Abby Epplett, Historian

I recently stopped by the little town of Mendon, MA, called “Mother Mendon” by local historians since it was the first incorporated town in the region. Settled in 1660 and incorporated 1667 years later in 1667, Mendon predates the founding of the United States by over a hundred years. The “children” incorporated from Mendon include Bellingham in 1719, Uxbridge in 1727, Upton in 1729, Milford in 1780, Blackstone in 1845. The “grandchildren” are Northbridge from Uxbridge in 1772, Hopedale from Milford in 1886, and Millville from Blackstone in 1916. Today, the town is part of the Blackstone River Valley National Heritage Corridor . The Mendon Center Historic District has been on the National Register of Historic Places  since 2003.

Back in June, I visited the Cornet John Farnum House, a recently renovated historic home in Uxbridge, MA, during its open house. With its oldest beam dating from around 1715 and a recent restoration by the Uxbridge Historical Society, the house was a great opportunity to learn local history and see the interior of a building that I often went past but had not gone in for over two decades. The house has been on the National Register of Historic Places since 1980 .

On the same day I visited Sutton Center and Manchaug , I finished up my adventure in Douglas, another former mill town in the Blackstone River Valley. I took so many pictures and saw so much history that I am dividing the quick history stops into two parts. In the first part , I visited two churches, a former general store turned historical society, a building with a really high curb, and a library. In the second part, I visited war memorials, a church, and several houses.

On the same day I visited Sutton Center and Manchaug , I finished up my adventure in Douglas, another former mill town in the Blackstone River Valley. I took so many pictures and saw so much history that I am dividing the quick history stops into two parts. In this first part, I visited two churches, a former general store turned historical society, a building with a really high curb, and a library.

On the same day I visited Sutton Center Historic District, I drove down the road to Manchaug Village Historic District, which was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 2018. Part of the town of Sutton, MA, its time as a mill village lasted between 1826 and 1921, much like other village in the Blackstone River Valley. Besides a historic mill, cute post office, former mill store, beautiful mansion, and a unique church, Manchaug is home to Vaillancourt Folk Art , a rare chalkware shop where collectables are made onsite. Much of my research on this are came from the 1999 Sutton Comprehensive Survey Data Sheet , which you can access on Massachusetts Cultural Resource Information System (MCRIS).

Back in late June 2026, I visited the Sutton Center Historic District on the National Register of Historic Places , part of the Blackstone River Valley National Heritage Corridor (BHC) in Massachusetts. So many historic buildings, monuments, and stories were packed into this highly walkable area that I am dividing my adventure into three parts. The first part focused on a church, town common, municipal building, and several houses. The second part focused on the little school house, cemetery, town pound, and a house. The third part includes a church, historic houses, a memorial, a blacksmith shop, and a nature area. Aiding in my trip were easy-to-follow walking tours created by BHC over a decade ago and by Sutton Historical Society as part of America250.

Back in late June 2026, I visited the Sutton Center Historic District on the National Register of Historic Places , part of the Blackstone River Valley National Heritage Corridor (BHC) in Massachusetts. So many historic buildings, monuments, and stories were packed into this highly walkable area that I am dividing my adventure into three parts. The first part focused on a church, town common, municipal building, and several houses. The second part will focus on the little school house, cemetery, town pound, and a house. Aiding in my trip were easy-to-follow walking tours created by BHC over a decade ago and by Sutton Historical Society as part of America250.

Back in late June 2026, I visited the Sutton Center Historic District on the National Register of Historic Places , part of the Blackstone River Valley National Heritage Corridor (BHC) in Massachusetts. So many historic buildings, monuments, and stories were packed into this highly walkable area that I am dividing my adventure into three parts. The first part will focus on a church, town common, municipal building, and several houses. Aiding in my trip were easy-to-follow walking tours created by BHC over a decade ago and by Sutton Historical Society as part of America250.

Back in June, after my visit to the Danforth Museum and quick history stops throughout Framingham , I visited The Wayside Inn in Sudbury, MA. I saw so much history at this site, now on the National Register of Historic Places as The Wayside Inn Historic District , that I am dividing the experience into two parts. In Part 1 , I told the early history of Wayside Inn, the Old Barn, Longfellow Memorial Gardens, the Ice House, and Josephine’s Pond. In Part 2, I will describe Old Boston Post Road, the Redstone Schoolhouse, Mary-Martha Chapel, The Wayside Inn Grist Mill, and the Gatehouse.

