Florence is a village in the northwestern portion of the city of Northampton, Hampshire County, Massachusetts. During the 19th century, Florence was a thriving manufacturing village shaped by progressive ideas on religion, abolitionism, and education. History Early History Before the arrival of European settlers, the area of Florence and Northampton was called Nonotuck, meaning either "middle of the river" or "far away land." Nonotuck was a settlement in the Pocumtuc confederacy. Name The Florence area was known as "Broughton's Meadow" referring to John Broughton, an English settler who purchased land in 1657 that included what is now Northampton and Florence. Broughton's Meadow was used to describe the area until 1846. Other names included "Warner School District" after three brothers who had lived in the area during the early 19th century, and "The Community" referring to the Northampton Association of Education and Industry from 1842 through 1846. In 1848, the village took on the name Bensonville after George W. Benson and the Bensonville Manufacturing Company. After Benson's company went bankrupt in 1849, the village adopted the name Greenville after Greenville Manufacturing Company. In preparation for creating a post office, the village came together in the fall of 1852 to select a new name. The name "Florence" was suggested by Dr. Charles Munde, and this name was approved by residents. 19th Century Early Industry Factory villages along the Mill River were producing cotton goods, silk, wool, thread, buttons, wood items for domestic use, furniture, and leather by 1840. Samuel Whitmarsh moved to Northampton in 1829 and was convinced that silk production would be a promising business venture. He planted of mulberry trees in Florence in order to raise silkworms. Whitmarsh's company, the Northampton Silk Company, began manufacturing silk thread in 1837. Due to economic recession and losing critical investors, Whitmarsh sold this business which was later purchased by the Northampton Association of Education and Industry. Silk production would go on to be an important product in the Florence economy. Northampton Association of Education and Industry (NAEI) Northampton Association of Education and Industry (NAEI) was founded in 1842. This utopian community drew upon the principles of Fourierism and mixed it with interests in radical abolitionism, temperance, manufacturing, and education. Members of NAEI believed that the rights of all should be "equal without distinction of sex, color or condition, sect or religion." The association was 1 of 3 utopian groups founded in Massachusetts before