Items

• Lumber yards - Liston Lumber

  Liston Lumber did business on Main St., primarily through the Depression years.
• Restaurants - Lido Cafe

  The building which housed the Lido Cafe is still there. If you look around the front entrance, you can still see remnants of the facade from years ago.
• Restaurants - Papa Gino's

  Papa Gino's came to Everett in 1963 as "Piece o' Pizza", a new chain founded in East Boston a couple of years before. People of a certain age will remember the person standing in the front window tossing the dough up in the air. In 1968 they changed their name to Papa Gino's and expanded all over the northeast. They left Everett in the early 2000s,
• Auto repair - Mohawk Motors

  Mohawk Motors was also a Ford dealer in addition to being an auto repair shop. One of its locations, Second St. and Revere Beach Parkway, is still being used for auto repair.
• Grocery stores _ McKinnon's (Everett Square)

  George McKinnon moved into the old First National Stores space in 1958, after that store moved to Chelsea. He eventually sold the store to local businessman John "Jackie" Boyle. The store thrived until Star Market opened 2 blocks down the street. McKinnon's held on until the mid-1980s
• Grocery stores - McKinnon's (on the hill)

  There were two brothers, William and George McKinnon. William opened a store on the top of Broadway. George moved into the old First National Stores space in Everett Square. In the 1970s William sold his store to Eddie Penta, a former employee of George. The Penta family has since built McKinnon's On the Hill into a successful regional butcher shop with several stores north of Boston.
• Clothing stores - Kent

  The headlines read, "Kent Comes to Everett" in December, 1948. Seven years later they were forced out by construction of the Sweetser Circle rotary.
• TV/Radio repair - Hopkins Radio and TV

  Years ago consumer goods were made much more sturdy. When something broke down, you had it fixed instead of throwing it out. Charlie Hopkins' Radio and TV store was on Broadway from the late 1940s until the 1970s.
• Clothing stores - Hope Millinery

  Hope Millinery's locations were a bit off the beaten path. Marian Place, in particular, was an alley between 2 buildings facing Broadway. It disappeared when the buildings were razed to make room for a new Star Market in 1970.
• Drug stores - Newman's Drug Store

  Newman's Drug Store was on the corner of Elm st. and Jefferson Ave. in Woodlawn
• Restaurants - New World Chinese and American Restaurant

  New World Chinese Restaurant opened in 1929 and may have been the first Chinese restaurant in Everett. They were on School St. for many years.
• Auto repair - McLellan Brothers

  The McLellan Brothers, Ernie and Dick, started out repairing cars on Bow Street in 1922. They eventually moved to Chelsea St. and expanded into servicing boats. They are now in their fourth generation, now known as McLellan Marine.
• Florists - Maxwell the Florist

  Maxwell the Florist was in Everett Square from 1928 until 1999
• Tire stores - Everett Tire Company

  The Everett Tire Company was in business for nearly 50 years
• Service stations - Everett Springs Atlantic Station

  Everett Springs Atlantic Station was on the corner of Chelsea and Ferry Streets until 1960, when it was replaced by an automatic transmission shop.
• Everett merchants - Christmas Greetings

  Everett newspapers would usually do pages of advertisements with holiday themes. This one is from Christmas 1954
• Auto dealers - Coe Chevrolet

  The Melanson Brothers eventually sold out to Coe Chevrolet. They were there until the 1960s, when a BMW dealership moved in. A Brazilian gracery store currently occupies the space.
• Auto dealers - Melanson Bros. Chevrolet

  The Melanson Brothers owned the first auto dealership at the corner of Chelsea and Cabot Streets. They knew the large plate glass windows facing the street would entice potential buyers to come in and look.
• Hardware stores - Coggan Hardware

  Coggan Hardware was located on Broadway in one of two buildings separated by an alley called Marion Place. Both buildings (and Marion Place) were demolished to make way for Star Market in 1970. Walgreens now occupies the building.
• Nightclubs -Walsh's Cafe/Irish American Club

  Walsh's Cafe started after World War II and featured Irish music. Eventually they were sold and changed their name to the Irish American Club. It met its demise in the School Street fire in April 1969, and was not rebuilt.
• Banks - Industrial Bank and Trust Co.

