Historic Holden Multicache
-
Difficulty:
-
-
Terrain:
-
Size: 
(micro)
Please note Use of geocaching.com services is subject to the terms and conditions
in our disclaimer.
This cache will take you on a short walk around the center of
Holden. It should take about an hour. Most stages can be reached
without GPS. All waypoints are handicap accessible except the Old
Burying Ground and the Final cache. (If needed, use the encrypted
hint for the answer to E. Bring a friend along to retrieve the
final.)
Parking is available at the Municipal Lot which can be found at the coordinates listed above.
Alternate parking is located behind the Town Hall at N42 21.095, W071 51.720
Begin at the Clock located at these coordinates:
N42 21.023
W071 51.665
In what year was Holden Incorporated? _________________final digit =S
Near this spot in 1737 the First Holden Meeting House was located. A depiction of it can be found on the Town of Holden Seal. On December 10, 1787 a Town Meeting voted to build a new town hall, and two years later, the core of the present First Congregational Church was erected on the acre of land given to the town by a prominent Massachusetts citizen.
A Well Known Patriot
To find who this citizen was, cross Route 31 towards the large white church. Look for the granite memorial placed almost in front of the Town hall.
How many letters are in the last name of the man who gave the land? ______________=X
In what year was the land presented? _____________final digit=D
Landmarks
In front of you on the right, you will find the First Congregational Church. At its core is the second Meeting House. To the left is the Town Hall, built in 1836. It is still in use.
How many columns support the front of the Town Hall? ____________________=F
Bonus: What is the elevation here? ___________________ (Hint—don’t use your GPS)
To the left of the Town hall, you will find a yellow building now called the Starbard Building and used for town offices. The three-story brick building was built around 1800 as a residence by Squire Lemuel Davis, son of Joseph Davis, who was the first pastor of the first church in Holden. Amasa Howe bought it in 1875 to be used as an inn, the Central House. There were other individual owners until its final individual owner, Ezra Stearns, left Holden in 1914. The property was considered by outside interests for renovation into tenement housing. Instead, a group of prominent residents formed a Community Corporation, financed by selling shares to townsmen, and bought the land and the building. It was used as a community house for a number of years. In the early 1920s, the Holden Masonic club, later named the Trowel club, purchased the building.
If you look on the side of the building closest to the Town Hall, you’ll find an old coal chute. At one time the building had 5 massive fireplaces.
How many chimneys are there now? ______________________=K
First Baptist Church
Further west is the First Baptist Church, another white building of Colonial design with a belfry and a spire. It was dedicated in 1835. In August of 1928, an electric storm damaged the steeple and destroyed the clock. The steeple was rebuilt that fall and a donated clock was installed in the tower. A hurricane in September, 1938, damaged the church and took down the steeple for a second time.
Above the doorway, you will find a window that is not quadrilateral.
How many degrees are there in each pane? ________________divided by 6 = V
How many years after the church was built was the parsonage built? _________________=J
Gale Free Library/Palace Royal
Follow the sidewalk back towards the main intersection and follow Highland Street (route 31) northeast for a short distance to:
N42 21.073
W071 51.688
How many wars are represented on the plaques? _______________=A
Bonus: What is “Character”? ____________________ (the answer is nearby)
The impressive stone building next to you is the Gale Free Library. Go and stand in front of it. It is also known as the Damon Memorial and was presented as a gift to the Town of Holden by Samuel C. Gale and his wife Susan Damon Gale of Minneapolis, formerly of Holden. Construction of the building under the supervision of the architect Stephen C. Earle of Worcester was completed in August of 1888 at a cost of more than $45, 000. Most of the stone used in the construction was taken from a local Holden quarry.
Mr. Gale, at the dedication of the library (and at that time High School--which was housed in the second floor,) said in his speech, “At the last, friends, we part with this estate, so interesting has it grown to be with us, with something like reluctance—a glad reluctance—as parting with a daughter at the marriage alter. And this is really a nuptial day. This gift is the bride; and she carries with herself to this people our benediction. There is a proverb of three Latin words,’Qui Legit Regit,’ ‘He who reads is king.’ Then let this be your palace royal. Thither, through many, many years, through summer bloom and winter gloom, may the feet of your children turn as to a garden of entertainments. For your young men and young women, I pray you make this the happy wholesome greeting place, till books shall interest them and lure them to stay. For the old when they come, lead them to the sunniest spot, the easiest chair, and show them the open page. But most of all, for those earnest ones among you, especially if they be the poor, who hunger and thirst for books and the better things which books lead up to, keep always the door wide open, the feast spread and the lights burning—all this, till these rugged stones shall crumble and be as dust.”
