The story
Read it all →How Holden came to be
From Wikipedia’s history of Holden.
Holden was named for Samuel Holden, a director of the Bank of England.
Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.
AHistory
History · Holden
Holden dates to 1723, and 9 of its places are on the National Register
More historic than 90% of U.S. towns · #147 of 283 in Massachusetts. What drives it
Most of Holden was built recently: 10% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1971. 9 places in town are on the National Register, among them two historic districts with 278 buildings between them. Below: 5 old photos and papers, maps from 1885 on, and the census since 1790.
1723founded
9on the National Register
10%homes built before 1940
5old photos & papers
6famous people
Quick answers
How Holden began
When was Holden founded?
1723
Holden dates its founding to 1723 (Wikidata). It appears in the first U.S. census, 1790.
First census: 1,077 in 17902020 census: 19,905303 years
How historic is Holden?
A
What drives the grade ↓More historic than 90% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.
Founding year: Wikidata. First post office: 1815.The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Holden’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Holden is more historic than 90% of U.S. towns, #147 of 283 in Massachusetts. Its age holds the grade up; its share of homes from before 1940 pulls it down.
A
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Holden’s overall grade.
Founding era1723, from Wikidata: founded before 1776, an older era than 96% of U.S. townsA+Homes built before 19409.9% of homes (±2.2) · typical MA town 21.1% · U.S. 8.4%B−National Register9 listings, 480 historic buildings, 239 per 10,000 residents · typical MA town 46.0 · U.S. 2.4A
All U.S. towns we grade (21,289)Ahead of 90%
NewerOlder
Massachusetts towns of 2,500+ (283)Ahead of 48%
Massachusetts towns list more on the Register than most of the country (a typical Massachusetts town has 46.0 per 10,000 residents, the U.S. 2.4), so Holden’s 239 sits above most of its state (80% of Massachusetts towns have fewer) while its 480 historic buildings outnumber those of 97% of U.S. towns.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from A− to A+. The pre-1940 share (±2.2 points) is firm at this size. Two sources give 1723.
Founding year: Wikidata (other dates in Quick answers). Homes: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register: National Park Service, May 2026 list; each listing counted once (boundary changes and added documentation belong to their listing), and a historic district counts its contributing buildings. How TownRatings grades history →
What stands out about Holden’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
A historic districtThe Holden Center Historic District takes in 239 historic buildings.Lost villages2 post offices opened and closed inside today’s Holden, and 11 old place names are still on the map.On the map since 18857 editions of the USGS map, 1885 to 1983. Watch Holden change.Then and nowOne place photographed years apart. Drag to compare.
★ What stands out · On the National Register
9 listings protect 480 historic buildings
The country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving. Boundary changes and added documentation are counted with their listing.
places listed
9
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
480
each building in a district counts
first listed
1977
Holden Center Historic District
BuildingsDistricts
Architectural styles listings
Georgian3
Greek Revival3
Federal3
Queen Anne3
Colonial Revival2
Richardsonian Romanesque1
Holden Center Historic DistrictGeorgian
Rogers HouseCape
Brown-Davis-Frost FarmGeorgian
Hubbard-Dawson HouseItalianate
Manning-Ball HouseCape Cod · Built 1790
Stony FarmFederal
Paddock FarmGreek Revival
Willard-Fisk HouseGeorgian
All 9 listings
National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places. Photos from Wikimedia Commons, credited on each place’s page.
Places that used to be
Lost post offices, old corners and burying grounds
Holden’s post office has been open since 1815. Two other post offices opened and closed inside today’s town.
Holden
Jeffersonville
Quinapoxet
Jefferson
18101920today
Hamlets and corners on the map
Camp KinneywoodCanada MillsChaffinvilleDawsonHolden CenterJeffersonLovellvilleNorth WoodsQuinapoxetRuralvilleUnionville
4cemeteries and burying grounds inside Holden
GroveOld Burying GroundPark AvenueSaint Mary's
US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).
On the map
Holden on the map, 1885 to 1983
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Holden. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1885Worcester sheet · 1:62,500U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of Holden.
From the old history books
What they wrote about Holden in 1894
Passages that mention Holden, cut from the printed page as they were published.
![^" . . . . For and [in] consideration of the sum of five shillings and of the love, good will i^ affection which 1 have and do bear to the Town of Holden in the County of Worcester, and from a respect to the publick worship of God, do hereby give, grant and convey to the said Town of Holden one Acr…](https://images.townratings.com/story/24028/bk-88d66f22feeae7a9-l.jpg)
The history of Holden, Massachusetts. 1684-18941894 · page 38Read the page →
Read the text
^" . . . . For and [in] consideration of the sum of five shillings and of the love, good will i^ affection which 1 have and do bear to the Town of Holden in the County of Worcester, and from a respect to the publick worship of God, do hereby give, grant and convey to the said Town of Holden one Acre of land in the centree of said Town of Holden for the Accommodation of a publick Meeting House bounded as follows beginning at a heap of stones near the Spot appropriated for the foundation of the Meetinghouse thence running North-east twenty rods on land ol the Revd Joseph Davis to
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
The history of Holden, Massachusetts. 1684-18941894 · page 19Read the page →
Read the text
honest men, good neighbors, honorable citizens, and accountable to God. From no source of information have I gathered facts which would lead to the conclusion, that the first settlers of Holden were inferior to that generation of men whose settlement in New England forms so important an epoch in history, and whose fame knows no other limits than the whole civilized world. It is not till 1753 that I discover any public misdemeanor to have been committed by a citizen of Holden, when
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.Scans and text from the Internet Archive. Books published in 1930 or earlier, which are in the public domain.
