BlockBefore

Upton, Massachusetts

42 topographic sheets cover this place, the earliest surveyed in 1886 and the latest in 1989. It stands in Upton town. It lies in ZIP code area 01568. It lies near Ockoocanganset Hill. The Survey maps it on the Milford quadrangle.

Upton within Worcester 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 Upton, surveyed 1989
Topographic sheet of Upton, surveyed 1886

On record in Upton

Buildings and businesses the archive holds for this place. Each opens its own page, with the source record it came from.

On the National Register 2 records

Businesses named in the fire insurance atlases 7 records

Topographic sheets covering this place

20 surveys from 42 printed 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

10,290 words on this township

History of Worcester County, Massachusetts : with Biographical Sketches of Many of Its Pioneers and Prominent Men., published 1889 names this settlement in its chapter on Upton Town. These are the passages that mention it, exactly as the scans read.

The territory constitutiog the town of Upton was occupied before the migration of the white men from the sea-coast to the interior by the Nipmuck tribe of Indians. Before the incorporation of the town, in 1735, it belonged to the towns of Sutton, Uxbridge, Mendon and Hopkinton. Among the first setilera on this territory were John Hazeltine, David Batcheler, J )nathan Wood, Israel Tait, John Sadler, William Johnson, John Bromly, William Green, Benjamin Perham, Samuel Nelson, Stephen Denny, Samuel Watkius, Marshal Baker, Samuel Work, Samuel ReeTcs, John Warfield, VVillson Rawsou, Robert Tyler, Matthias Taft, Peter Holbrook, Stephen Tenney and Thomas Palmer. Of these, Matthew Taft was a settler as early as 1728, having bought his land of Harvard College. This territory included thirteen thousand and ninety-four acres. A portion of it, including about three thousand acres, formed a part of the tract of land belonging to the Hopkins P^und, which, during nearly a hundred years, was a source of trouble and vexation to the inhabitants. Edward Hopkins came from England in 1637, and settling in Connecticut, became its Governor. He returned to l^ngland and died in 16ri7, giving the sum of five hundred pounds out of his estate in New England to trustees, after die death of his wife, to be invested in houses and lands in New England, the income from which sbould be devoted to the support of students in the grammar and divinity schools at Cambridge, and to the purchase of books to be given to meritorious students at Harvard College. Anne Hopkins, his wife, died in 1G98, and after a suit in Chancery the trustees obtained, in 1715, in satisfaction of the legacy, a verdict and payment of five hundred pounds, with interest, amounting to three hundred more. This money wa-i invested in the purchase of Maguncog from the Natick Indians, which, with other lands, finally became the town of Hopkinton, one of the contributors to the township of Upton.

Passage source: History of Worcester County, Massachusetts : with Biographical Sketches of Many of Its Pioneers and Prominent Men., published 1889.

The territory of Upton is not specially attractive in soil or scenery. Its surface abounds in rocky hills, with here and there a plain of better land, like those on which the pleasant villages of. Centre and West Upton are situated, while West River, the chief stream of the locality, finds its way through the richer meadows of the valley towards its outlet in the Blackstone River, at Uxbridge.

Passage source: History of Worcester County, Massachusetts : with Biographical Sketches of Many of Its Pioneers and Prominent Men., published 1889.

