Millbury, MA Road Trips

Millbury was first settled by Europeans in 1716 and was incorporated as a town in 1813. Millbury has a long history as a mill town, from which the town's name is derived. The Blackstone River, which flows through the town, provided much of the water power to the town's many textile mills and factories during the Industrial Revolution. Factory owner Asa Waters II built a Federal-style mansion near the town center on Elm Street, which was completed in 1832. It took two years to collect materials for construction of the house, including marble from Italy and bricks from Baltimore. Known as the Asa Waters Mansion, it is an icon of the town. President William Howard Taft spent many summer vacations in Millbury as a young boy, attending the public schools for a season. When he grew older, he visited his grandparents most summers. He visited his aunt, Delia C. Torrey, during his presidency for the occasion of Millbury's 100th birthday. The Torrey House, where President Taft stayed during his visit, is commonly called the Taft House today. To the south is the small town area of Sutton.

1 Asa Waters Mansion, 123 Elm Street, ☏ +1 508 865-0855. A three-story wood frame house, with a hip roof ringed by a low balustrade. Its front facade is distinguished by colonnade of fluted two-story pillars with composite capitals, with pilasters at the building corners. Listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Not open to the public. Grand 1826 estate built by an early 1800s gunsmithing and banking tycoon. Primarily a wedding venue now, but they hold guided tours and afternoon tea which are open to the public. Call for availability. (updated May 2017) Valliancourt Folk Art, 9 Main Street #1H, Sutton, ☏ +1 508 476-3601. Producer of chalkware, mostly Christmas-themed.

Elm DraughtHouse Theatre, 35 Elm St, Millbury, ☏ +1 508-865-2850. Dinner and a movie. Oldies theater playing a different low-cost movie every week -- beer, wine, pub menu. Takes a different spin on the "movie theater with alcohol concept." $5 tickets and cheap beer in a small town one screen theater. (updated May 2017) Purgatory Chasm State Reservation, 198 Purgatory Rd. Sutton, ☏ +1 508 234-3733. Hike through and around an eery chasm gouged into the otherwise peaceful countryside. Massparks states that there is a $2 parking fee, although it might not be collected outside of summer. $2.

Penny Pinchers Brewing Company, 75 Elm St, ☏ +1 774 696-7885. Micro-brewery with a small storefront taproom that experiments with offbeat flavor combinations. (updated Aug 2022)

Accommodations can be found in nearby Worcester.

Line 22 bus from Worcester (Green St and Gold St), 20 min, every 3 hours Taxi from Worcester - about 7 minutes, $29-35