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Round Hill, originally called Hap's Hill, is a location in
Dartmouth, Massachusetts Dartmouth (Massachusett language, Massachusett: ) is a coastal town in Bristol County, Massachusetts, United States. Old Dartmouth was the first area of Southeastern Massachusetts to be settled by Europeans in 1652, primarily English. Dartmouth ...
of historical significance, which eventually became a
gated community A gated community (or walled community) is a form of residential community or housing estate containing strictly controlled entrances for pedestrians, bicycles, and automobiles, and often characterized by a closed perimeter of walls and fences ...
.


History


Original description

The first historical description of the hill was by Gabriel Archer, who kept a record of the 1602 expedition of Bartholomew Gosnold from
Falmouth, Cornwall Falmouth ( ; ) is a town, civil parish and port on the River Fal on the south coast of Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. Falmouth was founded in 1613 by the Killigrew family on a site near the existing Pendennis Castle. It developed as a po ...
to what was then known as Northern Virginia. On May 25, 1602 ( o.s.), the vessel ''Concord'' having first entering
Buzzards Bay Buzzards Bay is a bay of the Atlantic Ocean adjacent to the U.S. state of Massachusetts. It is approximately 28 miles (45 kilometers) long by 8 miles (12 kilometers) wide. It is a popular destination for fishing, boating, and tourism. Buzzards ...
(which the crew called ''Gosnolls Hope'') from
Vineyard Sound Vineyard Sound is the stretch of the Atlantic Ocean which separates the Elizabeth Islands and the southwestern part of Cape Cod from the island of Martha's Vineyard, located offshore from the state of Massachusetts Massachusetts ( ; ), ...
, they determined to make the west side of on an islet within Cuttyhunk Island their settlement. From that island Archer saw the a hill on the mainland which he called "Hap's Hill," "for that I hope much hap may be expected from it." On May 31, Captain Gosnold sailed to the mainland, anchored and came ashore. There he was welcomed by native men, women and children "who with all courteous kindnesse entertayned him …," presenting him with furs (thought valuable by Archer), tobacco, turtles, hemp, chains and other ornaments. The landing party explored the coast finding it to be, in the words of Archer, "the goodliest continent that ever we saw, promising more by farre than we any way did expect … ." Exploring the coast they discovered Hap's Island between two inlets. On the basis of the description, Hurd determined that what Archer called Hap's Hill was later referred to as Round Hill.


Ned Green and M.I.T.

Edward Howland Robinson Green, known as "Colonel" Ned Green, the only son of the renowned female tycoon and miser,
Hetty Green Henrietta "Hetty" Howland Robinson Green (November 21, 1834 – July 3, 1916) was an American businesswoman and financier known as "the richest woman in America" during the Gilded Age. Those who knew her well referred to her admiringly as th ...
, built his home on Round Hill after his mother's death in 1916 left him and his sister with a fortune of between $100 and $200 million. The mansion was designed by architect Alfred C. Bossom and completed in 1921 at a cost of $1.5 million. In 1948, twelve years after the Colonel's death, his sister Sylvia Green, his heir, donated the entire property to the
Massachusetts Institute of Technology The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) is a Private university, private research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Established in 1861, MIT has played a significant role in the development of many areas of moder ...
(MIT), which used the estate for educational and military purposes until 1964. MIT erected a giant antenna atop a 50,000-gallon water tank on the site. Another was erected nearby for research towards the
Ballistic Missile Early Warning System The RCA 474L Ballistic Missile Early Warning System (BMEWS, 474L System, Project 474L) was a United States Air Force Cold War early warning radar, computer, and communications system, for ballistic missile detection. The network of twelve rada ...
. The giant dish antenna stood as a local and marine navigational landmark until the current owners of the site, the Bevelaqua family, demolished it in 2007. In 1964 MIT sold the estate to the
Society of Jesus The Society of Jesus (; abbreviation: S.J. or SJ), also known as the Jesuit Order or the Jesuits ( ; ), is a religious order of clerics regular of pontifical right for men in the Catholic Church headquartered in Rome. It was founded in 1540 ...
of New England. It adapted the mansion as a religious retreat center. Its upper floors were converted into 64 individual rooms, and its main floor reworked to include a chapel, conference rooms, and library. In 1968 the Jesuits sold much of the estate's beach to the Town of Dartmouth. In 1970 it sold the entire property to Gratia R. Montgomery, a local woman. In 1981 she sold most of the site to private developers. They developed it as a private, gated condominium community.


