I have to confess that I've always been a little ticked off at Erving. Its location, bordered by Northfield on the north, Warwick and Orange on the east, Wendell and Montague on the south and west, and Gill on the northwest, puts it smack dab in the middle of Route 2. And its presence there makes the trip to points east just that much longer. But when I did some research on the town, I was pleasantly surprised. And Erving just might surprise you, too.

The last of Franklin County's 26 towns to be incorporated, Erving is an industrial town with a population of just over 1,300. The town actually consists of three villages — Erving Center, Farley and Millers Falls. Erving's abundance of trees (it's the site of a 4,479-acre state forest) and water power (the town lies on the Millers River) made it the ideal location for industry. As in so many New England towns in the 1800s, the river was dammed and mills constructed. In its heyday, Erving was home to several major paper mills, along with the Millers Falls Company (which produced tools, and numerous other manufacturing enterprises.

The town's dominant architectural feature is one of the last vestiges of the industrial boom, the town's largest employer and the fifth largest employer in the county. Erving Paper is the world's largest producer of printed paper napkins. But it's how they make the napkins that's worthy of attention. Tissue paper is traditionally made from a mix of industrial waste paper, recovered office paper (postconsumer waste), and preconsumer waste paper. But the folks at Erving Paper wanted to find a way to use more recovered office paper and increase the amount of recycled paper in their products. They got help from the U.S. Department of Energy’s NICE 3 (National Industrial Competitiveness through Energy, Environment, and Economics) Program to develop a revolutionary de-inking process that didn't compromise product value or quality. The discovery has helped the company use more recovered office paper in their finished product, decrease emissions, and reduce the amount of bleach used in the process.

Erving is also home to the Northfield Mountain Power Station, an underground pumped storage hydroelectric station on the Connecticut River. In case you don't know (and I didn't), a pumped storage hydroelectric station is a power plant that operates on falling water instead of fossil fuels such as oil or coal. The plant was built to even out the peaks and valleys of the electricity curve, providing electricity during times of peak power demand. Northeast Utilities also maintains hiking and cross-country trails on Northfield Mountain for recreational use.

And did you know that the Erving Wastewater Treatment Plant produces a product called FiberClay®, licensed by the Massachusetts DEP for use as a barrier layer for landfill closures? Erving FiberClay® has been used as the barrier layer for the closure of six landfills totaling 38.3 acres and has also been used to manufacture topsoil for use in the closure of another five landfills totaling 49.2 acres. Just another of the interesting facts I uncovered about Erving.

Perhaps in part because of the town's past and present emphasis on manufacturing, Erving residents are bound and determined that their children be going to be technology-savvy. In fact, the Erving Elementary School entered the state's CyberFair 96 competition with a town website, which features extensive information about every business in town. With help from teachers and advisors, the kids produced the site themselves. The result, the World Wide Web Directory for the Town of Erving, was selected as a grand prize winner in the competition's business and community organizations category. You can check it out by clicking here. Way to go, kids!

Erving Elementary is currently in the midst of their yearly fundraiser, the 2002 Read-a-Thon (January 7 through March 1). This community-wide event promotes literacy while it raises money to supplement the library and technology budgets. Corporate sponsor The Housen Corporation donates a penny per each page read. Everyone in town can participate. Parents, grandparents, older siblings, and friends can read to small children and record the pages for them. Tally sheets are kept, and at the end of the drive, the sheets are added up and the sponsor pays up.

And what discussion of Erving would be complete without a mention of Erving Castle? This niche in the rocks was the home of John Smith (aka The Hermit). Smith, a Scottish actor who made his way to Massachusetts in the 1860s, lived in his cave for about 30 years. Accounts have it that he lived off berries and vegetables he was able to grow. He loved wild animals, but had a particular fondness for house cats. At one point, he had quite the entourage, with Toby being his favorite. In fact, when Toby died, John spent part of his savings to buy a burial headstone for him. Smith became quite the celebrity in town, and his numerous visitors often left gifts of food or money (you were probably wondering where his "savings" came from). In the fall of 1899, sensing death was near, Smith moved to Montague. He died the following year and is buried (next to Toby) in the Erving cemetery. You can still see remnants of John Smith's "home," which is in the process of being refurbished by naturalist John Foster with help from the Americorps, the Erving State Forest crew and the Town of Erving. Just look for the sign on Route 2 which marks the entrance to the trail.

Lest I forget (and I never do), Erving has a number of restaurants. Countree Living, located right on Route 2, is arguably the best for both service and cuisine, although relative newcomer Ronzo's Bistro (located just off Route 2 on Route 2A) serves up some good dishes and plentiful portions. There's also the French King Restaurant (located right next to the famous French King bridge) and the Starlight Diner (although my husband and question how it can be rightfully called a diner when they don't serve breakfast!). Alas, the adorable Box Car, situated in the middle of town, has closed (again) and the For Sale site is out. We hope it opens again soon.

So, I admit it. Erving is more than just a town you have to drive through on the way to eastern Massachusetts. It's a pretty interesting place. And one I'll continue to explore, I promise you that.

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