Chicopee, Massachusetts, earned the nickname “Crossroads of New England” due to its location at the intersection of highways and interstates, but it’s also a crossroads of cultures. Poles, French-Canadians, Puerto Ricans and others have transplanted to the city since the 1800s — and continue today — to work its mills and production lines. They brought cuisine and festivities that define the city of 55,000 people. Chicopee is located directly north of Springfield, a larger city with 150,000 residents, but it’s more than a bedroom community. In the 200 years since textile mills first sprung up in Chicopee, it has developed its own employers, traditions and small business sector. It’s a place where a resident may be a lifelong local or recently arrived from another country. To emphasize this, Mayor John Vieau points to the ever-rotating flags flying over City Hall. “We raise flags for holidays: Hispanic Heritage Month, St. Patrick’s Day, Polish Heritage Month,” he says. “You could eat every nationality of food you can think of in Chicopee, from Puerto Rican to Korean to Italian.”
Chicopee is known as Crossroads of New England due to its location of intersections.
City Hall is a large stone structure in the Gothic Revival style in Chicopee.
Poles, French-Canadians, Puerto Ricans have transplanted to the city since the 1800 in Chicopee.
Sabor Latino is a casual establishment serving Spanish-inspired cuisine for breakfast and lunch.
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Manufacturing evolves from cotton mills to kielbasa
Industrialists harnessed the rushing waters of the Chicopee River in the 1820s to power mills and create the city’s manufacturing industry. Industrial work remains a big part of the economy, but it has shifted away from textiles. For example, Callaway Golf Co. produces more than 200,000 golf balls in Chicopee every day. Three companies in town make and distribute Polish food, including kielbasa and pierogi. More than 4,000 military and civilian personnel work at Westover Air Reserve Base, the nation’s largest air reserve base. Since the ‘70s, industrial parks on the outskirts of the base have become the homes of manufacturers and warehousing companies, supporting additional jobs. Vieau describes Chicopee as a hardworking, blue-collar city, adding that locals can also commute to jobs in Springfield or Hartford, Connecticut. The former is less than 5 miles from Chicopee, and the latter is about 30 miles away.
Since the ‘70s, industrial parks in Chicopee have become the homes of manufacturers.
Industrialists harnessed the rushing waters of the Chicopee River in the 1820s to power mills.
Callaway Golf Co. produces more than 200,000 golf balls in Chicopee every day.
Bernat's a family-owned business in Chicopee, MA that has been serving up Polish meat products.
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Festivals and food in downtown Chicopee
Downtown is the hub for the city’s small businesses, particularly its collection of multinational eateries. Portuguese dishes, Brazilian groceries and German beer are all within a half mile of each other. Downtown is compact enough to walk through in about 10 minutes. One of the most prominent of Chicopee’s historical churches sits on the edge of downtown: St. Stanislaus Basilica. Polish immigrants formed the Catholic parish in the 1890s, and the church showcases Polish-American food, music and dancing at the annual Our Lady of Czestochowa Festival. Downtown hosts other events too, such as the Christmas Tree Lighting Ceremony. A local student is chosen to flip the switch, lighting up the tree and downtown. Near the center of town, Memorial Drive is lined with dozens of chain restaurants and national retail brands, such as Walmart, The Home Depot and Marshalls. Its handful of grocery stores include Big Y, a regional chain headquartered in neighboring Springfield.
Memorial Drive is lined with dozens of chain restaurants and national retail brands in Chicopee.
Walmart in Chicopee offers many options for your daily needs.
St. Stanislaus is a historical church sits on the edge of downtown in Chicopee.
Downtown in Chicopee is the hub for the city’s small businesses.
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Home prices, electric rates lower than average
Before it became a town in the 1840s, Chicopee was a collection of villages. Those villages form the basis of the city’s eight neighborhoods. Nineteenth-century Victorians border the narrow streets of Chicopee Center, while small cottages are packed into Chicopee Falls, once home to many of the city’s mill workers. Newer neighborhoods such as Burnett Road are more likely to have midcentury styles such as ranch homes and Cape Cods. There’s little land left to develop, so the few new homes around Chicopee are usually infill construction.
Detached single-family homes are most common, and the median single-family home price is around $300,000, on par with Springfield. However, it’s less than the state’s median price of $650,000 and the national median price of roughly $415,000, according to the Massachusetts Association of Realtors and the National Association of Realtors. Municipal utility Chicopee Electric Light powers the city’s homes, offering electricity rates lower than the state average. However, homeowners near the Chicopee and Connecticut rivers may need to buy flood insurance.
