Aways down the street from my house, a long way, almost to the Connecticut border, is an area
of the State Forest called Coffee House Crossing. At the intersection of South-West Main and High Street was where this road originated. The old road, which is now a State Forest trail, began at the Ninth Massachusetts Turnpike (now Southwest Main), and thence crosses a brook and and the old New Haven Railroad bed (Now called the Southern New England Trunkline Trail). I know this because I have followed it many times by bike, and Lucius Marsh writes of it in his book. Marsh writes, "It has long since been abandoned. The New Haven Railroad where trains once ran, crosses the Coffee House Road Parallel with the Turnpike or Southwest Main Street." The road bears its name from an actual coffee house which stood on this road. Marsh also writes:
The first owner mentioned was Abijah 
Estes, who sold it to others in 1778. A John Tilley was one of the later owners and a nearby wood-lot bears his name. The Coffee House was not used after 1823. The old horse-sheds stood until about 1848. The Slaters owned is as a wood-land later and others have owned it since. Legend has it that a man was murdered in the cellar of the Coffee House once. Whe it was running as a place to get refreshments , stage-coaches from Providence to Southbridge went by here. The Coffee House section has been the scene of many destructive forest fires. One in 1907 burned for a week.
Well, it is clear that no one has lived here for sometime, and no one will so long as it remains State Forest land. But, I have come to notice it does have one established family, the beavers.
I noticed a large amount of flooding on the railroad bed over the last few years in this area, and the other day I went out to investigate. It was then I discovered well-established beaver dams. Upon my return last night to the area I revisited the dam and saw the beaver. It's nearly the size of my Labrador! I failed to get a picture, but I got some pictures of his work.
of the State Forest called Coffee House Crossing. At the intersection of South-West Main and High Street was where this road originated. The old road, which is now a State Forest trail, began at the Ninth Massachusetts Turnpike (now Southwest Main), and thence crosses a brook and and the old New Haven Railroad bed (Now called the Southern New England Trunkline Trail). I know this because I have followed it many times by bike, and Lucius Marsh writes of it in his book. Marsh writes, "It has long since been abandoned. The New Haven Railroad where trains once ran, crosses the Coffee House Road Parallel with the Turnpike or Southwest Main Street." The road bears its name from an actual coffee house which stood on this road. Marsh also writes:
I noticed a large amount of flooding on the railroad bed over the last few years in this area, and the other day I went out to investigate. It was then I discovered well-established beaver dams. Upon my return last night to the area I revisited the dam and saw the beaver. It's nearly the size of my Labrador! I failed to get a picture, but I got some pictures of his work.
Glad to hear you're keeping busy exploring. Douglas County (?) has always sounded fascinating to me.
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