Marlborough Melange

From Dave Brigham:

I've explored a handful of former mill and factory towns in the eastern half of Massachusetts over the years: Waltham (again, and yet again); Hudson; Clinton; Maynard. Trust me, there will be others. The former shoe factory town of Marlborough, however, is more than just a place to stomp around for me. As I recently wrote about, some of my ancestors are buried in this little city about 30 miles west of Boston (see April 27, 2019, "On the Brigham Trail").

I spent a few hours spread across three visits checking out much of the downtown and other spots around Marlborough. I wish I could say I hit every important site in town, but I didn't. Let's check out what I found.

In the Old Common Cemetery where I found some of my ancestors, I also found this headstone, the likes of which I haven't seen in the countless cemeteries I've trod through over the years.

"FOUR PRAYING INDIANS WHO REST WITHIN THE ANCESTRAL PLANTING FIELD," reads the vertical marker. "FOUR NATIVE AMERICANS," reads the horizontal stone under what appear to be two peace pipes, "DIED 1665 DISTURBED 1951 REBURIED 1992." So-called "praying Indians" were those natives who were converted to Christianity. When the English began moving into what would become Marlborough it was inhabited by "a small defenseless band of natives of about fifty in number," per this history on the city's official web site, which details how the relationship between the colonists and the natives evolved from supposed harmony, through various battles and imprisonments, to death, disease and dispersal for the natives.

By the time of the Revolutionary War, the colonists were more concerned with fighting their British overlords than the scattered natives who were still in New England. None other than Founding Father Numero Uno, George Washington, passed through Marlborough in 1775 on his way to take over the Continental Army, according to local legend (I've written about this event before; see April 20, 2016, "Washington Walked Here," about Waltham). So the Marlborough Historical Society (I believe) erected a plaque along Route 20 in the southwest area of town, near Route 495:

A related event is memorialized in the center of Marlborough, in front of the former high school on Main Street. The plaque in the photo below tells us that Gen. Henry Knox passed this way in the winter of 1775-1776 to deliver to Gen. Washington "the train of artillery from Fort Ticonderoga used to force the British Army to evacuate Boston." I also wrote about this in the above-linked article about Washington's journey.)

OK, let's get busy checking out all sorts of great old buildings, churches, memorials, signs, retired ski slope machinery and much more.

Near the Knox plaque along Main Street stands Marlborough's impressive World War I monument.

(Erected in 1923, the memorial was sculpted by John G. Hardy, per this Waymarking post.)

According to the Waymarking post, the cross the doughboy is carrying is to mark a grave. So -- bad segue warning! -- let's move from crosses to churches.

This is a so-so picture of an incredible building. The First Baptist Church of Marlborough went up in 1887, 19 years after the congregation formed. Located at the intersection of Witherbee, Main and Mechanics streets, the Queen Ann-style church was designed by H.M. Francis, "who also worked on public libraries, commercial buildings and other churches," according to this Community Advocate article. I've never seen a church like this. I find it stunning, and I'd love to get inside. While the current congregation is small, the church rents space out to other worship groups.

Located on the opposite corner of Witherbee and Mechanic streets from the soaring, ornate Baptist church is the much more humble Marlborough Assembly of God, which serves the area's Hispanic community, which is about 13% of the city's population.

(I'm guessing this building, which is now a church, used to be a bank, as I spotted an old-school vault alarm box near the front door.)

I took pictures of a few more churches, but there are plenty of others, from traditional houses of worship to ones housed in former storefronts. Below is Holy Trinity Anglican Church, which for five years has congregated in the former St. Ann's Catholic Church.

According to the linked article above from the Community Advocate, this area of Marlborough, French Hill, "has a long history of ethnic diversity. It was named for the French-speaking Canadians who originally settled there centuries ago, and St. Ann's was established by Italian Catholics in the 1920s. The working-class neighborhood is now represented by a wide variety of cultures, including a large Latino population." The yellow building on the right is the church's community center.

The last church I want to feature is known as the Saints Anargyroi Greek Orthodox Church.

(The church community purchased this property in 1924, and erected this wonderful sanctuary in December 1925.)

As the quote from above indicates, Marlborough has long welcomed immigrants, like every mill and factory town in New England. The city became so well known for its shoe factories that its official seal was decorated with a factory, a shoe box, and a pair of boots when it was incorporated as a city in 1890, according to Wikipedia. According to this 2017 article in the Main Street Journal, Marlborough was once considered the second largest shoe manufacturing town in the world. My ancestor Samuel Brigham is credited by some with founding both the shoe making and tanning industries in Marlborough, around 1700. His operation was on a small scale, so others are given credit for starting shoe making on a larger scale in the 1800's.