Ranch style homes in Chicopee Center are a common house type.
A row of cape-cod style homes is situated on a cul-de-sac in Chicopee Center.
A single family colonial revival in Chicopee Center has a front porch and quaint green yard.
A Queen Anne style home is the site of the admissions office at Elms College in Chicopee Center.
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Fireworks and trick-or-treating at Szot Park
About 60% of residents live within a 10-minute walk of one of the city’s 30 parks, according to the Trust for Public Land. Szot Park hosts many of the town’s events, such as when camping chairs take over baseball fields ahead of the July Fourth fireworks show. Every October, haunted buses, dancers and thousands of trick-or-treaters fill the park for the free Spooktacular event. “It has taken the place of traditional trick-or-treating,” Vieau says. “Every vendor is vetted, and each one is told to bring 3,000 pieces of candy or more to give out.”
During the summer, swimmers dip into the reservoir at Chicopee Memorial State Park, 575 acres of forests next to Westover Air Reserve Base. Those who want riverside views can travel for 2 miles along the Connecticut RiverWalk & Bikeway. About 40 inches of snow falls throughout the winter, but people can still get outdoors at Chicopee Memorial State Park’s cross-country skiing trail. To stay warm indoors, residents can head to neighboring Springfield to check out the city’s five museums or catch a Springfield Thunderbirds hockey game.
Chicopee has riverside views and trails that residents can enjoy during summer.
Szot Park hosts many of the town’s events, such as when camping chairs take over baseball field.
Every October thousands of trick-or-treaters fill the Szot Park for the free Spooktacular event.
During the summer, swimmers dip into the reservoir at Chicopee Memorial State Park.
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High schools battle for the sword
Chicopee Public Schools oversees 15 campuses across town, with the district getting a B-minus from Niche. High school football is a big deal, particularly the cross-town rivalry between Chicopee High School and Chicopee Comprehensive High School. For more than 60 years, the mayor has presented the winning team with a trophy: an 1890s sword. The weapon was made by Ames Manufacturing Co., a now-shuttered local business that made swords for Union soldiers during the Civil War. The two schools face off every Thanksgiving morning. “My goal is to get the turkey prepped and ready, and then go to the game,” says Vieau, a Chicopee High School graduate. “Turkey tastes better when Chicopee High wins.”
Some nearby school systems accept students who live outside the districts. They include Holyoke Public Schools, Ludlow Public Schools and South Hadley Public Schools. More than 1,000 students attend Elms College, a Catholic liberal arts school on the southwest side of the city. The private college offers associate, bachelor’s, master’s and doctorate degrees, with nursing the most popular program.
Chicopee High has a B rating and is well regarded for its college prep in Chicopee Center.
Barry Elementary School is home of the Basset Hounds in Chicopee Falls.
Chicopee Comprehensive stands out for its above-average extracurriculars for Chicopee Falls kids
Sergeant Kevin A. Dupont Memorial Middle School in Chicopee Center serves grades 6–8.
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Chicopee police create security camera program
The city’s 2023 crime rate was roughly 5% higher than in 2022, and it was nearly double the statewide crime rate. Assault and larceny were the leading causes of arrest in Chicopee in 2023. Residents can voluntarily sign up for the Chicopee Police Department’s security camera registry; the program lets police find the closest camera to the scenes of crimes and accidents, helping them investigate incidents quickly.
The police department partners with local organizations such as Chicopee Public Library and the Chicopee Boys and Girls Club to host Chicopee National Night Out. Held every August, the free event is one of the city’s largest. “It’s controlled chaos for one night where first responders and elected officials and others come out to give out school supplies and backpacks,” Vieau says.
Interstate connections to Hartford, Worcester, Boston
As its nickname suggests, Chicopee has multiple interstates running through it. Interstate 391 provides a speedy route to Springfield, where the highway becomes Interstate 91 and continues to Hartford. Interstate 90 puts drivers on the path to Worcester, 50 miles east, and Boston, which is about 40 miles farther.
Residents typically drive, but they can also take Pioneer Valley Transit Authority buses to destinations around Chicopee such as downtown and Memorial Drive, or ride them to Springfield. In downtown Springfield, Amtrak trains stop at Union Station on their way to and from Hartford, Worcester and Boston. Bradley International Airport near Hartford flies nonstop to 45 airports in the U.S., Europe and the Caribbean.
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