Bottom Cotton & Woolen Company built a wood-framed textile mill at Randall's Mills and the emerging village and new post office became known as Rock Bottom.[4][5] In 1815 Randall sold the mill to Joel Cranston and Silas Felton, business partners based in Feltonville, a village of Marlborough, Massachusetts, which would later become the town of Hudson.[4] In 1830 Cranston and Felton sold the mill to Benjamin Poor.[4] In 1849 business partners Benjamin W. Gleason and Samuel J. Dale purchased the mill.[4][5] They built the existing five-story brick mill building in 1854 after the original wooden building burned on May 8, 1852.[4][5] In 1898 the village was renamed Gleasondale in honor of Gleason and Dale, and the brick mill building became known as Gleasondale Mills.[4][5]
On 31 March 1911 Phineas Feather—a former superintendent at Gleasondale Mills—attempted to murder mill owner Alfred Gleason with a pistol after confronting him about money he felt Gleason owed him.[4] Another superintendent, Charles E. Roberts, disarmed Feather but was wounded in the struggle.[4] A certain Robert J. Bevis and other individuals intervened further; Bevis and Feather were also wounded.[4] No one died from their injuries, and after a stint at Bridgewater State Hospital Feather was released in 1915.[4]
Until its closure in 1965, the Gleasondale Station—one of two train stations in Hudson—served the village. It was originally operated by the Central Massachusetts Railroad Company, and later by Boston & Maine. The station's name is printed as "Rocky-bottom" in an 1888 map of the Central Massachusetts Railroad.[4]
Today Gleasondale has a few residential buildings, plus a small industrial complex in the old mill buildings.[4][5] It does not have a large enough population to support a post office, and uses the same zip code as Stow, 01775. The dam remains, even though it no longer provides hydropower.[4]
Notes
- ^ "Gleasondale". Geographic Names Information System. United States Geological Survey, United States Department of the Interior. Retrieved May 4, 2009.
- ^ Johnson, Eric S. (2011). "Ancient Winters: The Archaeology of the Flagg Swamp Rockshelter" (PDF). Boston: Massachusetts Historical Commission. Retrieved July 23, 2020.
- ^ McAdow 1990: pp. 105–109
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p Mark, David A. (October 17, 2018). "Gleasondale, MA, aka Rock Bottom". Maynard Life Outdoors and Hidden History of Maynard. Retrieved July 23, 2020.
- ^ a b c d e McAdow 1990: p. 72
References
- McAdow, Ron (1990). The Concord, Sudbury and Assabet Rivers: A Guide to Canoeing, Wildlife and History (First ed.). Marlborough, MA: Bliss Publishing Company, Inc. ISBN 0-9625144-0-3.
External links
42°24′22″N 71°31′36″W / 42.4062°N 71.5267°W
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