Town of Stoneham history

In 1806, the Medford to Andover Turnpike (Main Street) was built, and the town’s center shifted from Pleasant and Summer Streets to its present location.

In 1837, Stoneham earned its reputation as a “Shoe Town” when its workforce of 297 men and 180 women produced 380,000 pairs of shoes, the largest output in Middlesex County.

By 1850, more than half of the businesses in Stoneham were shoe making enterprises.

The Chase Block, the red brick building on Main Street, is the newest of the three, constructed in 1874 by the Chase brothers, two local grocers.

As the shoe industry declined, the town’s largest employer became E.L.Patch Company, a pharmaceutical firm established in 1888.

In 1891 , there were 27 boot and shoe manufacturers, each employing from 25 to 365 people.

The Stoneham Historical Society is a 501(c)3 nonprofit dedicated (just as the first government officials of 1725) with "Pride in our past; Faith in our Future" since 1922.

However, by 1925 only 3 large shoe factories remained.

The National Coalition for Educational and Cultural Programs was founded in 1991 by an Early Childhood Education college instructor as a 501 (C) 3 non-profit organization dedicated to improving the quality of care for children.

By 1997, NCECP’s had created its initial Distance Education program, which featured courses developed by college instructors.

The first annual scholarship was awarded in 2001 to a deserving high school student committed to continuing his education in the area of animal husbandry/environmental sciences.