Sect. 1. That all the ontlands of the aforesaid towns of Mendon, Sutton, Uxbridge and Hopkinton comprised within the following bounds, containing in the whole twelve thousand nine hundred and forty-three acres, together with one hundred and fifty-one acres taken off Mr. John Rockwood's farm, bounded as follows, viz, : beginning at a pine tree, being the southeast corner of Grafton, and from thence extending north, bounding west on Grafton till it comes to the northeast corner thereof; and from thence bounding by Westboro' line till it meets with Hopkinton line ; from thence extending southerly two hundred and twelve perch in the bounds between Sutton and Hopkinton; from thence south nine degrees east four hundred and ninety perch, to a stake and heap of stones ; from thence south tliirty-one degrees and thirty niiuutes east one hundred and forty perch ; from thence south sixty-one degrees thirty minutes east two hundred perch to a heap of stones at Haven Meadow ; from thence eafiterl.v one hundred and thirtyfour perch to the north end of a pond called North pond and there bounded easterly on said pond till it comes to the place where tlie Mill River runs out of said pond ; and thence bounding by said River till it comes to a wading place called Peck's Wading Place, above the lower North Meadow, from thence south thirty degrees thirty minntes west two huudred and seventy-four perch ; from thence soutli forty degrees west ninety perch to Tyler's lane alias Marlborough road ; from thence south fifty-five degrees west four hundred perch to Uxbridge, where Uxbridge and Mendon meet ; thence bounding by Misco Hill Brook till it meets with West River so called; then runs north twentyfive degrees west ten hundred and twenty-two perch on Uxbridge line to a heap of stones at Hazeltine's goat pasture ; from thence nortlierly to a pine tree; thence easterl,v to a stake in a meadow ; and thence north twenty-five degrees and thirty minutes west one hundred and seventy perch to Grafton south line ; and thence bovinding northerly on Grafton one hundred and ninety-six perch to tiie bounds first mentioned; be and hereby are set off a distinct and separate township by the name of Upton.

Passage source: History of Worcester County, Massachusetts : with Biographical Sketches of Many of Its Pioneers and Prominent Men., 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 Upton Town - it names this place 35 more 35 times.

Fires near this place

92 since 2003

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal wildfire occurrence database lists 92 fires within 5 miles of Upton between 2003 and 2020, burning about 111 acres in total. None started naturally. 16 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
Missing data/not specified/undetermined20
Debris and open burning19
Arson/incendiarism16
Recreation and ceremony14
Smoking9
Power generation/transmission/distribution6
Railroad operations and maintenance4
Misuse of fire by a minor2
Equipment and vehicle use2

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
25 September 2020Debris and open burningunder an acreMassachusetts Bureau of Forest Fire Controlnot named
16 September 2018Debris and open burningunder an acreMassachusetts Bureau of Forest Fire Controlnot named
30 August 2020Recreation and ceremonyunder an acreMassachusetts Bureau of Forest Fire Controlnot named
26 August 2020Power generation/transmission/distributionunder an acreMassachusetts Bureau of Forest Fire Controlnot named
24 August 2016Arson/incendiarism3.0 acresMassachusetts Bureau of Forest Fire ControlMILFORD
24 August 2015Arson/incendiarism3.0 acresMassachusetts Bureau of Forest Fire ControlMILFORD
23 August 2020Power generation/transmission/distributionunder an acreMassachusetts Bureau of Forest Fire Controlnot named
2 August 2018Debris and open burningunder an acreMassachusetts Bureau of Forest Fire Controlnot named

Settlements close enough to share some of these fires:

Every fire recorded in Worcester County

Specimens collected near this place

12 of 662 shown

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. Museums hold 662 specimens collected within 10 miles of Upton between 1844 and 1975: 255 Animalia, 246 Plantae, 146 Fungi, 9 Protozoa, 3 Unrecorded, 3 Chromista. 12 distinct Species records are shown. Collected by A. B. Seymour, A. P. D. Piguet, A. R. Hodgdon; F. L. Steele 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
Specimen of Chilonectria coryli (Fuckel) Ellis & Everh.Chilonectria coryli (Fuckel) Ellis & Everh.1896Henderson
Specimen of Coryneum pulvinatum KunzeCoryneum pulvinatum Kunze1897D. Murray
Specimen of Sceptridium dissectum (Spreng.) LyonSceptridium dissectum (Spreng.) Lyon1899H. H. Scudder
A photograph of the species Trichophorum planifolium, not of this specimenTrichophorum planifolium (Spreng.) Palla1844Collector unspecifiedUxbridge
A photograph of the species Carex vesicaria, not of this specimenCarex vesicaria L.1848J. W. Robbins
A photograph of the species Potamogeton epihydrus, not of this specimenPotamogeton epihydrus Raf.1848J. W. RobbinsUxbridge
A photograph of the species Potamogeton bicupulatus, not of this specimenPotamogeton bicupulatus Fernald1854W. J. RobbinsUxbridge
A photograph of the species Carex brevior, not of this specimenCarex brevior (Dewey) Mack.1855J. W. Robbins
A photograph of the species Carex normalis, not of this specimenCarex normalis Mack.1855J. W. Robbins
A photograph of the species Carex siccata, not of this specimenCarex siccata Dewey1855J. W. Robbins
A photograph of the species Carex straminea, not of this specimenCarex straminea Willd. ex Schkuhr1855J. W. Robbins
A photograph of the species Hyla versicolor, not of this specimenHyla versicolor LeConte, 18251857Weinland, David Friedrich

