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Edward Monroe Alden (February 17 1844 - November 28, 1911) was an American businessman, and a landowner of tract housing that would later become known as Aldenville in Chicopee, Massachusetts.
Aldenville
[edit]In the 1880s, Edward purchased a 600-acre tract of land for a total sum of $9,000 dollars with plans of making “a little city on the hill.” He immediately began dividing land into lading lots, naming the area after himself as the "Aldenville" neighborhood of Chicopee. Alden would offer free trolley rides to factory workers from the Falls and Chicopee Center, promoting the place as the ideal place to live. He would advertise his real estate in both English and French, attracting the attention of the French-Canadian immigrants to the area.
The small community began to grow, when Marcele and Mary Croteau of West Springfield purchased the first lot on the corner of Grattan and Mary Streets becoming the first settlers in the area. Marcele, a carpenter, would go on to build a total of 30 homes in Aldenville, the Aldenville School, and the original Ste. Rose de Lima Church.
On September 23, 1897. Alden, donated a 34,000 square foot plot of land, situated at the corner of Grattan and Chapel Streets; but his sole condition was that a chapel be built and outfitted for worship within one year. Construction broke ground on November 29th. Marcele built a 42-foot wooden framed building, two and a half stories high chapel. With the first Mass taking place on April 17th 1898.
As a new generation of French-Canadian families built their own homes, Aldenville grew from scattered farm houses to a tight-knit little community.
Around 1910, Father Fredette and the church would purchase 39 acres for a cemetery, thus becoming Sainte Rose Cemetery or Saint Rose de Lima Cemetery. He would also purchase the land between Percy and Trilby streets. In 1925, the church held a fund raising effort that lasted 3 years and raised $130,000.00 for a new school. The school was built to have 16 classes, accommodate 900 students, and was completed in October 1927. The church would name the school after their patroness St. Joan of Arc, as a symbol of faith and courage.
| Name | Current Address | Year Built | Note | Fate |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| None | 743 Grattan St | 1910? |
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*Possibly rebuilt |
| Ste. Rose de Lima Church | 600 Grattan St | 1898 |
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| Sainte Rose Cemetery | 49 Olsen St | 1910 |
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Example |
| St. Joan of Arc school | 857 Grattan St | 1927 |
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| None | Example | Example | Example | Example |
Personal Life
[edit]Edward is a direct descendant of John Alden, who came over on the Mayflower in 1620.
Family
[edit]At the age of 31, Edward Alden had his first child with Ida Amelia Smith (c. 1855–1891), a son named Edward Smith Alden, on August 18, 1875. They had six children in total: Edward, Ida, Percy, Edith, John, and William.[1]
External Links
[edit]Ste. Rose de Lima Parish History