1995

Click for more about the Draper Gym.   

Undefeated - Hopedale HIgh boys basketball, 1956-57

The Boston Celtics at the Draper Gym   

The anonymous donation of $350,000 to build the gym
was eventually revealed as...
Click to see.

    Above - 114-116 Mendon Street in 2014. Razed in 2017.

    Below - The same lot now.

    The clipping on the left refers to another building on that site,
    with an interesting history, that was razed in 1938.

Hopedale in December 2020   

Hopedale in November   

Demolition of the Draper Plant   

G&U/Parklands Issue   

Ezine for November -
Robert Allen Cook  

Ezine for December -
The Ballou Monument   

Recent deaths  

Hopedale in 2020 Menu               HOME    

    Beginning early in the 20th century, and continuing
    up until 1977, there was a South Hopedale Branch
    Library. Over the years, it was operated out of six
    different homes. The Milford News picture above,
    shows it at its last location, Bess Thayer's home. Click
    here for the story of the South Hopedale Library.

    While checking on a visitor to this site a couple of days ago, I ended up on a
    page with photos of the Lynchburg, Virginia area. It included pictures of
    Thomas Jefferson's second home, Poplar Forest. The house, designed by
    Jefferson, was a brick octagon. Out behind the house were two brick
    octagonal outhouses. Could they be the origin of an old figure of speech?
    And what does this have to do with Hopedale? Nothing, but I'll use it as an
    excuse to put in a link to Octagon Houses in Hopedale.As far as I know, none
    of them had an octagon outhouse, brick or otherwise.

    There's not much left of the rubble piles
    that were in this area a month ago. More

    Do you remember this? I don't. It was
    the backdrop at the Town Hall stage.
    This isn't all of it, but what you see here
    was big enough to pretty much fill my
    driveway. That's where it was when
    these pictures were taken. It would be
    great if a local artist had done it
    showing Hopedale buildings, but
    nothing here is jumping out at me as
    anything I recognize. Thanks to Bob
    Mallard for passing it on to me. It's a bit
    large for my living room. Would you like
    it? Let me know....Too late. It's been
    taken.

    Good thing we're not predicted to get
    the map max of 96 inches of snow.

    Cleaning up after a few inches of wet, icy
    snow on the night of December 5-6.

                                       Dec 23, 1947

Hopedale Pond with a skim of ice - December 8.

    Anna's grandparents were the prominent Hopedale Community
    members, Almon and Sarah Thwing.    Click here for the rest of Anna's
    Christmas in early Hopedale memories, plus those of several others.

    Santa tour of Hopedale, Sunday, December 13.
    He knows when you are sleeping. He knows how
    to wake you up.

    This house, 54 Freedom Street, was where a "first" for this area
    occurred in 1948, that was the subject of an article in the Milford
    News. It was just a brief article, but it must have been condidered to
    be interesting and significant event to many. Click here to read it.

Prediction for December 16 - 17

    If you've walked along Freedom Street by the shop, you'll probably recognize
    this. This photo shows a three-inch refrigerator magnet replica of the ones all
    along that section. They're being produced and sold by the Draper-Ballou Co.

    Their website says, Draper-Ballou is a family-owned company which focuses on
    high-quality, unique items serving a specific, albeit diverse, need.  All of our
    products are designed and manufactured in Hopedale, MA.

    Individuals have expressed an interest in obtaining these stars to hold on to the
    memory of what Draper Corporation and this building represented for
    Hopedale's foundation and character.

    We have decided to manufacture replicas of this iconic star, with a portion of
    the proceeds to be donated to one of the Hopedale-based charities.

    Click here to go to the Draper-Ballou site for ordering information.

Above - not in Hopedale

On right -
Draper service station.Dutcher Street

O'Grady's Mobil Station, Mendon

    Cleaning up on Inman Street after about a foot
    of snow fell on the night of December 16-17.

    Hopedale, the little sliver of yellow sticking down from a larger chunk of yellow (Upton), is an
    island of moderate risk, mostly surrounded by a sea of high risk. When the numbers came out
    for the period ending on December 26, Hopedale had moved into the high risk category.

Dutcher Street, December 18.

    Demolition is now underway on the Freedom Street
    side of the Draper plant.

    Elizabeth Humphrey, whose family moved from Millbury to Hopedale in 1849 to
    become members of the Hopedale Community, became a successful illustrator
    of greeting cards. This above was one of her early ones. On the back of the
    original it says, " "This picture won for Miss Lizbeth B. Humphrey a prize of five
    hundred dollars in a competitive contest." Here's more about Lizzie.

    Here's another great drone video of Hopedale done
    by Doug Scott. This one shows Hopedale Pond and
    the watershed area upstream of it. Click here to view.

Another view from Doug's video.

Click here to go to the article.