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Location DB >
United States >
Massachusetts >
Hopedale >
Draper Mill Complex
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created by ian_evil
on 10/16/2005 12:16 AM
last modified by Kurt
on 9/2/2021 6:08 PM
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Publically Viewable |
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This location has been labeled as Demolished, and therefore can be viewed by anyone.
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The complex is absolutely massive, and contained over 1.7 million square feet of industrial work and administration space, built on about a dozen town blocks. The main complex is constructed over the Hopedale River, which travels about 420 meters under the property. The large manufacturing building contains several large courtyards, and presumably a waterwheel. The property includes a tower, a large empty courtyard space, and several smaller buildings which have been (fire?) damaged.
The property is well protected. Most ground floor access is boarded, locked and barricaded. Fire escape ladders are also boarded over. The property is surrounded by suburbs, sees frequent traffic most of the day, and the first floor lights are left on at night. The police station is right up the street, and its a rich party town, so they hate teenagers. Although rare, contractors show up every so often during the day.
The Red Shop, where Ebenezer Drape began his empire has been relocated to sit next to the property. There is also a small abandoned farm, which looks to have been built around the turn of the century adjacent to the property. Nothing really proves that this was part of the complex itself, but it is built up a bit more than the surrounding Drape Complex housing.
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Type: Building
Status: Demolished
Accessibility: Difficult
Recommendation: Worth a visit if you like historic/industrial spaces.
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asbestos
unsafe flooring
Lead Paint, Construction Equipment
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1.7 million square feet.
Built over the Hopdale River, includes a dam.
Large mill complex, with courtyards.
Smaller outlying buildings, and a tower.
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fences
barbed wire
part-time guard
locked gates
wooden boarding
Powered: Lights left on after dark, potential motion detectors.
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flashlight
gloves
long pants / sleeves
Bolt Cutters
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Built by the Draper Company sometime in the late 1800s, the Draper Mill Complex was the largest producer of textile looms in the world. The Draper family essentially owned the town of Hopedale, providing work and homes for the majority of the population. At its peak, Draper Mill employed more than 4,000 people. Several important textile inventions/patents can be credited to the Draper family. It was also the site of an infamous strike, which occurred in 1913. The strike of about 500, with the support of the IWW, lasted 13 weeks, resulted in the death of one worker, and ended unresolved. After the 1960s, demand and production began to decline and the complex closed in August 1980.
Town Chronology: http://www.geociti...le/chronology.html
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There have been several articles written in the local newspapers, unfortunately they're archived and you have to pay to browse them.
The Draper Mill Complex appears countless times in the Town of Hopedale Community Development plan, available as a PDF file.
Hopedale Development Plan [PDF]: http://cmrpc.org/D..._Plan_2004_Web.pdf
A book has been published, called Historic Hopedale, with plenty of information of the rise of the Draper family and the impacts of the mill complex.
Friends of Historic Hopedale: http://www.hopedal.../book/bookform.htm
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(2005)The majority of the complex is owned by First American Realty, and has been gutted. No one is quite sure what will become of the property. The realty company would like to see one owner buy the complex and use it for manufacturing space. However, Hopedale is a small, "charming" town, full of middle class suburbs, and no one is interested in seeing more traffic. Also, finding an interested buyer has proved difficult. The town is interested in helping renovate and re-zone the property and dividing it up for for commercial, manufacturing, educational, community and even residential space.
The administration building across the street from the complex has been converted into Draper Place, an assisted living facility.
__________________________
2021: Demolition began in 2020 after many attempts at preservation. By 2021 the vast majority of the factory is gone.
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The moderator rating is a neutral rating of the content quality, photography, and coolness of this location.
This location has not yet been rated by a moderator.
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This location's validation is current. It was last validated by
Emperor Wang on 9/2/2021 9:54 PM.
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on Sep 2 21 at 21:54, Emperor Wang validated this location
on Sep 2 21 at 18:11, Kurt updated gallery picture
on Sep 2 21 at 18:11, Kurt updated gallery picture
on Sep 2 21 at 18:11, Kurt updated gallery picture
on Sep 2 21 at 18:11, Kurt updated gallery picture
on Sep 2 21 at 18:11, Kurt updated gallery picture
on Sep 2 21 at 18:11, Kurt updated gallery picture
on Sep 2 21 at 18:10, Kurt added some pictures to a gallery
on Sep 2 21 at 18:10, Kurt updated gallery Demolition 2021
on Sep 2 21 at 18:10, Kurt updated gallery Demolition 2021
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