  Industrial Bank and Trust was an attempt to set up a local bank in Everett. It was a miserable failure, and several of their officers were indicted for violation of Federal banking laws. Their assets were eventually purchased by the Coolidge Bank and Trust Co. of Watertown.
• Grocery stores - Ideal Market

  The original Ideal Market didn't last very long. They were out of business by 1924. A new owner eventually took over the business and it lasted through the Twenties
• Service stations - Gulf

  The Gulf station at 316 Broadway was the first of many gas stations in that spot. A Citgo station is there today.
• Appliance stores - Home Appliance Service

  George R. McCarthy ran the Home Appliance Service on Main St. for 45 years. His other job was Mayor of Everett from 1968 until 1977, when he took a position with the Jimmy Carter administration.
• Bakeries - Homer's/Elm St. Bakery

  Homer's Bakery opened in 1957. They were good. Elm St. opened about 25 years later in the same place. They were even better. On holidays the line goes down the street and around the corner.
• Banks - Everett National Bank

  The Everett National Bank was founded in 1919. One of their chief officers was war hero General E. Leroy Sweetser
• Music stores - Everett Music

  Everett Music had several locations in Everett Square, ending up at 30 Norwood St., after a fire had destroyed their previous site in 1965. They remained there until the owner's retirement in 1999.
• Auto dealers - Everett Motor Sales and Service

  Everett Motor Sales and Service was on the corner of Chelsea and Clinton Streets, conveniently next door to Sawyer's Tire Store
• Liquor stores - Everett Liquor Co.

  Everett Liquor Company started as Everett Malt Co. in 1934, and quickly changed their name. They were at the same location on Chelsea st. until the 1960s
• Grocery stores - Elm Farm

  Enterprise Stores gave up the food business in 1945, when they leased the back half of their store to Elm Farm, a local chain.
• Phone directories - Everett 1889 telephone listing

  The 1889 phone listing for Everett had exactly 20 users. All but 3 of them were businesses.
• Banks - Everett Savings Bank/Eagle Bank

  Everett Savings Bank is one of the few local banks that haven't been bought by a larger institution. Now under the name of Eagle Bank, they have been in Everett since 1889.
• Nightclubs - Beacon Club

  The Beacon Club lasted on Main St. from the Great Depression until the 1970s. A rarity for that type of business.
• Car washes - Various

  The car wash on Revere Beach Parkway has been there since the late 1940s. It has had at least 4 different names. It started as Just-a-Minit, became Car Pool at one point, Simoniz, and Sparkling Image. If there are more we are still looking.
• Service stations - Eddie's/Don's Cities Service

  After Everett Ignition moved out, 111 Chelsea St. became Eddie's Cities Service. After a few years, it became Don's Cities Service, even though the oil company had changed its name to Citgo. Today the building houses an auto detailer.
• Service stations - Everett Ignition

  Everett Ignition (also a Cities Service station) started out on Chelsea St., at the corner of Winter St., then moved down the street to Everett Ave., the present site of KFC.
• Furniture stores - Everett Furniture Outlet

  Everett Furniture Outlet was founded in 1934, when William Cutler bought the old Outlet Furniture Company . They had a good run in Everett Square, lasting until the 1970s. The 16 inch TV advertised in 1950 for$289.95 adjusted for inflation is nearly $4000.00 in 2023 dollars !
• Grocery stores - Enterprise Super Market

  The Enterprise Store in Everett Square had a "rear section" opening up to Norwood Street. They used this section as a "super market", a novel idea at the time.
• Banks - Everett Co-Operative Bank

  The Everett Co-Operative bank was founded in 1890 and still exists under the name Everett Bank. Their early directors contained several of the most powerful business people from the early days of Everett
• Grocery stores - D.O. Dearborn

  Many of the 19th century ads read like classic literature. D.O. Dearborn was no exception
• Livery stables - Daniel Towle

  Daniel Towle hardly ever changed his advertising in more than 25 years
• Food stores - The Chicken Mart

  Fresh killed poultry daily. In Everett !!
• Hardware stores - Central Hardware

  Central Hardware was on Ferry Street for more than 85 years. After they closed there was only one other independently owned hardware store left in Everett.
• Caterers - Henry R. Grant

