A Bit o' History

I'm having trouble saying the word 'Athol.'  I'm afraid that a hush will fall over the room and I'll be banished from respectable society.  What is its origin, anyway?  If I know this, then maybe I'll get over my irrational fear.  Or maybe they can just change the name back to 'Pequoiag,' after the Indian tribe that lived in this area before the 1700's.  A much better choice, in my opinion.  According to a local source (my landlord),  a group of people recently tried to get the name changed, but their efforts were unsuccessful.  So we're stuck with 'Athol' for awhile.

So anyhoo,  Athol was settled in the 1760's by a group of 5 families of Scottish descent.  The area reminded them of their home in Blair Atholl, Scotland, and the name means "pleasant place."

There you go.  I'm living in a pleasant place.  My peeps in the Pioneer Valley warned me that I was moving to a wasteland...no restaurants, no live music or culture, lots of poverty, and generally speaking not much to do.   It's true that resources are more limited...it's rural...but this area has a lot of breathtaking natural beauty and more than its share of local color and flavor.  Here's a pic from my first hike at Tully Lake, about a 10 minute drive from my new abode:

Pretty awesome, huh?

Athol has suffered the same fate as many other New England factory towns, which were booming in the 1800's and well into the 20th century.  A variety of factors led to their decline, and I believe that Athol got hit harder than most.  It's off the beaten path and more isolated both in terms of geography and access to transportation.  It's nicknamed "Tool Town" - the largest employer is the L.S. Starrett Company, which makes precision tools for machinists and tool and die makers.  My next task is to determine why this company survives and thrives, while many others did not.  But that's for another day.