Prior to the annexation of Holyoke from West Springfield in 1850, Ingleside was the site of a ferry known as the Jones' ferry, its landing sites are known as Jones Ferry Road on both the Holyoke and Chicopee sides of the Connecticut River today. The word ingle, stemming from a Gaelic word for fire, may have been chosen for lime kilns which were once in the vicinity in its time as a part of West Springfield. The origin of the name Ingleside itself seems to stem from the eponymous Ingleside Hotel, a large complex constructed by one Jones S. Davis, a key figure in the creation of the city's Lyman Mills, which are now known as Open Square. Completed in 1868, the hotel cost Mr. Davis a total of $162,000, but following the Panic of 1873 was sold at auction to one N.S. Chandler "for a little less than $30,000". The hotel, which featured a farm, telegram station, gasworks, and railway stop, was short-lived however, and closed in the winter of 1874 due to low attendance in the midst of an economic depression. The hotel was razed by fire on July 25, 1875, with some indication that the blaze "was the work of an incendiary". The hotel and its contents were insured in total for $20,000. Though the hotel itself stood on the shores of the Connecticut for less than a decade, the Ingleside name would persist as that of the surrounding area long after its absence.
Geography
The contemporary boundaries of Ingleside are defined by Rt 91 to its west, railroad tracks to its north west, Springdale park to its northeast, the Connecticut River to its east, and West Springfield to its south.
Geology
Ingleside's western boundaries contain primarily sand and gravel deposits created by aeolian processes, creating an abundance of gravelly silty loam. In contrast the easterly portion of the neighborhood, which is adjacent to the Connecticut River, consists of floodplain alluvium. The boundary of Ingleside which borders the river contains FEMA regulated floodways which are part of a 100-year floodplain, defined by the agency as areas with a 1% chance of flooding per annum.
Transportation
Streets and highways
Ingleside is directly accessible from U.S. Interstate 91 via Exit 15, Lower Westfield Rd./Ingleside. U.S. Route 5 traverses the neighborhood from north to south, with direct access to I-91 via exit 14, and the Massachusetts TurnpikeI-90 via exit 4 at Holyoke's border with West Springfield. To its north Route 5 splits from Main Street, which continues northeasterly toward Springdale. Several bus routes serve Ingleside, including PVTA R29 at Providence Hospital, P20 at the Holyoke Crossing shopping center, and these routes, along with the P20 Express and R41, serve the Holyoke Mall. Peter Pan Buslines also serves the Holyoke Mall stop with connections to points north and Springfield Union Station.
Public boat access on the Connecticut River is available for small craft from the Sue Ellen Panitch River Center on Jones Ferry Road. While portage is required for all points north of the Hadley Falls Dam or south of the dam in Enfield, Connecticut, the river can be navigated largely uninterrupted between these two points.