Timeline
Holden, 1723 to 1965
Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.
- 18th century
- 1723FoundingHolden is established
- 1790BuiltManning-Ball House is built
- 19th century
- 1815Post officeThe Holden post office opens
- 1838
In the archiveView of Holden, Massachusetts, ca. 1838. Drawn by Edward Bailey, engraved by Kapeau (1) - 1873Post officeThe Jeffersonville post office opens
- 1882Post officeThe Quinapoxet post office opens
- 1885
On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey - 1891Post officeThe Jeffersonville post office closes
- 20th century
- 1901
In the archiveCentral Massachusetts Railroad bridge over the Quinapoxet River - postcard - 1929Post officeThe Quinapoxet post office closes
- 1939
In the archiveLand Utilization Town of Holden - DPLA - 5fed7df41d73ca2cfd0eb9d064862785 - 1953Born hereBruce Taylor is born here
- 1959Born hereGrant Forsberg is born here
- 1959Born hereRon Hallstrom is born here
- 1965Born hereMark Lund is born here
By decade
Holden, decade by decade
3 decades in the archive, from the 1830s to the 1930s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.
1830s2 items
c. 18381900s–1930s3 items
19031940s–1990snothing yet
Nothing in the archives for these yearsWeddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.
Add from your albumToday12 recent
2023Remains of Central Massachusetts Railroad bridge over…
2023Gardner Branch bridge over Route 122A, December 2023
2022Unionville Pond
2022Trout Brook
2022Little library in front of Mayo Elementary School
2022Little library in back of Mayo Elementary School
2022Bridge over Trout Brook
2019Mass Central Rail Trail
2014Poutwater Pond
2013No parking within 6 feet of tree
2009Entering Holden eastbound on MA Route 122A, MA
2000Seal ofEvery building
Holden, building by building, 1910–1921
Fire insurance maps drew every building, what it was made of and what it was used for, so insurers could price the risk of fire. Pick a year, then a sheet.
1910Sheet 5 of 9Sanborn Map Company, via the Library of Congress. Editions published in 1930 or earlier, which are in the public domain.
Then & now
The same spot, 122 years apart
Drag across each photo to compare.
1901–19072023People over time
Holden, census by census
Grew from 1,077 people in 1790 to 19,905 in 2020, more than tenfold.
19 censuses, 1790–2020.
U.S. Census Bureau decennial counts, from the census table on Holden’s Wikipedia page.
Famous people
See all →6 famous people were born in Holden
Writers, athletes, leaders and more, ranked by how widely they’re known.
Help out
Finish Holden’s story
Most archives stop around 1920. The photos from after that are in family albums, not libraries.
Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
2 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.Stories next door
History across the town line
Each neighbor’s History grade, on the same three inputs.
Questions about Holden’s history
What year was Holden founded?
In 1723, according to Wikidata. Holden’s post office opened in 1815, and the first U.S. census counted 1,077 people here in 1790.
How does Holden rank for history?
Holden is more historic than 90% of U.S. towns, #147 of 283 in Massachusetts. The History grade combines the town’s founding era, the share of homes built before 1940 and its National Register listings. It’s a character grade, so it isn’t part of the overall grade. How it works.
What is on the National Register in Holden?
9 listings: 7 buildings and 2 historic districts, the Holden Center Historic District and the Eagleville Historic District, with 278 contributing buildings. 480 historic buildings in all.
How old are the homes in Holden?
10% of Holden’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±2.2 points), against a typical 21% for a Massachusetts town; the median home was built in 1971.
Memory lane
What the archives can’t tell you, neighbors can.
Start a conversation
Sources
Where this page comes from
Founding dates: Wikidata, Wikipedia, the U.S. post office records of Blevins & Helbock (CC0) and the Census. Homes by year built: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register of Historic Places: National Park Service (list of May 22, 2026). Old photos, postcards and papers: Wikimedia Commons, the Library of Congress and other public archives, credited on each item’s page. Maps: U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (via Esri) and Sanborn fire-insurance maps (Library of Congress). History text and census tables: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0). Places that used to be: USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).
From Wikimedia Commons (17), Wikidata (1), the National Register of Historic Places (9), Wikipedia, Wikidata and Wikipedia for famous people, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, U.S. Census counts (via Wikipedia), the US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock), the USGS Geographic Names Information System, Sanborn fire insurance maps (Library of Congress) and old county and town histories (Internet Archive). Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.