Cranesville Historic District

The Cranesville Historic District is a historic district in Dalton, Massachusetts, centered on the business and residential proprerties associated with the papermaker Crane and Company. Papermaking began as an industry in Dalton in the early 19th century, and was dominated by Zenas Crane's operations by the early 1820s. Crane and Company controlled numerous papermaking operations throughout the Berkshires, but it was headquartered in Dalton, where the Crane family lived. The Cranesville area, running along Main Street in Dalton, is dominated by the large homes built by various members of the Crane family over the years, as well has more pedestrian mill worker housing. The historic industrial facilities of Crane are also included in the district, although they are generally screened from view from Main Street. The most notable of these facilities is the National Historic Landmark Crane and Company Old Stone Mill Rag Room, the oldest surviving building on the Crane premises. Of the Crane family homes, those of Zenas Crane and Winthrop Murray Crane (Zenas' grandson and a major political figure in Massachusetts during the turn of the 20th century) have the most prominent positions on Main Street, near the industrial complex.

The district features Early Republic and Mid 19th Century Revival architecture; It was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 2005.