Decorative drawing: a small American settlement seen from a low hill. Not a photograph of this place.

East Holliston, Massachusetts

41 topographic sheets cover this place, the earliest surveyed in 1887 and the latest in 1989. It stands in Holliston town. It lies in ZIP code area 01746. It stands on Jar Brook. The Survey maps it on the Holliston quadrangle.

East Holliston within Middlesex County

Then and now

1887 to 1989

The same ground, surveyed 102 years apart. Drag the handle to wipe between them. Both sheets are United States Geological Survey originals; neither has been altered.

Topographic sheet of East Holliston, surveyed 1989

Topographic sheet of East Holliston, surveyed 1887

Topographic sheets covering this place

41 sheets

Matched by testing this settlement's coordinate against the published boundary of every sheet in the United States Geological Survey's historical collection. Each opens the scanned sheet at the Survey.

In the county-history sources

22,152 words on this township

History of Middlesex County, Massachusetts, with Biographical Sketches of Many of Its Pioneers and Prominent Men, published 1890 names this settlement in its chapter on Holliston Town. These are the passages that mention it, exactly as the scans read.

The inhabitants of Sherborn were about to erect a new meeting-house, and those residing in the western part of the town (now Holliston) were strenuous in their endeavors to have it placed ou a spot which should accommodate them. The town endeavored to respond to this reasonable request. On March 6, 1723, the qualified voters met at the meeting-house, and immediately adjourned to meet at " the platt, seventy or six-score rods Easterly from Dirty Meadow bridge, or Thereabouts" (about half a mile east of the railroad station, in East Holliston), when and where it was unanimously voted by all present, "that a meeting-hohse be built for the town to worship God in, on Lord's Days, upon a certain hill by the road side, . . . so that the town remain together for the strengthening thereof." November 18, 1723, the inhabitants "voted to nullifie and make void this vote of March sixth, in consideration that the Form and Situation of the Town is so ill Convenient that one Meeling-House Cannot be so placed as to Suit the Whole town, but that in time there will be need of two to accommodate the Inhabitants." And £160 was granted to defray the cost of a new meetinghouse on the old site. This was, without doubt, a sensible decision, and subsequent events have so proved it.

Passage source: History of Middlesex County, Massachusetts, with Biographical Sketches of Many of Its Pioneers and Prominent Men, published 1890.

Several old cemeteries are found in HollLston, and they were established at different periods, according to the locations of the inhabitants and their requirements for burial-places. The oldest is the Central Cemetery, near the first church and the town-house, where several of the early ministers are interred. There is also quite an old cemetery at the north part of the town, one inthe western portion, two at Braggville, andoneat East Holliston. Glenmount Cemetery was laid out some years since inthe eastern quarter of the town, but is not at all used at present. Although some of these cemeteries are not without rural attractions, yet most of them are limited in space and belong to the old order of burying-grounds. In a cultivated community like this there was therefore a natural desire for a more extensive location, and one which should be capable of more ornamentation. And accordingly a plot was selected on the banks of Lake Winthrop, containing thirty acres. It contains a grove, which, with the water-view of the lake audits islands, forms a diversified and beautiful si>ot for the interment of the dead, and one which is attractive and pleasant to the minds of the living. It was incorporated in 1859 as Lake Grove Cemetery, and was consecrated June 1, 1860, Rev. J. C. Bodwell, of Framingham, delivering an eloquent address, and Rev. Dr. Tucker the consecrating prayer. It contains more than three hundred burial lots, many of which are tastefully adorned, and there are several hundred not yet laid out. Beautiful monuments have been erected near the graves, and the entire enclosure is an honor to the town. It has always, since its opening, continued to be a favorite place for interment, and

Passage source: History of Middlesex County, Massachusetts, with Biographical Sketches of Many of Its Pioneers and Prominent Men, published 1890.