Back in June, after my visit to the Danforth Museum and quick history stops throughout Framingham , I visited The Wayside Inn in Sudbury, MA. I saw so much history at this site, now on the National Register of Historic Places as The Wayside Inn Historic District , that I am dividing the experience into two parts. In Part 1, I tell the early history of Wayside Inn, the Old Barn, Longfellow Memorial Gardens, the Ice House, and Josephine’s Pond. In Part 2, I will describe Old Boston Post Road, the Redstone Schoolhouse, Mary-Martha Chapel, The Wayside Inn Grist Mill, and the Gate House.

Back in June, I visited Framingham and Sudbury in Massachusetts for a day away. During that time, I visited the Danforth Museum and took quick history stops in Framingham, including a state park, historic buildings around the original center of town, and a cemetery.

Back in June 2026, I visited the Danforth Museum , part of Framingham State University (FSU) in Framingham, MA. During my visit, I admired the Danforth Annual Juried Exhibition featuring multimedia works by local artists, viewed staff favorites from the permanent collection, and learned more about sculptor Meta Vaux Warrick Fuller , whose life I have researched as the Historian-in-Residence at the National Museum of Mental Health Project (NMMHP) . While walking through the galleries, I enjoyed listening to artist statements on the free Danforth Art Museum Mobile Guide app , a feature I would love to see at other museums.

Last Saturday, July 25, I spent the day at Historic Deerfield (details coming in a few weeks!) and watched the play A Stake in the Ground: 1774 . Part of Plays in Place , a New England-based organization founded in 2018, the play was set on site in Deerfield, MA, allowing the audience to see events where they “really happened” over 250 years ago and remember the events leading up to the American Revolution.

Back in June, I took a day trip to nearby Milford, MA to walk on the Upper Charles Trail and explore the downtown area on foot. I was born in Milford and have spent my entire life visiting the town but never did quick history stops there! This is the third of three parts about Milford. The first part covered the trail, a memorial, two churches, and a pair of repurposed buildings. The second part included an armory turned youth center, two town halls, and several churches. In the third part, I will discuss a funeral home, a library and its dog statue, an opera building, two war memorials, a church, and a post office turned police station.

Back in June, I took a day trip to nearby Milford, MA to walk on the Upper Charles Trail and explore the downtown area on foot. I was born in Milford and have spent my entire life visiting the town but never did quick history stops there! This is the second of three parts about Milford. The first part covered the trail, a memorial, two churches, and a pair of repurposed buildings. The second part includes an armory turned youth center, two town halls, and several churches.

Back in June, I took a day trip to nearby Milford, MA to walk on the Upper Charles Trail and explore the downtown area on foot. I was born in Milford and have spent my entire life visiting the town but never did quick history stops there! This is the first of three parts about Milford, which will cover the trail, a memorial, two churches, and a pair of repurposed buildings.

In June 2026, after I gave a violin concert at the Blackstone Public Library, I took a walk to explore quick history stops in Blackstone, MA. This will be a three-part miniseries. The first part described the library, a memorial, churches, bridges, and the fire/police station. In the second part , I focused on Saranac Dam Overlook, the Blackstone River Greenway in Blackstone River & Canal Heritage State Park, Blackstone Block, the Civil War memorial, the post office, and Veteran’s Memorial Corner. In the third part, I will see churches, a former school, a former railroad-related commercial building station, and an anti-pollution plaque.

In June 2026, after I gave a violin concert at the Blackstone Public Library, I took a walk to explore quick history stops in Blackstone, MA. This will be a three-part miniseries. The first part  described the library, a memorial, churches, bridges, and the fire/police station. This second part will focus on Saranac Dam Overlook, the Blackstone River Greenway in Blackstone River & Canal Heritage State Park, Blackstone Block, the Civil War memorial, the post office, and Veteran’s Memorial Corner.

In June 2026, after I gave a violin concert at the Blackstone Public Library, I took a walk to explore quick history stops in Blackstone, MA. This will be a three-part miniseries. This first stop will describe the library, a memorial, churches, bridges, and the fire/police station.

Back in May 2026, I returned once again to Stephens-Coolidge House & Gardens , managed by the Trustees of Reservations in North Andover, MA for a fun, festive event: Spring BloomFest . Having gone to Winterlights in December 2024 and a regular day trip in September 2025 , I had already learned much about the house and gardens, which can be covered in those blog posts. After some deliberation on how to describe this beautiful adventure, I decided to write a brief explanation and then share a photo gallery at the end.