Foxborough Buildings Lost to History

Time marches on and with it comes the loss of structures that were once familiar sights to residents. Some fall to development while others are neglected and get to the point where they can no longer be saved.

This home and the Foxboro General Store (also known as the Little Shop) once stood on Bird Street to the Right of the Universalist Church. Both were removed in the mid 1960s to make way for the Boyden Public Library.

At the intersection of Main and Rockhill Streets stood the Union Building, built just after the Civil War. F. Munroe Perry later operated a small movie theatre in the second floor of this building and later built the Orpheum Theatre between the Union Building and Bethany Church. The Union Building was demolished in the 1950s.

The Union Straw Works stood on Wall Street at the current location of the Foxborough Post Office. Constructed in 1852 when the community could barely satiate the demand for straw goods, the structure survived until 1900. On May 28, 1900 a night watchman rang the alarm when he noticed a fire in the building. Within two hours the mammoth structure was a complete loss.

The Town House once stood on the property just behind the current day Town Hall. Originally constructed in the late 1850s, the building was later fitted with a rear addition that almost doubled the original size of the building. The structure was lost to fire on the evening of June 4, 1900 and the community mourned the loss of three firefighters that died battling the blaze.

Years after the loss of the town house the Center School was built on the property and served the community for decades. As new schools were constructed in town during the 1960s the Center School was demolished to make room for the present day Town Hall.

This page was last updated 03/18/2018

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