" For the extinguishment of fires and for domestic and other purposes," the Holliston Water Company was incorporated in the year 1884, for the supply of pure water to the inhabitants of the town. The charter was renewed in 1887, and the company is now busily at work, in 1890, with the expectation of introducing the water before the close of the year. The water is obtained from springs in an immense well excavated for the purpose, in East Holliston. The overflow will be collected in an artificial lake, and a stand-pipe on Mt. Hollis will give the desired " head" to the water. Mr. John D. Shippee is the manager, and he is energetically prosecuting the work. The work of laying the pipes for conveying the water to the stand-pipe was commenced early in September, 1890. Mr. Z. Talbot has been the treasurer of the company from the beginning, in 1884.

Passage source: History of Middlesex County, Massachusetts, with Biographical Sketches of Many of Its Pioneers and Prominent Men, published 1890.

Machine-read from a century-old scan, so expect the errors a machine makes: misspelled names, dropped words, stray characters.

Read the whole chapter on Holliston Town.

Fires near this place

101 since 2016

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal wildfire occurrence database lists 101 fires within 5 miles of East Holliston between 2016 and 2020, burning about 44 acres in total. 3 started naturally. 4 were recorded as arson. Distance is straight-line from the map coordinates, so a fire counted here may appear on a neighbouring settlement's page as well.

Reported cause	Fires
Debris and open burning	50
Missing data/not specified/undetermined	21
Recreation and ceremony	9
Power generation/transmission/distribution	7
Arson/incendiarism	4
Natural	3
Railroad operations and maintenance	3
Misuse of fire by a minor	2
Fireworks	1
Equipment and vehicle use	1

The most recent of them, most recent first, with the day each was reported and the service that recorded it.

Date	Cause	Size	Reported by	Name on the report
8 September 2020	Recreation and ceremony	under an acre	Massachusetts Bureau of Forest Fire Control	not named
6 September 2019	Recreation and ceremony	under an acre	Massachusetts Bureau of Forest Fire Control	not named
5 September 2018	Recreation and ceremony	under an acre	Massachusetts Bureau of Forest Fire Control	not named
26 September 2020	Debris and open burning	under an acre	Massachusetts Bureau of Forest Fire Control	not named
24 September 2019	Power generation/transmission/distribution	under an acre	Massachusetts Bureau of Forest Fire Control	not named
17 September 2020	Missing data/not specified/undetermined	under an acre	Massachusetts Bureau of Forest Fire Control	not named
1 September 2017	Missing data/not specified/undetermined	under an acre	Massachusetts Bureau of Forest Fire Control	ASHLAND
1 September 2017	Arson/incendiarism	under an acre	Massachusetts Bureau of Forest Fire Control	SHERBORN

Settlements close enough to share some of these fires:

Every fire recorded in Middlesex County

Specimens collected near this place

12 of 954 shown

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. Museums hold 954 specimens collected within 10 miles of East Holliston between 1898 and 1975: 755 Animalia, 151 Plantae, 47 Fungi, 1 Chromista. 12 distinct Species records are shown. Collected by A. L. Bosworth, A. M. Ottley, A. Strong and others. Each is a physical object with a catalogue number, and each entry opens the museum's record. This is what was collected and kept, not a survey of what lives here - nothing can be concluded from a species being absent.

Species	Year	Collected by	Where, as recorded
Actaea pachypoda Elliott	1898	Ernest Charles Smith
Antennaria howellii subsp. canadensis (Greene) R.J.Bayer	1898	Williams, E.F.
Antennaria parlinii subsp. fallax (Greene) R.J.Bayer & Stebbins	1898	not recorded
Antennaria plantaginifolia (L.) Hook.	1898	not recorded
Aquilegia canadensis L.	1898	M. I. Gunn	Natick
Agonopterix atrodorsella Clemens, 1863	1900	E. J. Smith	Sherborn
Apantesis Walker, 1855	1900	E. J. Smith	Sherborn
Apatelodes torrefacta J.E.Smith, 1797	1900	E. J. Smith	Sherborn
Archips cerasivorana (Fitch, 1856)	1900	E. J. Smith	Sherborn
Bleptina caradrinalis Guenée, 1854	1900	E. J. Smith	Sherborn
Buglossoides arvensis (L.) I.M.Johnst.	1900	C. H. Knowlton	Natick.
Caenurgina crassiuscula Haworth, 1809	1900	E. J. Smith	Sherborn

All 954 specimens within 10 miles, at the Global Biodiversity Information Facility.