At one time there were nearly 20 such factories, including the massive Boyd & Corey Shoe Factory, which, according to the above linked article, once "covered one and a half acres on Main Street, opposite the old fire station, which is the current home of the Vin Bin." Check out this link to see a photo of the Boyd & Corey factory. Further down in this post you will see a photo of that old fire station, but you won't see many of the old factories, which were largely torn down during urban renewal efforts last century. I wondered as I drove and walked through Marlborough just what had happened to these old factories, as I knew that shoes were a vital economic driver here. Now I know. I found one former shoe factory on my visits and former housing for plant workers. I also found a factory for which I haven't been able to pin down a history, but which I assume related to shoes or textiles.

In the photo above we see the former Wood-Willard Building, which dates to the 1890's. It is located next to the terminus of the Assabet River Trail, which stretches through Acton, Hudson, Maynard and Stow. The old factory complex is currently for sale. Below are some detail shots, if you're interested in purchasing this old joint.

Another former shoe shop not too far away from the Wood-Willard Building was converted to condos five years ago.

Below is a somewhat disappointing photo of the Frye Building, which dates to 1892. The sun was tough that afternoon, folks.

This building once housed workers for the Frye boot factory, which no longer stands. The company was founded in 1863 on Elm Street, which isn't far from this building. The Frye building eventually became a YMCA and then the Hotel Preston. It is now home to apartments.

Heading south on Route 85 out of downtown in the waning daylight I came across this building.

Known as the Design Pak Lofts, this apartment complex dates to 1922, according to a realtor promotional video I found online. This building is known historically as the Dennison Manufacturing Co. Paper Box Factory. It was owned by that company until 1969, per Wikipedia. After Dennison left, a subsidiary of Dennison, Design Pak, was based in the building. In 2007, the building was converted into apartments. The building was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 2008.

OK, I wanna get back to the main drag. As I mentioned above, the Boyd & Corey factory once loomed across from the former fire station and police court. Here's that municipal building, on the corner of Main and Bolton streets, now home to a wine and cheese store.

Working my way west on the same side of Main Street, I walked past a parking lot and a newer building before I saw this little beauty.

(Built in 1895, this place has been home to a package store called Pastille Liquors, and a convenience store called Pete's On the Main - which is now closed, I believe - among other businesses. There are apartments above the retail space.)

Continuing on, I came upon another grand building. Gotta love that late 19th century architecture!

(This is the Temple Building, circa 1880. A former hotel on upper floors was converted to apartments. Ronald Brigham, not a direct ancestor of mine but surely somehow related, once ran a bookstore at the right side of the building. He endowed the Brigham Trust, which annually awards funds to benefit the greater Marlborough community. The building has Second Empire styling, with a mansard roof that is punctured at the center of the main facade by a two-bay arched projecting with decorative brickwork. No, I'm not an architecture savant. I stole that from here.)

In one of the building's doorways I saw this small ghost sign.

(I think I can see the word "HOUSE" near the bottom.)

Right next to the Temple Building is the Warren Block, home to Welly's Restaurant, which looks really great.

(Again, I turn to Mapio: this "is a historic commercial block... built in 1891 for Winslow Warren, owner of the local railway express. The building was designed to house office spaces on most of the first and second floors, and facilities of the local YMCA, including a gymnasium and reading room. The building's facade features a distinctive basket-weave style of brickwork.)

On the outer, west-facing wall of Welly's I saw this little ghost sign.

(I think I can make out the words "WILL" and "ESTATE," so perhaps this was a law firm ad. Or it could be "REAL" and "ESTATE" and therefore a realtor ad.)

Across the street from Welly's is city hall.

(Completed in 1906, this beautiful Beaux Arts building replaced the smaller Marlborough Town House, which burned in 1902. According to a Massachusetts Historical Commission report, "a committee under Mayor Frederick Muldoon hired architects Francis R. Allen, Charles Collens, and J. Lawrence Berry...to construct a building worthy of Marlborough's recent status as a city. The film of Allen & Collens, which specialized in churches, is known best for the Gothic style work it produced under various partners from the 1890's through the first third of the twentieth century. Among its other buildings are the Riverside Church in New York City and the 1910 Andover Hall at Harvard.")

A little further down Main Street, back on the other side, is the former Peoples National Bank.

(Currently a Santander branch, the former Peoples National Bank building dates to the 1920s.)

Next door is this solid citizen, which has a familial connection to its neighbor.

(Now home to Amalia's Hair Studio, 187 Main Street dates to 1892, and was the first structure raised for Peoples National Bank.)

Directly across from the two former Peoples National Bank buildings is the Corey Building, as seen in the sun-blasted photo below.

(Built in 1865, the Corey Building appears significantly different than it did when it was erected. Originally there was a hotel up top and retail space below, but a fire damaged much of the building in 1898. It was rebuilt in 1900.)

There are plenty of buildings between the Corey and Peoples buildings and the head of Main Street where the amazing First Baptist Church stands, but I wasn't much interested in them. But when I saw the former Windsor House / Middleton Building / MacDonald Hotel, I was quite happy with this three-fer.

