Village of Montague Center
Permanent URI for this community
Montague Center had its beginning in 1716 as the "Hunting Hills" area of Sunderland. It's the third largest village in the Town of Montague.
Village of Montague Center
Third in size among Montague's five villages. The development of Montague Center was encouraged by the availability of nearby waterpower sources and surrounding cultivatable land. Agricultural prosperity and the industrialization of the Connecticut River, its major tributaries, including the Sawmill River—that runs through the area—led to a rapid increase in population. Montague Center had grown into an established rural village serving a diverse productive region.
The growth of industrial sites on the Sawmill River (eleven at its apex of growth) and its location to vital transportation routes, the “Center” became a hub of commercial activity in central Franklin County during the mid to late 1700’s. The village was ideally suited for settlement because of its’ vital location. As the Connecticut River Valley becomes more industrialized in the mid-nineteenth century, small manufacturers and their families appeared. The community is growing.
Source: Montague Historical Society