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

Hopkinton, Massachusetts

42 topographic sheets cover this place, the earliest surveyed in 1886 and the latest in 1989. It stands in Hopkinton town. It lies in ZIP code area 01748. It stands on Honey Hill. The Survey maps it on the Milford quadrangle.

Hopkinton within Middlesex County

Then and now

1886 to 1989

The same ground, surveyed 103 years apart. Drag the handle to wipe between them. Both sheets are United States Geological Survey originals; neither has been altered.

Topographic sheet of Hopkinton, surveyed 1989
Topographic sheet of Hopkinton, surveyed 1886

Topographic sheets covering this place

42 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

9,274 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 Hopkinton Town. These are the passages that mention it, exactly as the scans read.

Hopkinton furnished four hundred and twenty-five men for the w.ar, which was a surplus of sixteen over and above all demands ; three were commissioned officers. The total amount of money appropriated and expended by the town on account of the war exclusive of State aid was thirty thousand dollars ($30,- 000.00).

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

Catholicity in Hopkinton.' - Time rolls his restless course ; the changing years flit on, and, one by one, unbidden to-morrows burst forth to-days only to lose themselves again in the yesterdays of the sombre, silent past. Life is one continual change, and to none can this be more evident than to him who will carefully pause and reflect on the wonderful transformations that have been eftected during the past forty years, since the inauguration of the Parish of Hopkinton. Who, in those early days would have presumed to predict so glorious a future for this little hamlet? Who then dared hope that the day would ever come when the Catholics of Hopkinton could claim the proud distinction of having erected to the honor and glory of God the grandest edifice within the confines of New England. Truly it seems the finger of God had pointed out the way for His devoted children, and strengthened their hearts in the hour of darkness against the attacks of a bigoted and unrelenting world. But few of the early settlers survive to tell the story of the suflerings and privations undergone in the cause of Christ when the faithful were forced to travel many weary miles over almost impassable roads to receive the consolations of our holy religion. As early as 1846 the Parish of Milford was formed, which included the present parishes of Hopkinton, Medway, HoUiston, Ashland, Upton, Marlboro', Maynard, Rock Bottom, Westboro', Cordaville and Saxonville. Rev. Father Boyce of Worcester was appointed fir.st pastor, assisted by Rev. Father Gibson, by whom regular monthly services were instituted in the surrounding towns ; the priest being obliged to travel from place to place, oftentimes exposed to the inclemency of the weather, to care for the wants of his devoted flock. Previous to this time the Catholics of Hopkinton attended Mass at the homes of Dominic McDevitt and Edward Mc- Govern, both of Milford ; but upon the arrival of Father Boyce as pastor of Milford, services were held at the residence of John McDonough, who sympathized with !ind materially aided these early pioneers in their unswerving fidelity to their holy cause. Still they remained unsatisfied and longed for a church wherein they might worship God according to the dictates of conscience. The faith of Saints Patrick and Columba glowed in their hearts ; nor could they rest until they had a place wherein a priest might dwell and preach the word of God. With this object in view, a meeting was called in November, 1849, by John Wilson, a Protestant, at his home on Mt. Auburn Street, where were assembled all the Catholic men, twenty-two in number, from the outlying districts - very few then resided in the town proper. What transpired at that meeting is best told in the words of Michael Raferty, an eyewitness, and the oldest Catholic resident living : " I have attended many meetings, both political and re- ligious, but never have I witnessed such enthusiasm displayed as at that first meeting of the Catholics of Hopkinton, and to John Wilson must be given the honor of being the first to propose the establishment of a Catholic Church in our town. His actions on that occasion were something not soon to be forgotten, and his generosity is worthy of record. Seven hundred dollars were subscribed in a few moments, and we voted to build a House of Prayer."

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

Despite his manifold duties and the countless sacrifices incident to so great an undertaking, Father Farrilly determined to build a Church, and early in 1851 the contract was awarded to Artemus Johnson, of Holliston, for the erection of a wooden church, sixty by forty feet, known as St. Malachi's. Two years later an addition was made, and here the Catholics of Hopkinton knelt 'neath the shadowing protection of the cross of Christ and heard the Word of God.

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 Hopkinton Town - it names this place 24 more 24 times.

Fires near this place

122 since 2015

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal wildfire occurrence database lists 122 fires within 5 miles of Hopkinton between 2015 and 2020, burning about 204 acres in total. None started naturally. 39 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
Arson/incendiarism39
Debris and open burning34
Missing data/not specified/undetermined23
Recreation and ceremony14
Misuse of fire by a minor3
Equipment and vehicle use3
Smoking3
Power generation/transmission/distribution1
Fireworks1
Other causes1

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

DateCause SizeReported by Name on the report
8 September 2020Recreation and ceremonyunder an acreMassachusetts Bureau of Forest Fire Controlnot named
7 September 2020Recreation and ceremonyunder an acreMassachusetts Bureau of Forest Fire Controlnot named
6 September 2019Recreation and ceremonyunder an acreMassachusetts Bureau of Forest Fire Controlnot named
5 September 2018Recreation and ceremonyunder an acreMassachusetts Bureau of Forest Fire Controlnot named
29 September 2018Smokingunder an acreMassachusetts Bureau of Forest Fire Controlnot named
25 September 2020Debris and open burningunder an acreMassachusetts Bureau of Forest Fire Controlnot named
24 September 2019Power generation/transmission/distributionunder an acreMassachusetts Bureau of Forest Fire Controlnot named
21 September 2020Debris and open burningunder an acreMassachusetts Bureau of Forest Fire Controlnot named

Settlements close enough to share some of these fires:

Every fire recorded in Middlesex County

Specimens collected near this place

12 of 607 shown

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. Museums hold 607 specimens collected within 10 miles of Hopkinton between 1898 and 1975: 480 Animalia, 113 Plantae, 14 Fungi. 12 distinct Species records are shown. Collected by A. Strong, Altpeter, Arthur French 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.