(#1. Great sign for the MacDonald Hotel, which I believe is still open. I assume it's a residential joint.)

(#2. Ghost sign for the former Windsor House, which, prior to the MacDonald, occupied the upper floors of this building from at least 1885 until the early years of the 20th century.)

(#3. Named building - the Middleton building. Dating to 1882 and built by leading shoe manufacturer John O'Connell, this is home to the MacDonald Hotel and former home to the Windsor House. O'Connell named it after the town in Ireland where he was born, according to this Massachusetts Historical Commission document, which is the source for much of my reporting in this post.)

Across Main Street from the Middleton building is this funky little place.

(Built in 1916, 7 Mechanic Street is home to a branch office of Marathon Staffing, a temp agency with office in eight states.)

Just a few blocks up Mechanic Street from this building is Lincoln Street, which is a main thoroughfare in the city's French Hill neighborhood, referenced above. Here are a few shots from that area.

(The Prospector is called "the Cheers of Marlborough" by one regular on TripAdvisor. The bar/restaurant has been open for more than 40 years.)

(I love this window.)

Located at the corner of Lincoln and Pleasant streets, this place has seen better days, but the beauty still shines through.

(People with a better sense of architecture than I have tell me this building appears to be from the 1840's. According to Zillow, there are nine bedrooms and seven bathrooms, which have been split among apartments. I'm guessing this place was built by a shoe manufacturing baron. Lalo's Mexican Restaurant is tacked on to the back of this house.)

For a closer look at the restaurant space, check out this video:

About a block away from this big old house is the Pleasant Street Fire Station, which was erected in 1895 and is quite impressive.

Heading east on Lincoln Street, I stopped in my tracks at this place.

(The former armory is privately owned but considered by many in Marlborough to be too significant historically to be demolished, which is something the owner has discussed with city officials. The property has been on and off the market over the past several years, and things have been tense. I don't know when the armory was built. It looks to be of similar vintage to one in Waltham that I wrote about a few years ago. That one dates to 1907, and has also been vacant for years as neighbors battle the developer that owns it [see October 20, 2015, "An Armory In Need of Some Amore"]).

Check out the robot-voiced realtor video below for more information, and photos of the inside of the armory:

Now for a few random shots taken near downtown, to be followed by two spots on the outskirts of the city.

(The Tropical Cafe looks like a fun place. Located across Rawlins Street from the Old Common Cemetery, it features Brazilian food (meat skewers!) and live music. And possibly servers who don't speak English. The restaurant is located in Worcester Lunch Car Company No. 802 [built in 1947]. This place was formerly Nelly's Diner, and possibly other eateries.)

Located on East Main Street, the Route 20 Auto Shop has been closed for a while.

What will get built here? And when?

(I don't fish, but I love this sign, located on a cracked retaining wall next to a residential driveway.)

(Located on a side street a little west of downtown, this barn isn't historic, or probably even that old, but it caught my eye.)

OK, now to the outskirts. Like the other former small centers of industry I've explored in eastern Massachusetts in recent years, Marlborough has its leafy sections and open spaces. Marlboro Airport, opened in 1922 on the field of a dairy farm, recently closed. Up until that point, it was considered the oldest public airport in continuous use in Massachusetts, according to this Boston Globe article, which is accompanied by plenty of great photos, the kinds I would've taken if I didn't want to get busted for trespassing. Here are the two pictures I did snap:

The place has been sold to a developer, who hopes to build residential units on the land. I'm not sure if those will consist of single-family homes, apartments or a mix.

Now on to the last part of my adventure in Marlborough, a place that is sure to NOT get redeveloped.

This is the Jericho Hill Recreation Area on...wait for it...Brigham Street! As you may have guessed, this used to be a ski hill. Opened in 1939, Jericho Hill ran until 1996, and may have been one of the first local ski hills to add snow-making, according to this post on the New England Lost Ski Areas Project web site. The slope featured a T-bar, rope tows, a lodge and a handful of trails serving all levels of skiers.

(Remnant of snow-making equipment, I believe.)

(Remnant of the T-bar system, I believe...I've never skied before.)

(A view down a side trail. There are nice walking paths in the woods both at the top and bottom of Jericho Hill.)

To see what else we've posted about former ski hills, see July 27, 2012, "Cat Rock, Part I," about an old slope in Weston, Mass.; and November 6, 2013, "It's All Downhill," about the former Prospect Hill ski area in Waltham, Mass.

So there you have it, a decent overview of Marlborough, but by no means an exhaustive look. For more information about these sites and many others in the city, check out this Massachusetts Historical Commission form, and this link, which is the full text of "Historical reminiscences of the early times in Marlborough, Massachusetts, and prominent events from 1860 to 1910 : including brief allusions to many individuals, and an account of the celebration of the two hundred and fiftieth anniversary of the incorporation of the town."