Scenic Chocolog Road

The following map highlights some of the important features of Chocolog Road. Read the descriptions below to learn more about the rich history of Chocolog Village and about the many important ecological, agricultural, and recreational resources the area still boasts.

SWAMPS, PONDS, AND THE EARLY SETTLERS

One of the earliest references to the Chocolog area can be found in the Massachusetts Archives. During the early days of King Philip’s War (1675–1678), Lieutenant Phinehas Upham was dispatched to the area to dissuade the local Nipmuc Indians from joining the rebellious Metacomet. “We returned and marched to an Indian Plantation called Shockologue,” wrote Upham, “where we could not find any Indians, but a considerable quantity of good corn which we did not destroy but preserved it at the request of some of Mendum who think to fetch it home for themselves.”

The Nipmucs never returned to Chockalog Pond, but when the town was resettled after the war, it became a valuable source of cedar trees, which were commonly used to make shingles and clapboards for colonial houses. Today, the ponds and wetlands along Chocolog Road are home to many species of wildlife and offer some of the most breathtaking views along this route.

HISTORIC CEMeteries and the quakers

In the days before automobiles and Route 146, Chocolog Village was one of several small villages on the southern edge of town. The families who lived here grew up together, farmed together, and intermarried. Along the road we can still visit their small family cemeteries and use the information found there to reconstruct their lives and relationships. Reading these historic tombstones, we can learn about the conditions of life in the past. There are graves of veterans, flu victims, infants, children, and young mothers. 

In the small Aldrich cemetery—set far back in the woods atop a hill, behind the David Southwick cemetery—the modest stone grave markers have no inscriptions. Local folklore calls this “the Indian graveyard,” but it may just be an indication of the religious practices of the areas early inhabitants. Like many South Uxbridge residents, the Southwicks and the Aldriches were Quakers who would have attended the Friends Meetinghouse (c. 1770) just up the road on what is now Route 146A. Prior to 1850 many Quakers considered elaborate tombstones to be frivolous, which may explain the small unmarked stones in this historic graveyard. 

The Royal Taft Cemetery—on the corner of Chocolog Road and Johnson Road—is the resting place of Royal Taft, his wife Molly, and their three children. It is surrounded on three sides by a stone wall and enclosed by a 200-year-old iron gate and fence. 

HISTORIC HOMES OF THE 19TH CENTURY

Chocolog Road is home to four properties on the National Register of Historic Places. These well-preserved 19th-century structures and the landscape that surrounds them add to the historic character of the street. Cellar holes of even older structures also remain along the side of the road. 

The C. R. Thomson House And Barn (C. 1870), located on the Blissful Meadows golf course, are timber-frame constructions with mid-Victorian decorative details. Comfort Thomson, a farmer and livestock breeder, used the large barn to raise “show team oxen.” 

Just up the road are the Joseph Richardson House (c. 1819) and the Caleb Richardson Cottage (c. 1830). Born in Burrillville, Rhode Island, Joseph Richardson began acquiring land in South Uxbridge at the turn of the 19th century. He eventually became one of Uxbridge’s largest landowners and wealthiest citizens. His home is a two-story timber-frame house which is representative of the Federalist period. Richardson’s sons Caleb and William continued to farm the land after his death. The Caleb Richardson Cottage is another fine example of Federalist architecture, though it also contains some elements of the Greek Revival style. 

The Elisha Southwick House (c. 1820), located on the eastern end of Chocolog Road, is a central-chimney cottage of the Federalist period. It has most likely been misattributed, and was probably the home of Eber Southwick, then Ebenezer Cass Southwick, then David L. Southwick. David, a farmer and blacksmith, also had a smith shop on south side of the road. He and his family are buried in the cemetery adjacent to the house. 

a scenic past

In the late 1980s and early 1990s, Uxbridge residents voted to designate 6 different roads as scenic. Totaling 7 1/4 miles, these roads include sections of Chestnut Street, Elmwood Avenue, and South Street in South Uxbridge, and West River Road, Henry Street, and Chapin Street in the eastern part of the town. Chestnut Street, which runs perpendicular to Chocolog Road, has a similar scenic landscape to the one you’ll find here.

agricultural and wildlife

Some of the greatest vistas Chocolog Road has to offer are located on its farms. Visitors to the street will find hayfields, livestock, horses, organic vegetables, and an impressive amount of wildlife. 

Chockalog Farm (710 Chocolog Road) is a small organic farm that raises free-range chickens and grass-fed cattle. Their CSA farm share program provides the community with fresh, locally grown produce. Across the road, the hayfields of Hathaway farm are lined with stone walls and haven’t changed much since Joseph Richardson and his sons farmed the same land. 

Stoneridge Farm, located on the site of the historic David Southwick farm, boasts miles of stone walls and an expansive wetland, which is protected as a Priority Habitat of Rare Species. It is home to wood turtles, box turtles, and many other species of turtle, salamander and snake. Stoneridge pond also provides habitat for otters, beavers, and a large variety of birds, including great blue herons, wood ducks, and Canada geese. Avid birdwatchers might also spot pileated woodpeckers, great horned owls, and red-tailed hawks in the area.

The woods along Chocolog Road are replete with wildlife. Deer, coyote, fishers, and turkeys can be found in large numbers, and every now and then a black bear, bobcat, or moose is spotted in the area.

recreation then and now

For decades Chockalog Pond and the old Bentley Pony Farm were recreation spots for the people of Uxbridge. Today visitors to Chocolog Road come to golf, fish, hunt, hike, and enjoy the area’s forests and wildlife.

Blissful Meadows Golf Club is located at the far end of Chocolog Road, near the Douglas border. The Wood family originally purchased this land from the King of England in 1726. The Woods’ farm was self-sufficient, with everything from a blacksmith shop to an icehouse to a meat-processing building. Still on the property are the historic C. R. Thomson house and barn (now the Blissful Meadows clubhouse) and the remains of the Scadden Silver Mine (c. 1837).

The Laurel Brook Club, an exclusive fishing club, occupies much of the land between Chocolog Road and Laurel Street. It is the oldest fly-fishing club in the United States with a continuous record of all fish caught since the club was formed in 1902. Each year club members gather with their families to celebrate the blooming of the mountain laurels. 

The history of Chocolog Village was shaped by the New York, New Haven & Hartford’s Midland Division railroad, which cut across the eastern end of Chocolog Road. Often called the ghost train, it would pick up milk from local farmers to sell in Boston. Today, the Southern New England Trunkline Trail—a 22-mile National Recreation Trail—runs along the old railroad grade.