HOPEDALE, MASSACHUSETTS
Hopedale,MA
This site is an attempt to relate a little of the history of Hopedale, Massachusetts. The town was settled in 1842 as a Utopian socialist commune and evolved into the home of the Draper Corporation, at one time the world's largest manufacturer of automatic cotton looms. Hopedale has an area of only five square miles, a population of about 6,000 and is located in the Blackstone Valley in south-central Massachusetts. Massachusetts maps showing Hopedale's location.
While this site originally included only Hopedale history, since 2005 some current stories and pictures have been added. Most of them can be seen by going to the Recent Pictures Menu on the right
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To offer comments and suggestions or to just let me know that you've been looking at this site, go to the GUESTBOOK.
If you have additional information, corrections or opinions on any of the material here, e-mail me and I'll add your thoughts to the site.
If you'd like to receive stories of the history of Hopedale by email, twice a month, let me know and I'll add you to the list.
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NEW.
Hopedale in October.
Oktoberfest......and more Oktoberfest.
Little Red Shop grand opening event October 2.
October 1 Email Story - Dynamite at the Red Shop.
Hopedale High School Class of 1959 Reunion.
September 15 Email Story - Nipmuc Rod and Gun Club.
Day in the Park.
September 1 Email Story - The Water Department.
Little Red Shop Museum Grand Reopening/Oktoberfest.
Oktoberfest vendor form.
With the water problem that Milford has been experiencing for almost two weeks, now (as of August 20), I thought this would be a good time for the story of when Hopedale severed it's connection (partly, anyway) from the Milford Water Company and formed its own department.
Colcord Machine Company.
First event at the Little Red Shop Museum since the renovation - a meeting of the Milford Area Chamber of Commerce.
Red Shop Museum requests for assistance.
Celtics in Hopedale - Three news articles.
Red Shop gift shop items are now availble through this site. They include Red Shop Christmas cards, books, t-shirts, DVDs, note cards, Red Shop prints, and more.
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HOPEDALE BUSINESSES
TWM Systems - Customized computers and services
Howes Welding - Site work, shop repair, fabrications
Little White Market - Photos and flyer
AllinOneFunFavors.com - Shower and holiday favors, etc.
CandyUnderCover.com - Candy bars, etc. with personalized wrappers
Appell Engineering - Computer security consulting
David Delaney Entertainment - Disc jockey
MENUS
Buildings, Businesses, Cemeteries, Churches and Town Departments
Draper Corporation and Draper Family
Group Pictures from decades ago
Hopedale Community - 1841 - 1856
Hopedale History Email Stories - May 15, 2007 to present.
Hopedale Reminiscences A dozen stories written in 1910, by people who, as children, lived in the Hopedale Utopian commune of the 1840s and 1850s.
Hopedale on YouTube - Video and slide shows.
Links to Hopedale related sites
Little Red Shop - history and pictures
Little Red Shop interior - photos of looms, etc.
Little Red Shop renovation - photos from each week of the three month project.
Little Red Shop Museum website
Maps - maps of Hopedale going back to the 1850s.
Memories - individual and family stories
Now and Then - pictures taken a century or so apart
Park, Pond and Sports
Recent Pictures Through 2007 2008 2009
Short Stories and Pictures
War Veterans
Wildflowers of Hopedale
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MISCELLANEOUS STORIES
Hopedale History Chronology
Short Biographies of Prominent Hopedale Citizens A Brief History of Hopedale (From the book, Images of America: Hopedale.)
A History of South Hopedale
Origins of Street and Place Names
Hopedale, 1881
Milford, Hopedale, 1880 - 1930
The Separation from Milford
Hopedale As I Found It (Hopedale in 1910)
Hopedale Inventors
Underground Railroad???
Mill Town or Shop Village?
Spindleville
White City
The Dutcher Family
Gilbert Thompson, National Geographic Society founder and fingerprinting pioneer.
Sleepy Little Town A song about Hopedale.
Recent Deaths (This may be useful to those of you who don't receive the Milford News.)
Aerosmith
Questions about Hopedale history.
Can you make changes to your house if it's in a National Register District? Find the answer here.
Click on the picture to see a few photos of the Oktoberfest..