Adin Street – History of Hopedale, Mendon and Milford Massachusetts

This statue of General Draper once stood on the grounds of his home. Click here for more about the mystery of the missing statue.

General Draper High School, built on the grounds where Gen. Draper’s mansion once stood.

Click here to read about Warren and Malinda Dutcher.

Click here to read about the Frank and Martha Dutcher home.

The house above was built for Charles and Frances (Draper) Colburn. Later it was the home of Frances’s nephew, Clare Draper and his family. It was razed long ago (probably in the 1930s) and is now the site of Memorial School.

The George Albert and Jessie Preston Draper home above, (66 Adin Street) was replaced in 1935 with the house below by B. H. Bristow Draper, Jr. The new residence, and possibly the original house on the site, was named Griffin Gate.

Above – The home of Gov. Eben Sumner and Nannie Bristow Draper. 55 Adin Street
Below – The Ledges, 55 Adin Street. In 1925, Eben Sumner Draper, Jr. razed the home of his parents and had the one shown below built. The paragraph from the National Register Nomination, further down this page, says that it was the home of the governor’s other son, B.H. Bristow Draper. However, according to numerous newspaper articles and the town street listings, it was Eben, Jr’s home, not Bristow’s.

President Willam Howard Taft made a visit to Massachusetts in 1910. Eben Draper was governor of Massachusetts at that time. Taft spent a night at the Draper home, and the next day went to Mendon to visit with some distant relatives. Click on the picture to read the story.

William Lapworth, an immigrant from England, was an expert on the weaving of elastic fabrics. For a few years the Drapers operated an elastic fabric business, and hired Lapworth to manage it. Eventually they closed it, and Lapworth opened his own company in Milford. His home, shown below, is at 85 Adin Street. Click on his picture to read about him.