Mines and quarries near this place

10 of 28 shown

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal mineral resources record lists 28 workings within 5 miles of East Holliston: 22 past producers, 3 producers, 3 plants. 6 still produce. What was taken out: Sand and Gravel, Construction, Granite, Stone, Crushed/Broken, Iron. Distance is straight-line from the map coordinates, so a quarry counted here may appear on a neighbouring settlement's page as well.

Site	Commodity	Status	Recorded
Hawkridge Bros--Ashland, Ma.	Iron	Plant
Ashland Quarry	Stone, Crushed/Broken	Producer
Holliston Plant	Stone, Crushed/Broken	Plant
Castellucci and Sons	Granite	Past Producer	Granite
Milford Pink Granite Quarry	Granite	Past Producer
Simeone Stone Corp	Granite	Past Producer	Granite
Trimount Bituminous Prod	Granite	Past Producer	Granite
Ashland Plant	Sand and Gravel, Construction	Plant
Ashland Plant	Sand and Gravel, Construction	Past Producer
Ashland Sand and Gravel Co	Sand and Gravel, Construction	Past Producer	Sedimentary

Every working recorded in Middlesex County

Storms near this place

1 since 2022

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The National Weather Service names East Holliston in 1 storm report between 2022 and 2022: 1 flood. No death or injury is recorded in these reports. Each account below is quoted exactly as the forecast office filed it, from the NOAA Storm Events Database, and each date opens the federal record of that event.

When	Event	Place named	Harm	What the report says
September 2022	Flood	East Holliston	-	In Holliston, a portion of Concord St. (Rt. 126) was flooded and even public safety vehicles were advised to avoid the area. Relayed by amateur radio.

Every storm recorded in Middlesex County

Nearest settlements

The eight closest, with where each one stands in the county. Distances are straight-line, computed from the Geographic Names Information System coordinates.

Place	Distance	Sheets
Holliston	0.9 miles	41
Gooch Corners	1.1 miles	41
Whitneys	2.1 miles	41
Metcalf	2.4 miles	41
Workmans Circle Camp	2.7 miles	41
Camp Bob White	2.7 miles	41
Sherborn	3.2 miles	43
South Sherborn	3.5 miles	43

Elsewhere

Matched on this settlement's Geographic Names Information System number rather than its name, so it cannot be a different place of the same name in another state.

Wikidata item Q122548391

The structured record the population and elevation above come from. Public domain (CC0).

Provenance

This settlement is recorded in the Geographic Names Information System as feature 611682. The sheet list is computed by point-in-boundary test against the United States Geological Survey's historical topographic inventory. Both are works of the United States government and carry no copyright under 17 U.S.C. 105.

Wildfire. Short, Karen C. 2022. Spatial wildfire occurrence data for the United States, 1992-2020 [FPA_FOD_20221014]. 6th Edition. Fort Collins, CO: Forest Service Research Data Archive. https://doi.org/10.2737/RDS-2013-0009.6 Collected with United States Government funding and usable without additional permissions or fees.

Specimens. Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF), https://www.gbif.org/. Only records licensed CC0 or CC BY are used. Records licensed CC BY-NC are excluded because this site carries advertising. Images are checked individually and any whose licence is non-commercial, no-derivatives or unreadable is refused.

Mines and quarries. USGS Mineral Resources Data System (MRDS) https://mrdata.usgs.gov/mrds/ A work of the United States government, no copyright under 17 U.S.C. 105.

Storms. NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/stormevents/ A work of the United States government, no copyright under 17 U.S.C. 105. Narratives are quoted verbatim from the National Weather Service report and are not edited or summarised.