Through which door would you pass to enter the High School? Left =_6_ Right =__1_=S
You will find a Learned man, how long did he have his job? __________final digit =C
The Old Burying Ground
N 42 21.029
W 071 51.769
On July 19, 1742 the town voted to invite Reverend Joseph Davis to become the first pastor of the church in Holden. He was born July 16, 1720 in Concord. He graduated from Harvard College in 1740 and was ordained in Holden December 22, 1742. He served as pastor until 1773. He is buried at the Old Burial Ground which can be found at the southwest corner of Main Street and Route 31.
In what year did Reverend Davis die? _________________final digit=E
(Hint: He was central to life in Holden.)
At the corner, outside the cemetery, you will find an interesting monument.
What year was it erected? _________________final digit=N
Abbott Tavern
If you travel southwest down route 31 for a few paces, you will see a large white building across the street and behind the Mobil station. It is currently a private residence, so it’s best just to look from here. This building was the Abbot Tavern, located in early days west of the Common. Built in 1763, it was Holden’s most famous hostelry and one which flourished for more than a century. John Abbott, a Sudbury blacksmith, paid the Reverend Davis seventeen pounds and sixteen shillings for nine acres of land across from the meeting house, to build his Tavern.
It was an immediate boon not only to travelers but to farmers who had business in the center. It was particularly welcome on Sundays when services in the meeting house were held both morning and afternoon with a break for lunch at noon. While the women and children dined and gossiped at the one-room ‘noon houses’ close to the meeting house, men could now retire to the tavern to talk of current events.
The tavern thrived under the management of three generations, as Captain Lemuel Abbot succeeded John and Major Chenery Abbott succeeded Lemuel. At the height of its prosperity in the 1840s, the property had grown to seventy acres extending all the way to the present Bailey Road. Ells had been added to the main house, which included a ballroom. There were 3 stables, two blacksmith shops, farm buildings, coach shelters and a paddock.
Hendricks House
N 42 21.003
W 071 51.651
Cross Route 31 towards the Mobil Station. (Crosswalks please…)
Continue east on Main Street to the above coordinates where you will find the Hendricks House and the home of the Holden Historical Society. If you plan it right you could arrive here on Saturday between 9 and noon when it is open to the public and you can meet some folks who’d be happy to tell you more about the history of Holden. Donations are not necessary, but appreciated.
In what year was the Hendricks House built? _____________final digit=P
How many bluestone slabs lead to the stairs?___________________divided by 2 =Z
Formula for finding the Cache
The final cache can be found using the following formula:
N 42 AB.CDE
W 071 VS.XYZ
F=____ K=____ J=____ N=____ P=____
J-(F+N+P)=B
N-P=Y
F+K=X
It is not necessary to move anything large to find the final cache! Please use stealth as it is a public area. Look for a small container. Send us an email with the answers to the two bonus questions. We’ll send the first fifteen Geocachers with correct answers an “Entering Holden magnet”—maybe more if we can rustle up some more. When posting your log, please be sure not to give away the bonus answers.
Many Thanks
We hope you’ve enjoyed your Tour of Historic Holden. If any of our facts are in error, please let us know. Feel free to add more historical information in your logs if you care to share. Many thanks to the Holden Historical Society and for the information and photos in the following books:
A Pictorial History of Holden, Massachusetts, compiled and edited by Charles T. Skillings, Clare M. Nelson and Ross W. Beales, Jr., in 1991 by the Holden Historical Society
Holden, The Evolution of a Town by Nicholas Zook, published in 1976 by the Holden Bicentennial Commission
History of the Town of Holden, Massachusetts 1667-1941 by Florence Newell Prouty, published by the 200th Anniversary Committee for the Town of Holden, Printed in 1941
Additional Hints
(Decrypt)
Erireraq Qnivf yvirq gb or friragl avar.