Hudson, Massachusetts

Hudson, Massachusetts
Town

Wood Square

Seal

Location in Middlesex County in Massachusetts
Coordinates: 42°23′30″N 71°34′00″W / 42.39167°N 71.56667°W / 42.39167; -71.56667Coordinates: 42°23′30″N 71°34′00″W / 42.39167°N 71.56667°W / 42.39167; -71.56667
Country United States
State Massachusetts
County Middlesex
Settled 1699
Incorporated 1866
Government
  Type Open town meeting
  Executive Assistant Thomas Moses
  Board of Selectmen Joseph Durant
Scott R. Duplisea
Fred P. Lucy II
James D. Quinn
John Parent
Area
  Total 11.8 sq mi (30.7 km2)
  Land 11.5 sq mi (29.8 km2)
  Water 0.3 sq mi (0.9 km2)
Elevation 263 ft (80 m)
Population (2010)
  Total 19,063
  Density 1,702.6/sq mi (657.0/km2)
Time zone Eastern (UTC-5)
  Summer (DST) Eastern (UTC-4)
ZIP code 01749
Area code(s) 351 / 978
FIPS code 25-31540
GNIS feature ID 0618226
Website www.townofhudson.org

Hudson is a town in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States.

Before its incorporation as a town in 1866, Hudson was a neighborhood and unincorporated village within the town of Marlborough, Massachusetts, and was known as Feltonville, and before that, known as Eastborough. From around 1850 until the last shoe factory burned down in 1968,[1] Hudson was known as a "shoe town." At one point, the town had 17 shoe factories,[1][2] many of them powered by the Assabet River, which runs through town. Because of the many factories in Hudson, immigrants were attracted to the town. Today, most people are of either Portuguese or Irish descent, with a smaller percentage of people being of French, Italian, English, or Scots-Irish descent. Hudson is served by the Hudson Public Schools district.

For geographic and demographic information on the census-designated place Hudson, please see the article Hudson (CDP), Massachusetts.

History

In 1650, the area that would become Hudson was part of the Indian Plantation for the Praying Indians. The Praying Indians were evicted from their plantation during King Philip's War, and most did not return even after the war ended.[2]

The first European settlement of the Hudson area occurred in 1699 when settler John Barnes, who had been granted an acre of the Ockookangansett Indian plantation the year before, built a gristmill on the Assabet River on land that would one day be part of Hudson.[1] By 1701, Barnes had also built a sawmill on the river and had built a bridge across it. Over the next century, Hudson grew slowly.[2]

Hudson was part of the town of Marlborough and was known as Feltonville for part of that time, until its incorporation as a separate municipality in 1866. As early as June 1743[1][2] Hudson-area residents petitioned to break away from Marlborough and become a separate town, but this petition was denied by the Massachusetts General Court. Men from the present Hudson area fought with the Minutemen on April 19, 1775.[1][2]

In the 1850s, Feltonville received its first railroads.[1][2] The town of Hudson had two train stations, originally operated by the Central Massachusetts Railroad Company and later by Boston & Maine, until both of them were closed in 1965. This allowed the development of larger factories, some of the first in the country to use steam power and sewing machines. By 1860, Feltonville had 17 shoe and shoe-related factories, which attracted immigrants from Ireland and French Canada.

Feltonville residents, as Massachusetts recruits fought during the Civil War for the Union, with twenty-five men dying doing so. Two houses, including the Goodale Homestead on Chestnut Street (Hudson's oldest building, dating from 1702) and the Curley home on Brigham Street (formerly known as the Rice Farm), have been cited as way-stations on the Underground Railroad.[2][3]

In 1865, Hudson-area residents again petitioned for Feltonville to become a separate town. This petition was approved by the Massachusetts General Court on March 19, 1866. The new town was named Hudson after Charles Hudson, who donated $500 to the new town for it to build a library, on the condition that the newly incorporated town be named after him.[2][3]

Apsley Rubber Company in 1911
Wood Square in 1907

Over the next twenty years, Hudson grew as several industries settled in town. Two woolen mills, an elastic-webbing plant, a piano case factory, and a factory for waterproofing fabrics by rubber coating were built, as well as banks, five schools, a poor farm, and the town hall that is still in use today.[2][3] The population hovered around 5,500 residents, most of whom lived in small houses with small backyard garden plots. The town maintained five volunteer fire companies, one of which manned the Eureka Hand Pump, a record-setting pump that could shoot a 1.5-inch (38 mm) stream of water 229 feet (70 m).[2][3]

On July 4, 1894, a fire started by two boys playing with firecrackers disastrously burned down 40 buildings and 5 acres (20,000 m2) of central Hudson. Nobody was hurt, but the damages were estimated at $400,000 (1894 dollars).[2][3] The town was substantially rebuilt within a year or two.

