Dredging Hopedale Pond
Thanks to Rick Buroni, Al Tarca, Dave Guglielmi, and the Bancroft Library for the pictures on this page.
In 1949, I was eight; old enough to have become accustomed to the idea that every summer afternoon would be spent at Hopedale Pond. That year, however, things were different. They were dredging the pond. I don’t know when the job was finally finished, buit seemed to me that it went on forever. It may have taken the pond a few weeks to fill with water after the job was done. I still went to the park in the morning and probably built a hut in the woods with Billy Hall and Kurt Anderson, and built dams in the brooks where Tammy Road is now, but I really missed going to the pond. My father spent about fifteen years filling in our backyard at 7 Oak Street, because there was quite a drop there. We had fill brought in from many different jobs in the area, but he heard it wouldn’t be a good idea to use anything from the pond. Somehow, he changed his mind during the last day or two of the operation, so we ended up with a few truckloads of the bottom of Hopedale Pond in our backyard. Dan Malloy
Hopedale Pond Cleanup
Biggest Operation Attempted In Area
HOPEDALE – Hundreds of “sidewalk superintendents” watched one of the biggest excavation and cleaning operations in this area, yesterday at Hopedale Pond.
A huge crane, with an 80-foot arm and a scoop bucket with a capacity of nearly three yards, was the center of attention as it loaded huge trucks in two sweeps. The trucks can carry over six yards of earth.
Operations began near the beach section of the pond, and the depth of slime and silt at this point was more than four feet.
The W.J. Halloran Co. of Providence is doing the work, which is supervised by Supt. William McCarthy and William Polleys, manager of the crane department. Th e crane operator is FredBourasso of Woonsocket.
The plan is to work around the pond, towards the Draper Corporation plant.
A 20-ton bulldozer and two trucks are now being used, but later more equipment will be brought in. Earlier this week a smaller crane was at work laying a gravel road to the site of the digging, and a small bulldozer became mired in the mud and had to be pulled out.
This is the first time such a large cleaning job has ever been attempted in this area. The pond has been drained except for a small stream which still flows through the center. Milford Daily News, April 23, 1949.
Old home movies of swimming at Hopedale Pond
Part 1 starts with about 17 seconds of rowboat fun, followed by lifesaving lessons. Near the end, a beginners’ class is shown. In part 2, there’s not much swimming shown until about the three minute mark. Part 3 begins with about 3:30 of beginners lessons, and then shows some of the older kids. If you’re from that era (wish I knew the year, but I don’t) you’ll probably recognize a few. From movies by Winogene Noyes.