  The Henry R. Grant Caterers had several locations in Everett, finally landing at 176 Chelsea St., the site of the old Everett Spring Bottling Company. They lasted more than 50 years.
• Construction companies - Henderson Brothers

  The Henderson Brothers built an entire neighborhood in Everett ; originally called Hendersonville, then the Henderson Village, and finally "the Village". Most of their buildings are still standing.
• Bakeries - Mandolese's Bakery

  Mandolese's Bakery developed a huge following in the 30 years they were on Ferry St.
• Hardware stores - Glendale Hardware

  Glendale Hardware opened in 1922 and lasted until the 1990s.
• Churches - Glad Tidings Tabernacle

  Glad Tidings Tabernacle bought the old Capitol Theatre building after that business folded in 1957. They were there until the early 2000s. The building was purchased by a developer and converted to apartments and office space.
• Funeral homes - Cafasso & Sons

  The Cafasso Funeral Home is still on Main St. They are still in the same building and still run by the same family.
• Early Everett Businesses Part 2

  More long-forgotten businesses from the early days of Everett
• Photo shop - Durland's

  Durland's Photo Shop spent nearly three decades on Broadway before moving to Salem in the late 1970s
• Hardware stores - Duncan-Dahl

  Duncan -Dahl Hardware did business in a time where "traveling over the hill" to Glendale Square was a big deal. This was before cars were plentiful, so most people either walked of took the streetcar.
• Tire stores - Charles B. Sawyer

  Charles Sawyer passed away in 1939, but the tire store at the corner of Chelsea and Clinton Streets bearing his name lasted until the late 1960s.
• Donut shops - Quality Donut/Donut Villa

  This is one of the more bizarre stories involving businesses from Everett. Quality Donuts was a popular breakfast place in Everett Square for many years until the 1970's. It was owned by a married couple . The couple was involved in a nasty divorce sometime in the 70's. The end result was two donut shops right next door to each other on Broadway. One was "Joe Murray's Original Quality Donuts" the other was "Donut Villa". This arrangement lasted about a year, when Quality Donuts gave up. Donut Villa lasted about three decades in the Square before they gave way to Dempsey's, another breakfast place still standing to this day.
• Greeting cards - Crowley's Card Shop

  Crowley's Card Shop was owned by Philip J. Crowley, Mayor of Everett from 1950 to 1966
• Poultry dealers - Everett Live Poultry Co.

  Myrtle St. in Everett is in a residential neighborhood. The owner of Everett Live Poultry Company must have had an exemption to the zoning laws.
• Funeral homes - Champlin W. Jones

  Jazz musician Champlin W. "Champ" Jones owned a funeral home on Broadway during the 1960s and 70s. He is, to date, the only person of African-American descent to own a funeral home in Everett.
• Coal dealers - Glendale Coal

  Coal used to be the most popular way to heat a house. The largest coal dealer in Everett was Glendale Coal.
• Grocery stores - Everett Springs Market

  Nearly every neighborhood once had a "corner store". They were usually mon-and-pop operations making enough money for one family to live on. No matter what the official name of the store was, the local kids always called it something else. The Everett Springs Market was known as "Tony's", as was the Elm St. market in Woodlawn, and Nemo's Variety on Clinton St. Who was Tony? Maybe it was a former owner. Maybe it was folklore. We will probably never know.
• Banks - Everett Trust Co.

  After numerous buyouts, the Everett Trust Company became the Everett branch of Bank of America
• Service stations - Coholan Brothers Jenney

  Jenney Oil was another local distributor who didn't survive the oil embargo of the 1970s. Harry "Buddy" Coholan was a founding member of the Everett Rotary and a long-time director of the Everett Chamber of Commerce.
• Soft drink bottlers - Everett Club Bottling Company

  The Everett Club Bottling Company delivered "tonic" door-to-door in Everett for more than 60 years. Their Pelco brand still has fans among bottle collectors. Items with the Pelco label are frequently sold at antique shows and online.
• Auto dealers - Everett Auto Station

  Everett Auto Station was an early Ford dealership located at the corner of Second St. and the present-day Revere Beach Parkway (known as the "Boulevard" in those days.)
• Food shops - Friends

  The Friends company was known for their "Boston baked beans" (even though they were made in Malden). But they also had a food store in Everett Square which sold a large number of hot dishes as well as bakery goods.
• Florists - Walter B. Claggett