Radio research and WMAF

Col. Green had an early fascination with radio technology, dating back to the 1890s, and in June 1922, the Round Hills Radio Corporation was incorporated under a Massachusetts charter, with Colonel Green the company president. To support the radio operations, a building containing a broadcast studio plus laboratory rooms was constructed adjacent to the estate's main building. In September 1922, the Round Hills Radio Corporation received licenses for a broadcasting station, WMAF, in addition to one for experimental work, with the call sign 1XV. The broadcasting station, which was operated only during the summer months of 1923–1928, adopted the slogan ''The Voice from Way Down East''.''The Voice From Way Down East: Radio Broadcasting Station WMAF''
by Paul B. Findley, Round Hills Radio Corporation, 1923. (americanradiohistory.com)
MIT The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) is a private research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Established in 1861, MIT has played a significant role in the development of many areas of modern technology and sc ...
's President, Samuel W. Stratton and the Department of Electrical Engineering's new Communications Division were invited to experiment with the new technology, and the department was initially financed by Green. Professor Edward L. Bowles set out to determine the signal strength and radiation patterns of different antenna arrays in 1926. Round Hill's radio station (which included an early radio telescope, built atop a water tower designed to look like the foundation of a lighthouse) followed Donald B. MacMillan's and Admiral
Richard E. Byrd Richard Evelyn Byrd Jr. (October 25, 1888 – March 11, 1957) was an American naval officer, and pioneering aviator, polar explorer, and organizer of polar logistics. Aircraft flights in which he served as a navigator and expedition leader cr ...
's polar expeditions, tracked the Graf Zeppelin dirigible during its maiden
transatlantic flight A transatlantic flight is the flight of an aircraft across the Atlantic Ocean from Europe, Africa, South Asia, or the Middle East to North America, South America, or ''vice versa''. Such flights have been made by fixed-wing aircraft, airships, bal ...
, and was the sole communication link for areas devastated by the
Vermont Vermont () is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders Massachusetts to the south, New Hampshire to the east, New York (state), New York to the west, and the Provinces and territories of Ca ...
floods in 1927.


Round Hill Van de Graaff generator

In 1933, Round Hill was the site of a large-scale generator designed by
Robert J. Van de Graaff Robert Jemison Van de Graaff (December 20, 1901 – January 16, 1967) was an American physicist, noted for his design and construction of high-voltage Van de Graaff generators. He spent most of his career in the Massachusetts Institute of Tech ...
and his students. Van de Graaff had been brought to MIT from Princeton in 1931 to develop a high voltage research facility. He built a tall
Van de Graaff generator A Van de Graaff generator is an electrostatic generator which uses a moving belt to accumulate electric charge on a hollow metal globe on the top of an insulated column, creating very high electric potentials. It produces very high voltage direct ...
in an abandoned airship hangar on Round Hill. The purpose was to provide the energy to accelerate subatomic particles to bombard atomic nuclei. The machine became operational in December 1933. It was capable of operating at 5,000,000 volts. After it became obsolete, the generator was donated in 1956 to the
Museum of Science, Boston The Museum of Science (MoS) is a nature and science museum and indoor zoological establishment located in Science Park, a plot of land in Boston and Cambridge, Massachusetts, spanning the Charles River. Along with over 700 interactive exhibits, ...
, and circa 2011 the generator continues to function as a major exhibit.


Charles W. Morgan

The New Bedford whaling ship Charles W. Morgan, now on display at
Mystic Seaport Mystic Seaport Museum (founded as Marine Historical Association) is a maritime museum in Mystic, Connecticut, and the largest in the United States. Its site holds a collection of ships and boats and a re-creation of a 19th-century seaport vill ...
, was once owned in part by Colonel Green, and moored at Round Hill.


World War II

During
World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
, the
Coast Artillery Coastal artillery is the branch of the armed forces concerned with operating anti-ship artillery or fixed gun batteries in coastal fortifications. From the Middle Ages until World War II, coastal artillery and naval artillery in the form of c ...
built a fire control structure on the site. This site was known as the Mishaum Point Military Reservation.


Recent developments

In 2007 the property was sold for around $8.5 million. The town's Historical Commission tried and failed to save the antenna. On November 19, 2007, the antenna was demolished by the new owner, who planned to build a new home on the site. The tower had stood for 90 years, and had been a navigational landmark.


See also

*
Round Hill School The Round Hill School for Boys was a short-lived experimental school in Northampton, Massachusetts. It was founded by George Bancroft and Joseph Cogswell in 1823. Though it failed as a viable venture — it closed in 1834 — it was an early effor ...
, founded 1823


References and sources


References


Sources

* The book was first published in . * * * The original imprint was "In fower parts, each containing five bookes." All four volumes are hosted online by th
Library of Congress
The 1905–07 facsimile reproduction (Glasgow: J. MacLehose and sons), in 20 volumes (one for each of the "bookes") is hosted online b
HathiTrust


External links


General


The Center for Land Use Interpretation's page about the Round Hill Lab Site
that mention "''Round Hill, an estate left to the Institute by E. H. R. Green as a home for research in aeronautics and microwave technology''"
About Round Hill CommunityMIT History Museum
photos of work done at Round Hill
MIT Research Laboratory of Electronics
a prior occupant of Round hill

"...probably be one of the finest and most imposing country dwellings in the East."
The Voice From Way Down East - 1923 WMAF promotion brochure


Robert J. Van de Graaff


"The Van de Graaff Generator, 1933"
Exhibits: Institute Archives & Special Collections: MIT


Later use

*Brief mention of Round Hill's use by NASA in 1960 in

, January 27, 2005, National Aeronautics and Space Administration {{coord, 41.54, -70.93, type:landmark_region:US-MA, display=title Beaches of Massachusetts Dartmouth, Massachusetts Hills of Massachusetts History of Bristol County, Massachusetts Landforms of Bristol County, Massachusetts Tourist attractions in Bristol County, Massachusetts