By 1900, Hudson's population reached about 7,500 residents, and the town had built a power plant, so some houses were wired for electricity. Electric trolley lines were built that connected Hudson with the towns of Leominster, Concord, and Marlborough.[2][3] The factories in town continued to grow, attracting immigrants from England, Germany, Portugal, Lithuania, Poland, Greece, Albania, and Italy. These immigrants usually lived in boarding houses near their places of employment. By 1928, 19 languages were spoken by the workers of the Firestone-Apsley Rubber Company. Today, the majority of Hudson residents are of Irish or Portuguese descent, with lesser populations of Italian, French, English, Scots-Irish, and Greek descent. About one-third of Hudson residents are Portuguese or are of Portuguese descent.[2] Most people of Portuguese descent in Hudson are from the Azorean island of Santa Maria, with a smaller amount from the island of São Miguel or from the Trás-os-Montes region of mainland Portugal. The Portuguese community in Hudson maintains the Hudson Portuguese Club,[4] who, in 2001, rebuilt a state-of-the-art clubhouse. The Hudson Portuguese Club was established in the mid-1910s and has outlived several other ethnic clubs, such as the town's long-gone Italian Club. Recent immigrants to Hudson arrive mainly from Mexico, Central America, Brazil, and other South American countries, as well as Asia, and Europe.[2]

Hudson's population remained about the same until after World War II, when developers purchased some farms that surrounded the town center. The new houses that were built on this land more than doubled Hudson's population.[3] Recently, high-technology companies have built plants, notably the semiconductor fabrication factory that Digital Equipment Corporation built (now owned by Intel). Although the population of Hudson is now about 20,000, the town continues traditional town meeting form of government.[2]

Former names

Feltonville was the name of what is today the town of Hudson, Massachusetts. Before becoming a separate incorporated town, Hudson was a neighborhood and unincorporated villinge within the town of Marlborough, Massachusetts, known as Feltonville. The name is derived from the name of the Felton store, owned by Silas Felton, that was built in the early 19th century.[2][3] The name was used from 1828 until the town was incorporated as Hudson in 1866. Today, the Feltonville name only refers to two streets: Felton Street and Feltonville Road.

Hudson has had other, earlier names:

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 11.8 square miles (30.7 km²), of which 11.5 square miles (29.8 km²) is land and 0.3 square mile (0.9 km²) (2.87%) is water.

The Assabet River flows through the town. On the border with Stow is Lake Boon, once a popular vacation spot but now a primarily residential neighborhood. On the border with Marlborough is Fort Meadow Reservoir, which at one time provided drinking water to both Hudson and Marlborough.

Adjacent towns

Hudson is bordered by five other towns:

Bolton and Stow on the north, Marlborough on the south, Sudbury on the east, and Berlin on the west.

Villages

The neighborhood and unincorporated village of Gleasondale straddles both Hudson and Stow.

Demographics

As of the census[14] of 2000, there were 18,113 people, 6,990 households, and 4,844 families residing in the town. The population density was 1,574.4 people per square mile (608.1/km²). There were 7,168 housing units at an average density of 623.0 per square mile (240.7/km²). The racial makeup of the town was 94.12% White, 0.91% Black or African American, 0.13% Native American, 1.40% Asian, 0.06% Pacific Islander, 1.40% from other races, and 1.98% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 3.06% of the population.

There were 6,990 households out of which 32.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 56.7% were married couples living together, 9.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 30.7% were non-families. 25.2% of all households were made up of individuals and 9.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.57 and the average family size was 3.11.

In the town the population was spread out with 24.0% under the age of 18, 6.7% from 18 to 24, 33.5% from 25 to 44, 23.6% from 45 to 64, and 12.2% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females there were 97.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 94.6 males.

The median income for a household in the town was $58,549, and the median income for a family was $70,145. Males had a median income of $45,504 versus $35,207 for females. The per capita income for the town was $26,679. About 2.7% of families and 4.5% of the population were below the poverty line, including 3.8% of those under age 18 and 8.7% of those age 65 or over.