  Nowadays florists order their stock from a distributor, who ships it (usually frozen) to the store. Back when Everett had plenty of space, florists could grow their own in greenhouses. Walter Claggett had several greenhouses on the corner of Shute St. and Broadway. He ran the business until his death in 1936, when his widow Ethel took over until her death in 1958.
• Bakeries - Charlie's Bakery

  More than a century ago Charlie's Bakery on Broadway claimed their buttermilk bread would make you live longer !
• Gas stations - Benny's Quincy Gas Station

  Quincy Oil was a local distributor of oil products and had several stations around the Boston area. Their location at the bottom of Chestnut St. lasted until the mid-1970s, when the Arab oil embargo put many small gas stations out of business.
• Bottled water - Everett Crystal Spring

  The area where Chelsea and Ferry Streets meet used to have fresh water springs running underneath. A water bottling facility was erected and sold fresh spring water until the springs dried up in the 1920's
• Candy stores - Candy Mart

  Years ago there were several candy stores in Everett. The only ones you see nowadays seem to be in tourist areas.
• Hair salons - Charles Ro

  Charles Ro opened a hair salon on Ferry Street in 1955. It was successful, so he opened a couple more. Charles also had a hobby. He liked model trains. He started selling trains out of the back of his salon. Eventually the trains were more popular than the hair business. In 1972 he opened a train store in Malden. Eventually, the Charles Ro Supply Company became the largest model train store in the country, and the largest Lionel Train dealer in the world. Not too shabby!
• Toiletries - Carroll Cut Rate

  Carroll Cut Rate was in a long, extremely narrow space on Broadway in Everett Square. Those walls were packed to the gills with just about every toiletry you could imagine. Just about everything you find in today's mega-drug stores could be found at Carroll Cut Rate.
• Package stores - Arthur's Liquors

  Arthur's Liquors had several locations in Everett Square over the decades.
• Auto dealers - Broadway Motor Sales

  Everett used to be full of auto dealers and used car lots. Broadway Motor Sales was located just north of Glendale Square, next to the Rialto Theatre.
• Seafood - Bigwood's Sea Grill

  During the years Bigwood's Sea Grill was on the top of the Broadway hill, the Catholic Church forbade eating meat on most Fridays. Seafood stands thrived. Furthermore, fish was cheap and plentiful. That all changed in 1966, when the rules were changed allowing Catholics to eat meat on Friday. That was the beginning of the end for places like Bigwood's
• Furniture stores - Carpenter Furniture

  Carpenter Furniture was located on School St. for several decades before closing down in 1960
• Construction companies - Bond Brothers

  The Bond brothers started building sidewalks in 1907. They have been growing for more than a century and, as Bond Construction, are one of the largest contractors in the area.
• Bakeries - Brown's Bakery

  Brown's Bakery was one of the more popular bakeries in Everett. They were on Broadway until the 1980s
• Insurance and Real Estate - Cannell Brothers

  The Cannell Brothers were some of the original builders of the Town and City of Everett. They were members of the town council, held several official positions, and ran a thriving insurance business. Cannell Place, off Ferry St. is named after them.
• Photographers - Gustav "Gus" Braun

  Gus Braun is a legend in Everett history. For many years he photographed nearly every major event in Everett. His photos are still circulating nearly 75 years after his death. He was also a member of the Everett School Committee, and was active in city affairs until his death in 1949. His photo and card shop had two locations. First, on Mansfield St., and then around the corner on Broadway.
• Dairy - F. E. Boyd

  Boyd's Dairy was a mainstay in Everett for many years. Mr. Boyd was a member of the Everett School Committee, and many other local groups.
• Furriers - B. Schwartz

  B. Schwartz Furriers was in Everett Square from 1895 to 1960, spanning three generations.
• Grocery stores - N. D'Angelo & Sons

  Jimmy and George D'Angelo ran their family's grocery store on Main St. up through the 1970s
• Furniture stores - C.B. Faith

  C.B. Faith was in Everett Square between the mid-1910s and the mid 1930s. Apparently a victim of the Great Depression
• Grocery stores - Town Food Mart

  The Town Food Mart was on Chelsea St. behind the old Waldorf Cafeteria. The building had previously housed the U.S. Post Office.
• Clothing stores - Upham's

