Webster was founded as a mill village, and that industry’s footprint still looms large in the town.
Just ask Jason Croteau, who has lived with his wife, Pamela, in Webster for 20 years. Croteau is a UPS driver, and most days his route brings him to a six-mill complex tucked between the French River and South Main Street. Croteau knows the hard-to-navigate complex well, often redirecting other delivery people and, on at least one occasion, a lost reporter. Despite the fact that many of the mills have boarded windows, he said, they are mostly filled with commercial tenants: carpenters, metalworkers, consultants, and, according to the warehouse sign for Dr. A.C. Daniels Inc., a “catnip toy maker since 1878.’’
Webster, which was incorporated as a town in 1832, was founded by Samuel Slater, considered by many to be the “father of the American factory system’’ or the “father of the American Industrial Revolution.’’ Slater chose Webster for its “mill privilege,’’ or its location at the outlet of a large body of water, which has a famous, and equally large, name: Lake Chargoggagoggmanchauggagoggchaubunagungamaugg. To native Americans in the Nipmuc Tribe, this translates to “Englishmen at Manchaug at the fishing place at the boundary,’’ according to the Webster Lake Association, but other translations — and spellings — have been handed down.
“The lake, obviously, is unpronounceable,’’ joked Croteau, who enjoys it regularly. He owns a boat, which he uses to entertain his three kids (ages 9, 13, and 14) and for the occasional “quiet boat ride at night.’’
It’s “for chilling and trying to relieve some of the stress from the daily grind,’’ Croteau said, “but the summer’s short. In the winter I cross-country ski. I snowshoe. I’ve done 12 miles around the lake in cold weather.’’
Croteau, who lives near the Connecticut border 10 minutes from the lake, said there’s a bit of an economic divide between the lakeside community and the rest of town. He doesn’t dwell on it, however, he said.
“There’s been a push to clean the town up,’’ Croteau said. “We have a brewery in town now. They’re putting in a riverwalk, and we’re getting a new library.’’
Croteau knows the people along his route, and his fair share of Webster’s population (11,412 as of the 2010 Census).
“My customers are very friendly and giving,’’ Croteau said. “I try to have a good time every day by being respectful.’’
Ben Berke is a freelance journalist covering arts and urban development. Send comments to ben.berke@gmail.com and follow him on Twitter @benjberke.
