Rock Quarrying at Rock, 1873

Rock, MA, photograph, c. 1905.  The view depicts a portion of the granite
outcropping or ledge which gives the community of Rock its name.  In the
distance at the far right background is the Rock mill at Walnut and Miller Streets.

The village of Rock takes its name from a large ledge or outcropping of granite which runs a considerable distance parallel to and west of Miller Street.  Though largely obscured by trees and other vegetation today, in the past when the surrounding land was cleared for agricultural use, the rock was a prominent geographic feature.  This fact, coupled with the practice of early residents of the neighborhood of holding religious services near the rock at Miller Street, gave the community its distinctive name.

In 1873, a portion of the rock began to be quarried for commercial purposes as described in the following article which was carried in the Middleboro Gazette in August of that year.  While the author wrote hopefully of the prospects for commercial quarrying at Rock, little appears to have come of the enterprise which remains an historical curiosity.

C. D. Kingman House, Oak Street,

Middleborough, MA, photograph,

early 20th century.  The granite for

the walls of Kingman's estate was

quarried in 1873 from the rock ledge

which gave the community of Rock

its name.  The walls are still present

at Oak and Center Streets, the former

site of St. Luke's Hospital.

We visited Rock Tuesday and while there took a look at the granite ledge now being worked by Robert C. Smith.  This gentleman has been poiunding away there for three years, and has now succeeded in making an opening that promises handsome results for his labors.  As he works deeper the rock becomes a darker and more handsome color, and as to depth it promises to exceed even the famous Quincy ledge.  One old resident there says it is about three miles through.  The stone he is now cutting out is for the front of C. D. Kingman's homestead.  his ledge we refer to is in a field in the rear of the resdidence of th late Wilson Cobb, and belongs to Ichaod Atwood, Esq.

On Saturday, June 18, as part of the celebration of the 250th anniversary of the foundation of the Rock Village Church, the Middleborough Historical Commission and the Rock Village Church will be sponsoring a walking tour of a portion of historic Rock.  The tour begins at 11 a. m. at the Rock Church and will last approximately 1 and a half to two hours.

The Rock Churches Federate, 1921

Rock Village Church (1880, 1920-21), Miller Street,

Middleborough, MA. Photograph by Mike Maddigan,

May 20, 2006. 

Between 1879 and 1921 Rock was the site of two churches: the Third Baptist Church on Highland Street which had originally been established in 1761 at South Middleborough and the Independent Congregational Church on Miller Street which was founded in 1879.  The maintenance of two churches in such a small community was not without difficulty for several reasons and as early as 1895 the case for federation was made in the pages of the Middleboro Gazette: 

We think Rock would be a good place for some apostle of church unity to do a little missionary work.  There are enough people here, if they were united, to possibly raise five or six hundred dollars a year for the support of church services and a clergyman, but we have two church societies, both of which must have preaching.  And there are representatives of nine or ten different denominations among us.  We wonder what plan of action an advocate of church unity would recommend here.

While union services between the two churches were occasionally held with success, it was not until the destruction of the Third Baptist Church by fire in December, 1918, that serious consideration was given to establishing a single union church, an act that was finally accomplished in 1921 when the two organizations were federated and became known as the Rock Village Church or Rock Federated Church.  The successful venture was also curious, however, as noted in a 1937:

The Rock Village church though one of the smaller churches of Middleboro, has special features worthy of note.  The church is the only Federated Church in town.  The two churches federating were the 3rd Baptist and Independent Congregational.  The pastor is a Methodist; the organist, a Quaker.  It is the usual thing on Sunday morning to find in the congregation, Congregationalists, Baptists, Methodists, Quakers, Presbyterians, and Episcopalians, while occasionally a Unitarian will be present.

This year, the Rock Village Church celebrates its 250th anniversary.  As part of the celebrations, a walking tour, light cookout, concert  and historical exhibit will be featured on Saturday, June 18, beginning at 11 a. m. at the Rock Village Church on Miller Street.

Rock Village History Walk a Feature of Anniversary Celebration

Map of Rock, Massachusetts, from New Topographical Atlas of Surveys: Plymouth County Together with Town of Cohasset, Norfolk County, Massachusetts.  Springfield, MA: The L. J. Richards Co., 1903.  The historic walking tour scheduled for Saturday, June 18, will investigate the history of the southern portion of the village from Smith Street to Highland Street.

MIDDLEBORO — Many local residents may not know that Rock Village once boasted its own post office, library, grocery store and busy railroad station. They may not be aware that trolley cars once traveled in the village and could take beach-goers to Onset, and that the village was the site of a camp meeting that was attended by folk from throughout New England.

Rock Village has a rich and varied history that will be explored during a village history walk on Saturday, June 18, sponsored jointly by the Middleborough Historical Commission and Rock Village Church in celebration of its 250th anniversary.

Everyone is invited to walk from Rock Village Church down Miller Street and up Highland to Hope's Rest Cemetery and back with local historian Michael Maddigan narrating along the way. Participants will not only check out some 18th century homesteads, but visit the local blacksmith as well.

After the walk, everyone is invited back to the church where there will be a light cookout lunch free of charge, a historical display in the church, and games and facepainting for the kids. To conclude, strawberry shortcake will be served as former Middleboro resident and missionary Martha Gushee presents a brief concert.