  Upham the Haberdasher was in Everett Square for the first couple of decades of the 20th century.
• Department stores - W.T. Grant

  W.T. Grant was founded in Lynn in 1906 and had stores nationwide for decades. They had two locations in Everett. The first one in Everett Square closed in 1950. Seven years later they opened in Glendale Square and were there until the mid-1970s
• Furniture stores - People's Furniture

  People's Furniture was in Everett Square from the 1914 to the 1970s
• Furniture stores - Burnett's Furniture

  Burnett's Furniture was probably the longest lasting furniture store in Everett, lasting well into the 1980s
• Grocery stores - Berman's Food Centre

  One of the latest trends in shopping is to have all the ingredients of a meal delivered to your door. Berman's Food Centre was doing the same thing 70 years ago.
• Drug stores - Everett Drug Store

  At various times there were three establishments called "Everett Drug Store". The original was at the corner of Chelsea St. and Broadway. The second was on the corner of Broadway and Corey St. This eventually became the Corey St. Pharmacy, and after that the Prescription Shoppe. The third was on Main St until the 1960s.
• Department Stores - Kresge's

  Everett had its share of "5 and 10 cent" stores over the years from J.J. Newberry's, Woolworth's, and Grant's, all the way up to today's "Family Dollar". The most beloved of these was Kresge's, which stood on on the corner of Broadway and Norwood St. from the late 1920s to the mid 1960s. You could buy a pet bird, eat at their lunch counter, and purchase lots of inexpensive household items. By the mid-1960s, the S.S. Kresge Company began closing stores like the one in Everett, so they could focus on their growing KMart chain.
• Department stores - Enterprise Stores

  The Enterprise Stores was a regional chain founded by Philip Feldman and Samuel Glass. They were in Everett Square at 152 School St. from World War I era until 1960. The store name was changed to J.M. Fields in the early 50s. They remained on School St. until 1960, when the owners closed down the location to devote more time to the Wellington Circle store opened a few years earlier.
• Department stores - Gorin's

  Gorin's lasted 60 years in two locations in Everett Square. People would flock to Gorin's "dollar days" to find good buys. During its last few years, Gorin's was part of the Almy's chain of stores before closing in the late 1980s. The building was destroyed by a massive fire in November, 1991 and never rebuilt.
• Grocery stores - Prince Market

  Prince Market was on Norwood St. for many years. They were 2 doors down from the Union Market and somehow co-existed.
• Grocery stores - Union Market

  The Union Market was on Norwood Street for several decades. It was destroyed in a fire in December 1965 and never rebuilt
• Grocery stores - A&P

  At one time A&P was the largest grocery store chain in the USA. They had stores everywhere, and Everett was no exception. The location most people today remember was at the top of Broadway hill, across from the Parlin School. A&P was in Everett until the mid-1960s. The chain eventually closed down in 2015
• Grocery stores - First National Stores

  The First National Stores brand goes back to the 1920s and was headquartered in Somerville, Massachusetts. First National had many Everett locations in the early days, most notably in North Everett next to the old MTA car barns, and Everett Square in the Associates Building. As many grocery stores became "supermarkets" in the 1950s, First National moved to larger areas with bigger buildings and more parking.
• Grocery stores - Stop & Shop

  Stop & Shop has had several locations in Everett going back to the 1920s. Originally known as "Economy Grocery Stores" they had many locations in the Boston area, including several locations in Everett. In the late 1930s the name was changed to Stop & Shop, and they had two locations in Everett; one on Elm St. in Woodlawn and another on Chelsea St., just outside of Everett Square. In 1957, they opened a store in the new shopping center on Ferry St. in Glendale Square and stayed there until 1990, when they moved to a location on Revere Beach Parkway, which was closed in 2022.
• Department stores - Everett Department Stores

  Eli Raphael opened the Everett Department Store on School St. in 1921. He stayed there until the late 1950s
• Department stores - J.W. Philbrick

  During the early days of Everett, J.W. Philbrick was the largest store in town, taking up 3 floors on the corner of Broadway and present-day Norwood St. (Norwood St. at one time was an extension of Chelsea St.). Philbrick opened c.1889 and stayed in business until 1927.