All 662 specimens within 10 miles, at the Global Biodiversity Information Facility.

Mines and quarries near this place

6 within 5 miles

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal mineral resources record lists 6 workings within 5 miles of Upton: 5 past producers, 1 producer. 1 still produces. What was taken out: Sand and Gravel, Construction, Granite. 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
A H Marando and SonsSand and Gravel, ConstructionPast ProducerSedimentary
Bannister PitSand and Gravel, ConstructionPast Producer
Barretto Granite CoGranitePast ProducerGranite
H E FletcherGranitePast ProducerGranite
Milford QuarryGraniteProducer
Pleasant Street PitSand and Gravel, ConstructionPast Producer

Every working recorded in Worcester County

Storms near this place

11 since 1997

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The National Weather Service names Upton in 11 storm reports between 1997 and 2021: 7 thunderstorm wind, 2 lightning, 1 hail, 1 tornado. The reports record 1 injury. 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 2009LightningWest Upton1 hurtNew England Cable News reported that a 44 year old man was injured when lightning struck a lamppost at the end of his driveway and travelled under the driveway to where he was standing.
July 2018Tornado (EF1)West Upton$40,000At 1:41 AM EST, the parent thunderstorm of the Douglas tornado generated a second tornado that touched down in western Upton. The tornado touched down on Hartford Avenue South, crossed state route 140, and and produced most of its damage in the neighborhood of Ephram's Way. The tornado then moved northeast, lifting in Upton State Forest. Winds were estimated at 100 mph on Ephram's Way. The path length was about 1 mile, with a maximum width of 100 yards. The tornado was rated an EF-1.
July 2008LightningUpton$15,000A house on Ephraims Way was struck by lihgtning and caught fire.
July 2017Thunderstorm WindWest Upton$6,000At 1142 AM EST, a tree was knocked down on Warren Street in Upton. At 1150 AM EST, multiple trees and wires were brought down on Fowler Street in Upton.
July 2016Thunderstorm WindWest Upton$5,000A tree was downed onto wires, blocking Elm Street between Taft Street and Cider Mill Lane in Upton.
July 2017Thunderstorm WindWest Upton$4,000At 1150 AM EST, multiple trees and wires were down on Fowler Street in Upton.
July 2019Thunderstorm WindWest Upton$3,000A tree was downed on wires on Mendell Road.
July 2008Thunderstorm WindWest Upton$1,000A tree along Route 140 was downed by thunderstorm winds blocking the road.
July 2021Thunderstorm WindUpton$500In Upton, a tree was down near 8 North Main Street.
May 1998Thunderstorm WindUpton-no account filed
July 1997HailUpton-no account filed

Every storm recorded in Worcester 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
West Upton1.0 miles42
Northbridge3.0 miles45
Kittville3.0 miles45
Riverdale3.2 miles45
North Milford3.5 miles42
Farnumsville4.2 miles45
Plummer Corner4.3 miles46
Hopedale4.4 miles42

Provenance

This settlement is recorded in the Geographic Names Information System as feature 611404. 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.