Anyone who has any historical pictures/items related to either Rock Village or the church and would be willing to loan them for the historical display is asked to call Pastor Cook at 508-947-2310.

The community is warmly invited to this event.

Source:
Middleboro Gazette

Popcorn Selling Forbidden at the Middleborough Rotary, 1948

In 1948, the Middleborough Rotary was set upon by out of town pop corn vendors intent upon selling their snack to passing motorists.  Ultimately, opposition by local merchants to what they saw as unregulated competition resulted in the matter coming before the Board of Selectmen as recorded in the following item carried in the Brockton Enterprise on May 18.

The area about the traffic circle at Middleboro seems to be an attractive place for pop corn merchants.  They float in there by motor and start doing business.  Other local merchants along the line object.  And that brings the matter to the attention of the selectmen.  The latest caller appeared at the selectmen's meeting last night.  He was Romeo Duverger, 214 Centre street, Brockton.  He had been dispensing pop corn near the traffic circle Sunday when Middleboro police intervened.  He informed the board that while he had a State license, he was driven away from there by the police.  He claimed to have a permit from the owner of the land to use it.

It was stated that the State license covered peddling and the contention was that it did not cover a location, such as the traffic circle.  He said he was willing to take out any other kind of license which might be required.

Chairman [Manuel J.] Silvia informed him that two others had met difficulty in a similar enterprise at the same location earlier in the year.  Action was held up, pending more complete information on the regulations of such business.  The unanswered question was why this particular location in Middleboro seemed to be so popular to pop corn merchants.

Photograph by Steve Snodgrass, reprinted under a Creative Commons license.

Allan R. Thatcher's Buick Runabout, 1908

Henry L. Thatcher and Allan R. Thatcher, Thatcher's Row, Middleborough, MA, photograph, c. 1908

One of the most exciting periods in local automotive history was assuredly the turn of the last century when Middleborough began to transition towards automobiles, first as a means of recreation and later as a method of transportation. In the early 1900s, Middleborough residents took avidly to the automobile. By 1906, it was reported that Middleborough had the highest rate of ownership in the state, and local owners and enthusiasts helped popularize automobiling. Among these owners was Allan R. Thatcher who in the summer of 1908 purchased a Buick runabout.

The transition from horse and carriage to "horseless carriage" was not always without challenge. In Booth Tarkington's The Magnificent Ambersons, the spoiled George Minafer says of horseless carriages: "Those things are never going to amount to anything. People aren't going to spend their lives lying on their backs in the road and letting grease drip in their faces. Horseless carriages are pretty much a failure..." Many traditionalists shared the same view and retained their horse and carriage in contrast to the new automobiles which were notorious for their frequent breakdowns. With the correction of the deficiencies of these early automobiles, however, automobile manufacturers, including Buick, were able to build vehicles which were seen to be reliable, practical ad desirable.

Pictured above is the juxtaposition of old and new. Henry L. Thatcher (1850-1930), founder of H. L. Thatcher & Company, printers, sits in his sleigh which has been taken out of storage for the onset of winter.  Thatcher's son, Allan R. (1877-1948), is seated at the wheel of his three-passenger 1908 Buick Model 10 Touring Runabout.  Promoted at the time as the Gentleman's Light Four-Cylinder Roadster and advertised as a "high powered, high grade runabout", the car was produced by the Buick Motor Car Company in Flint, Michigan.  (The right headlamp obscures the distinctive Buick logo on the grill). 

The 1908 Model 10 was Buick's most popular model that year with just over 4,000 being produced. Helping drive the popularity of the vehicle was the fact that it was featured in a number of automobile races of the period and consequently had a sporty image among the motoring public. The four cylinder engine produce 22.5 h. p. Featuring acetylene headlamps and oil sidelamps and tail lights, the model 10 sold for $900 and was the least expensive model in the Buick line. Its color was an off-white known at the time as "Buick gray". For inclement weather, an optional windscreen and top was available.  (Note the placement of the steering wheel on the right side of the car).  Despite its popularity, the vehicle which was introduced at the New York Automobile Show in November, 1907 it had a production run of only three years being produced through 1910.  Thatcher, too, may have become disenchanted with his car.  He sold it in the spring of 1909 to Brockton parties.

The scene of the photograph is the rear of the Thatcher Block on Center Street. Just behind the close board fence at the left is Thatcher's Row. The building in the left background with the arched window in the gable peak is the T. W. Pierce hardware store on Center Street, the site of which is now occupied by Benny's. At the extreme left, a portion of the former steeple of the Central Methodist Church on School Street may be glimpsed.

M. H. S. Baseball Team, 1908

 

In 1908, the Middleborough High School baseball team posed for a team photograph for Walter Beals on the steps of Middleborough High School (later the bates Junior High School).  Back row (left to right): Melvern (Mel) Gammons, Charlie McCarty, Reginald Drake, Principal Walter Sampson, Bradford Swift and Harry Belmont.  Front row (left to right): Chester (Chet) Witbeck, James Williams, Everett McManus, J. Stearns Cushing and Dan Bessie.

Home on the (Nemasket Elk) Range, 1926

Photos courtesy of the Boston Public Library, Leslie Jones Collection