Middleborough. April 14, 2024

Day/Date: SUNDAY – 4/14/24
Town visited: Middleborough (aka Middleboro)
Had we ever been to this town before? No
Drive to town: 50 miles Time spent in town: 5 hours

What did we do in the town/area?
This weekend, the town of Middleborough hosted its 11th Herring Run Festival, and we just had to go. Jenny loves to go to the fish ladder near her work in Waltham this time of year in hopes of seeing the spawning fish jump the ladder, so a festival that celebrated these fish seemed right up her alley.

For those of you who have no idea what I’m talking about… In the spring, many river herring swim upstream to spawn and create a new generation. But sometimes, dams get in the way of this process, and because of that, fish ladders are often built to help support the fish as they continue their way upstream, bypassing the dam.

Middleborough’s fish ladder is on the Nemasket River by Oliver Mill Park, where the Herring Run Festival takes place. The town of Middleborough takes this festival seriously, and it was organized. Shuttles ran to and from the event from a couple of parking lots in the downtown area.

We were so happy that our friend and fellow nature lover, Ally, joined us for the day. We parked downtown and walked around a bit before boarding the shuttle. While downtown, we grabbed some treats from Coffee Milano Cafe. Ally got a huge maple bacon muffin, which was packed with bacon. And we all got coffees to go (you gotta stay caffeinated!).

We decided to walk down to the historic district as we were interested in going to the Robbins Archaeology Museum, which houses artifacts that date back 12,000 years, displays about Native Americans in New England, and even a handcrafted mishoon (a hand carved and burned out canoe, made from a single tree by Native Americans). Sadly, they are not open on Sundays, so we didn’t get to see inside. But, the museum is situated in the historic section of town, so we walked by the Middleborough Historical Museum (also closed), which was like a mini history campus. It had some old buildings like the West Side Whistle House, which was “erected in the 1800s to house a fire alarm system that signaled the approximate location of a fire,” and an old store called Pierce’s General Store.

It would have been cool to visit the historical museum, which apparently pays tribute to Deborah Sampson, the woman who fought in the Revolutionary War disguised as a man. (We first learned about Deborah on our visit to Sharon, MA, as there is a statue of her in front of their library. Deborah Sampson is also depicted on the Plympton town flag, as she was born there and now, here she is in Middelborough, as she was an indentured servant here from 1770-1778).

The museum also houses some memorabilia of PT Barnum’s famous couple, Tom Thumb and Lavinia Warren, who were Middleborough residents in the 1860s.

After our mini historic walk, we wandered into to Rustic Rhino Antique & Artisan store. This multi-dealer shop was great! It was spacious and well laid out and the manager, Ann, was super friendly and informative.

Then, we hopped the shuttle to the Herring Run Festival. This was quite a town event, with food and craft vendors, music, activities for kids, and of course the fish ladder. There were many people standing along the river, looking for a peek at the herring making their way upstream. They were definitely running and Jo captured a great picture as one was jumping up. The river was really high due to all of the recent rains, so we were all amazed that the small fish could fight against the current and make their way up the ladder.

We stopped at the table for the Middleborough Conservation Association and they suggested that we take a walk at one of their properties, Pratt Farm. So, we headed back to our car on the shuttle and made our way to the farm.

But, first, we picked up a frozen banana at The Flying Banana! This small banana stand had an aviation theme and looked like an airport inside. The high school kids working there (who were so sweet) put on their pilot uniforms for us and we snapped a great pic!

At Pratt Farm, we went on a really sweet walk near a few ponds. There were a few standouts, like a very large tree (don’t know what kind) with sprawling roots and a stand of Staghorn Sumac. There was much evidence of spring here, with lots of skunk cabbage coming up, ferns emerging as fiddleheads, and ephemerals blanketing the forest floor (like periwinkle).

Since Middleborough has a lot of land mass – it is the 2nd largest town in MA (2nd only to Plymouth), we did not have time to explore every corner of this town. But, we loved what we did find and really enjoyed experiencing the community feel of local businesses and the Herring Run Festival!