Government

County government: Middlesex County
Clerk of Courts: Michael A. Sullivan
District Attorney: Gerard T. Leone, Jr.
Register of Deeds: Richard P. Howe, Jr. (North at Lowell)
Eugene C. Brune (South at Cambridge)
Register of Probate: Tara E. DeCristofaro
County Sheriff: James DiPaola
State government
State Representative(s): Rep. Kate Hogan (D)
State Senator(s): Sen. Jamie Eldridge (D)
Governor's Councilor(s): Marilyn M. Petitto-Devaney (Third District)
Federal government
U.S. Representative(s): Niki Tsongas (D-5th District)
U.S. Senators: Elizabeth Warren (D), Ed Markey (D)

Local government

Hudson Town Hall, built in 1872

The town of Hudson has an open town meeting form of government, like most New England towns. The current executive assistant, who is an appointed official and is responsible for the day-to-day administrative affairs of the town and who functions with authority delegated to the office by the town charter and by the Board of Selectmen and by town bylaws, is Thomas Moses.[15] The Board of Selectmen is a group of elected officials who are the elected executive authority of the town, which also appoints the Executive Assistant. There are five positions on the Hudson Board of Selectman, currently filled by Joseph Durant, Scott R. Duplisea, John M. Parent, Fred P. Lucy II, and James D. Quinn.[16] The selectmen elect from among their membership the positions of chairman, vice-chairman, and clerk of the Board.

County, state, and federal government

Technically, the county government was abolished in 1997, and former county agencies, institutions, etc., reverted to the control of the state government of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. However, certain county government positions, such as District Attorney and Sheriff, do still function, except they are under the state government instead of a county government.

In the Massachusetts General Court, Hudson is represented by Rep. Kate Hogan and Sen. Jamie Eldridge.

In the United States Congress, Hudson is represented by Rep. Niki Tsongas in the House of Representatives, and by Sen. Elizabeth Warren and Sen. Ed Markey in the Senate.

Education

Felton Street School in 1912, now converted into condominiums

Hudson students have two public districts they can attend. The public school are Hudson Public Schools,[17] a district open to any Hudson residents and through so-called "school choice" to any area students, and Assabet Valley Regional Vocational School District, which is open to students from the towns of Marlborough, Hudson, Maynard, Berlin, Boylston, West Boylston, Clinton, Shrewsbury, Westborough, Northborough, and Southborough. The superintendent of Hudson Public Schools is Dr. Jodi Fortuna. The superintendent of Assabet Valley Regional Vocational School District is Mary Jo Nawrocki.

The private school was St. Michael's Schools, a Catholic district run by St. Michael's parish. The St. Michael's district did not have a set superintendent. Instead, St. Michael's parish pastor Rev. Ron Calhoun served as school administrator.

Public schools

Private schools

Hudson Public Library in 1907, a Carnegie library opened in 1905

Library

The Hudson public library first opened in 1867.[27][28] In fiscal year 2008, the town of Hudson spent 1.19% ($614,743) of its budget on its public library—some $31 per person.[29]

Transportation

Road transportation

Here are the highways that run through Hudson:

Air transportation

Hudson has no airport of its own. The closest airport of any type is Marlboro Airport in Marlborough, the closest with scheduled flights is Worcester Regional Airport in Worcester and the closest with international service is Logan International Airport in Boston.

Bus transportation

Hudson has been a candidate of bus transportation, along with Milford.

Religion

Houses of worship

Unitarian Church, built in 1861
Methodist-Episcopal Church after 1911 fire; it was replaced in 1913

Churches no longer in use

A very small fraction of the town's population is Jewish and Orthodox, but there is not yet a synagogue or an Orthodox church in Hudson. Hudson nevertheless has an important role in the formation of the Albanian Orthodox Church due to the 1906 Hudson incident in which an Albanian national was refused burial by a Greek Orthodox priest from Hudson.