Image SpeciesYear Collected by Where, as recorded
A photograph of the species Actaea pachypoda, not of this specimenActaea pachypoda Elliott1898Ernest Charles Smith
A photograph of the species Aquilegia canadensis, not of this specimenAquilegia canadensis L.1898M. I. GunnNatick
A photograph of the species Bromus ciliatus, not of this specimenBromus ciliatus L.1898Ernest Charles SmithFramingham.
A photograph of the species Bromus secalinus, not of this specimenBromus secalinus L.1898Arthur FrenchFramingham.
A photograph of the species Carex brevior, not of this specimenCarex brevior (Dewey) Mack. ex Lunell1898Ernest Charles SmithFramingham.
A photograph of the species Carex laxiflora, not of this specimenCarex laxiflora Lam.1898Ernest Charles SmithFramingham.
A photograph of the species Carex pallescens, not of this specimenCarex pallescens L.1898Ernest Charles SmithFramingham.
A photograph of the species Carex straminea, not of this specimenCarex straminea Willd. ex Schkuhr1898Ernest Charles SmithFramingham.
A photograph of the species Agonopterix atrodorsella, not of this specimenAgonopterix atrodorsella Clemens, 18631900E. J. SmithSherborn
A photograph of the species Apantesis Walker, not of this specimenApantesis Walker, 18551900E. J. SmithSherborn
A photograph of the species Apatelodes torrefacta, not of this specimenApatelodes torrefacta J.E.Smith, 17971900E. J. SmithSherborn
A photograph of the species Archips cerasivorana, not of this specimenArchips cerasivorana (Fitch, 1856)1900E. J. SmithSherborn

All 607 specimens within 10 miles, at the Global Biodiversity Information Facility.

Mines and quarries near this place

10 of 21 shown

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal mineral resources record lists 21 workings within 5 miles of Hopkinton: 16 past producers, 3 producers, 1 unknown, 1 plant. 4 still produce. What was taken out: Sand and Gravel, Construction, Granite, Stone, Crushed/Broken. Distance is straight-line from the map coordinates, so a quarry counted here may appear on a neighbouring settlement's page as well.

Where SiteCommodity StatusRecorded
Ashland QuarryStone, Crushed/BrokenProducer
Barretto Granite CoGranitePast ProducerGranite
Castellucci and SonsGranitePast ProducerGranite
H E FletcherGranitePast ProducerGranite
Milford Pink Granite QuarryGranitePast Producer
Milford QuarryGraniteProducer
Trimount Bituminous ProdGranitePast ProducerGranite
Ashland PlantSand and Gravel, ConstructionPlant
Ashland PlantSand and Gravel, ConstructionPast Producer
Ashland Sand and Gravel CoSand and Gravel, ConstructionPast ProducerSedimentary

Every working recorded in Middlesex County

Storms near this place

17 since 1995

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The National Weather Service names Hopkinton in 17 storm reports between 1995 and 2021: 11 thunderstorm wind, 4 hail, 1 heavy rain, 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.

WhenEvent Place namedHarm What the report says
July 2009Thunderstorm WindHopkinton$20,000Trees in the area around the Saddle Hill Country Club were downed by a microburst.
July 2021Thunderstorm WindHopkinton$8,000In Hopkinton, trees and wires were down on North Mill Street. Also, a tree was down onto a tractor-trailer on Lumber Street.
February 2016Thunderstorm WindHopkinton$5,000A tree and branches in Hopkinton were downed by thunderstorm winds.
August 2008Thunderstorm WindHopkinton$5,000Trees on West Elm Street were downed by thunderstorm winds.
August 2003Thunderstorm WindHopkinton$5,000no account filed
July 2019Thunderstorm WindHopkinton$2,500In Hopkinton, trees were reported down on Clinton Street and on Cross Street. Wires were blown down onto West Main Street.
June 2021Thunderstorm WindHopkinton$1,500In Hopkinton, trees were down on Hayden Rowe, Eastview Road, and Kerry Lane.
April 2018FloodHopkinton-At 3:40 PM EST, an amateur radio operator reported sections of Wood Street in Hopkinton were flooded and impassable.
July 2009HailHopkinton-Penny to golf ball size hail fell in Hopkinton. So much hail fell that two hours after the storm moved out of the area, hail was still piled three inches deep in numerous locations.
July 2007HailHopkinton-Nickel size hail lasted 5 minutes from 400 to 405 pm and covered the ground.
May 2009HailHopkinton-no account filed
June 2008HailHopkinton-no account filed
August 2001Thunderstorm WindHopkinton-no account filed
September 1998Heavy RainHopkinton-no account filed
July 1998Thunderstorm WindHopkinton-no account filed
May 1998Thunderstorm WindHopkinton-no account filed
July 1995Thunderstorm WindHopkinton-no account filed

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.

Map PlaceDistance Sheets
Hayden Row1.8 miles42
Woodville2.2 miles42
Camp Bob White2.9 miles41
Ashland3.9 miles40
Workmans Circle Camp4.8 miles41
Braggville4.8 miles41
Gooch Corners5.1 miles41
Metcalf5.1 miles41

Provenance

This settlement is recorded in the Geographic Names Information System as feature 611347. 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.