Otter River, Massachusetts

Templeton is situated on a high elevation. The village at the centre of the town is not less than twelve hundred feet above the level of the sea. Some hills rise even higher than that. There is an elevated plateau reaching from Wachusett Mountain, in the central part of Worcester County, to Monadnock, in Southern New Hampshire. This town lies on the western edge of this plateau, where it begins to slope toward the Connecticut River, as the eastern side of the plateau slopes toward the Merrimac. There are no mountainous elevations in the town, although the whole surface is hilly. The hills are rounded masses, usually fertile to the summit. The crests of some of these hills and ridges command extensive views of the surrounding country, as from Dolbear Hill, near the village at the centre of the town. Mine Hill, in the eastern part of the town, and from the high ridges of laud in the southern and also in the northwestern parts of the town. It is a notal.ile feature of this portion of Worcester County that it lies in long ridges or swells of land extending in a northerly and southerly line, with corresponding valleys between. Roads running north and south find locations quite nearly level ; but running east and west it is one continuous couree of up hill and down. The Ware River Railroad finds ea.sy grades through one of these valleys. The situation of this town, just on the western edge of the plateau, brings it just barely within the Connecticut River basin, into which river all of its surplus waters flow. The towns lying next easterly of this, send a portion of their waters into the Merrimac. The largest stream of water in town is Otter River. This stream has its sources in Hubbardston and Gardner, flows through the southeasterly portion of this town, and the southwesterly part of Gardner, forms the boundary line between the two towns for some distance, then flows in a northwesterly direction through the northerly part of the town, yielding an abundant water-power at the villages of Otter River and Baldwinville. Just outside of this town it unites with Miller's River, a tributary of the Connecticut. Otter River has several tributaries in this town. Mill Brook, with several reservoirs for the storage of water, furnishes several water privileges at P^irtridgeville and East Templeton. Trout Brook, with several mill privileges, flows in a direct northerly course through one of the valleys and falls into Otter River a little below Baldwinville. Beaver Brook flows in a northerly course through another of the valleys in the extreme westerly part of the town, falling into Miller's River near South Royalston. There were formerly two saw-mills on this brook. There are several small tributaries of Otter River, some of which have in the past furnished mill-sites. The Burnshirt River drains the southwesterly part of the town and furnishes several mill privileges. This stream falls into Ware River, and thence by way of the Chicopee River reaches the Connecticut. On these various streams there are not less than thirty-five mill-sites, the water-power of which has at some time been turned to practical use. But some of them have in later times been given up.

Passage source: History of Worcester County, Massachusetts, published 1889.

The village of Otter River is in the northeasterly part of the town, about three miles from the Centre village. It has a station on the Fitchburg Railroad. There is a public hall in connection with the schoolhouse. St. Martin's Church, Catholic, is in this village. Frederick Warner is the postmaster and keeps a store. Francis Lelaud has built a large brick store on the site of the former hotel, and keeps groceries, dry goods and miscellaneous articles in great variety. Otter River furnishes water-power, on which are three factories, two of which are owned by the Hon. Rufus S. Frost, of Chelsea, Mass., and are occupied with spinning for his other factories «(lsewhere ; the third has always been a woolen-factory. Messrs. Lord, Stone & Co. make a great many stoves, and send out agents to sell them in various parts of New England. There are two brick-yards at this part of the town. One has been .somewhat recently established. The other was for many years carried on by Mr. Horatio N. Dyer, and more recently by his son, Charles C. Dyer. The annual product at this yard has recently been one and a half million of bricks.

Passage source: History of Worcester County, Massachusetts, published 1889.

Baldwinville is in the northerly part of the town, well toward the Winchendon line and about four miles from the Centre village. It has excellent railroad facilities, being situated at the junction of the Ware River Railroad with the Fitchburg. The Baptist Church and the Goodell Memorial Church are both in this village. There is also a public hall, named Union Hall. George E. Bryant is postmaster of the village. For several years Mr. George Partridge has been the proprietor of the hotel. The Templeton Savings Bank has its place of business in this village. Mr. Louis Leland has kept a store at the " Lee" stand in this village since 1870, keeping a supply of dry goods, groceries and miscellaneous articles. In the Cady & Brooks block, near the railroad bridge, Mr. C. S. Dickin.son keeps drugs and medicines and a slock of furnishing goods in one store, and Messrs. C. S. Dickinson & Co. keep groceries in an adjoining store, in one portion of which is the post-office. Supplies of coal are furnished by Messrs. Evans & Bowker. Otter River Hows directly through the village and furnishes a liberal supply of water-power, which is industriously used. The shop at the uppermost privilege is owned and occupied by Messrs. Smith, Day & Co., in the manufacture of chairs. A portion of the water-power here is used to turn the machinery of the paper-mill, where sheathing, roofing and fire-proof paper is manufactured by Mr. H. M. Small, formerly Small, Gould & Co. Mr. George A. Brooks is a contractor and builder, as well as a dealer in lumber. Following down the river, we come to what was formerly known as the " Red Mill." Here the Waite Chair Company manufecture children's chairs in a variety of patterns and with various ingenious devices for changing their form and rolling them about. At the "Lower mill " chairs of various patterns are manufactured by Messrs. D. L. Thompson & Son. On the north side of the river Messrs. Baker & Wilson manufacture children's wagons and carts at the lower shop, and carry on an extensive business of grinding and selling corn at the upper shop, formerly known as the "Hat-shop." There is a machine-shop near the railroad bridge in which William E. Nichols manufactures band-saw machines and chair machinery of various kinds and does other machinist's work. Messrs. Holman & Harris have built a new shop in the northerly part of the village, close by the railroad. They use steampower only, and make large quantities of pails, buckets and other wooden-ware. This account of the business of the village would not be complete without mentioning an enterprise in which Mr. Frank L. Hosmer and Mr. E. W. Lund are separately engaged. Each has a green-house, heated by steam, in which cucumbers are raised during the winter, and are ready in the very early spring for the New York and Boston markets, to which they are daily sent.

Passage source: History of Worcester County, Massachusetts, published 1889.

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 Templeton Town - it names this place 20 more 20 times.