Notable people

Former Governor Paul Cellucci

See also

Notes

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Halprin 2001: 7
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 Halprin 2008: 7–10
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Halprin 2001: 8
  4. Hudson Portuguese Club (web site),
  5. 1 2 3 The Hudson Historical Society 1976
  6. "TOTAL POPULATION (P1), 2010 Census Summary File 1, All County Subdivisions within Massachusetts". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved September 13, 2011.
  7. "Massachusetts by Place and County Subdivision - GCT-T1. Population Estimates". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved July 12, 2011.
  8. "1990 Census of Population, General Population Characteristics: Massachusetts" (PDF). US Census Bureau. December 1990. Table 76: General Characteristics of Persons, Households, and Families: 1990. 1990 CP-1-23. Retrieved July 12, 2011.
  9. "1980 Census of the Population, Number of Inhabitants: Massachusetts" (PDF). US Census Bureau. December 1981. Table 4. Populations of County Subdivisions: 1960 to 1980. PC80-1-A23. Retrieved July 12, 2011.
  10. "1950 Census of Population" (PDF). 1: Number of Inhabitants. Bureau of the Census. 1952. Section 6, Pages 21-10 and 21-11, Massachusetts Table 6. Population of Counties by Minor Civil Divisions: 1930 to 1950. Retrieved July 12, 2011.
  11. "1920 Census of Population" (PDF). Bureau of the Census. Number of Inhabitants, by Counties and Minor Civil Divisions. Pages 21-5 through 21-7. Massachusetts Table 2. Population of Counties by Minor Civil Divisions: 1920, 1910, and 1920. Retrieved July 12, 2011.
  12. "1890 Census of the Population" (PDF). Department of the Interior, Census Office. Pages 179 through 182. Massachusetts Table 5. Population of States and Territories by Minor Civil Divisions: 1880 and 1890. Retrieved July 12, 2011.
  13. "1870 Census of the Population" (PDF). Department of the Interior, Census Office. 1872. Pages 217 through 220. Table IX. Population of Minor Civil Divisions, &c. Massachusetts. Retrieved July 12, 2011.
  14. "American FactFinder". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved 2008-01-31.
  15. "Executive Assistant". Town Departments. Town of Hudson. Retrieved May 21, 2015.
  16. "Board of Selectmen". Town Departments. Town of Hudson. Retrieved May 21, 2015.
  17. Hudson Public Schools - Achievement and Character. Hudson.k12.ma.us. Retrieved on 2013-07-17.
  18. http://ps.hudson.ma.ednets.us/JFK/home.aspx?categoryID=3286
  19. 1 2 Halprin 2001: 85–94
  20. http://ps.hudson.ma.ednets.us/CAFarley/home.aspx?categoryID=2596
  21. http://ps.hudson.ma.ednets.us/Mulready/home.aspx?categoryID=4029
  22. http://ps.hudson.ma.ednets.us/Forest/home.aspx?categoryID=1906
  23. http://ps.hudson.ma.ednets.us/High/home.aspx?categoryID=371
  24. Jeff Malachowski (May 13, 2011). "St. Michael School in Hudson to close".
  25. Hudson Catholic High School closing - Articles of Faith. Boston.com. Retrieved on 2013-07-17.
  26. hudsoncatholic.net. hudsoncatholic.net. Retrieved on 2013-07-17.
  27. C.B. Tillinghast. The free public libraries of Massachusetts. 1st Report of the Free Public Library Commission of Massachusetts. Boston: Wright & Potter, 1891. Google books
  28. Retrieved November 8, 2010
  29. July 1, 2007 through June 30, 2008; cf. The FY2008 Municipal Pie: What’s Your Share? Commonwealth of Massachusetts, Board of Library Commissioners. Boston: 2009. Available: Municipal Pie Reports. Retrieved August 4, 2010
  30. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 Halprin 2001: 76–84
  31. http://www.church.carmelmarthomachurch.org/Index.html
  32. "APSLEY, Lewis Dewart". Members of Congress: Massachusetts. Infoplease.com. Retrieved February 1, 2009.
  33. "Revolution Signs Midfielder Tony Frias III". New England Revolution. April 13, 2003. Retrieved February 1, 2009.
  34. "Charles J. Precourt—Biographical Data". NASA; Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center. Retrieved February 1, 2009.
  35. "WHEELER, Burton Kendall". Biographical Directory of the United States Congress. U.S. Congress. Retrieved February 1, 2009.
  36. 1 2 Jon Wiederhorn (December 30, 2003). "Tantric's Pain, Pal Nuno Bettencourt Help Create 'Hey Now'". MTV. Retrieved March 26, 2015.
  37. Evans Drumheads. "Kevin Figueiredo, Artist Detail". Retrieved March 26, 2015.

References

Further reading

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Hudson, Massachusetts.
Wikisource has the text of a 1905 New International Encyclopedia article about Hudson, Massachusetts.
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