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This photo was taken by Cheyne Aerial Surveys of Methuen in 1948. According to the photo caption that appeared in the Boston Herald, "Take a good, long look at this suburban community, its main thoroughfare running from top left to right center of the picture, its athletic field at the bottom right, and two churches in the upper left corner. It's Wakefield from the air."
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This photograph is identified as having been taken by C.F. Richardson at Prospect and Elm Streets. In "Wakefield As It Is", a promotional booklet published by Chester W. Eaton's Real Estate Agency in 1880, the Boston Globe noted on May 2, 1880, "Eaton's real estate exchange reports an active demand for houses in the beautiful town of Wakefield., which is full of charming locations and various attractions. This agency, which is located at Wakefield, has houses and estates of every description ranging in price from $1,000 to $12,000 and building lots at reasonable figures. No suburban town is more popular for residential purposes than Wakefield, and its growth is sure and steady."
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G.W. Eaton, Grocers was located at 394 Main Street from 1889 to 1917. Owned by George W. Eaton, a lifelong resident of Wakefield, the store sold a variety of items some of which were featured on advertisements on display at the store, including Quaker Oats; Bon Ami, a cleaner developed in 1886 by the J.T. Robertson Soap Company; products baked by the New York Pie Bakery, located in Massachusetts; chocolate and cocoa from the well-known chocolatier Walter Baker & Company of Dorchester; and smoking materials from J. G. Dill's Tobacco Company of Richmond, Virginia, a company which received four patents for chewing and smoking tobacco in 1878. The picture may have been taken in February 1896, as indicated by the 29 days on the calendar on the wall . It is interesting to note that the next leap year did not occur in 1900, rather it occurred in 1904. A leap year is every four years, but not every 100 years. Since 1752 in the United States, years exactly divisible by 100 are only leap years when they are also exactly divisible by 400. For example, 1800 and 1900 were not leap years, but 1700 and 2000 were. When Eaton retired in 1917 after 28 years in the grocery business, he disposed of his goods and closed the store, not selling the business to anyone else.
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(Seated left to right) Captain Arthur Moncrieff, Captain Francis Bowman, Major Richard Dolbeare, Captain Roy Surrette and Captain Charles Carr. (Standing, left to right) 1st Lieut. Philip Pasqualino, 2nd Lieut. Winsor Finney, 1st Lieut. Frank DeFazio, 2nd Lieut. Myron Wing, Adj. A. Anderson, Battalion instructor Sergeant Ernest Monroe, 1st Lieut. Francis Walsh, 2nd Lieut. Abbott Fiendel, 1st Lieut. Cecil Ward, 2nd Lieutenant Robert Batten, and 1st Lieut. Samuel Levine.
The Wakefield High School Battalion was created in October 1885, when the "boys of Wakefield High School" formed a military company and entered into the Second Massachusetts Regiment with cadets from Reading and Andover. During the 1920-21 school year, the Battalion was said to have "advanced farther" than in other years under the instruction of Sergeant Monroe of the United States Army. The battalion's four companies met for drill three periods each week, with an officers' school held every Tuesday afternoon to instruct the officers and non-commissioned officers. For several years, the companies which made up the Wakefield Battalion held spring prize drills in the Town Hall and later on the park (common). Due to crowded conditions at the High School and overcrowding of the program, military drills were abolished in 1931. The program was resumed with the entrance of the United States in World War II and was required of all boys in the junior and senior classes, as military training was valuable to the young men entering the service.
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Referred to as the Frederick Ballard Eaton House on Main Street near Sweetser Street, this home was reported to be occupied by Frederick's widow Eliza in Lilley Eaton's Genealogical History of Reading Mass., published in 1874. Frederick was born in Reading (now Wakefield) in May 1792, one of five children born to Samuel Eaton III and Sarah (Evans) Eaton. He married Eliza Vinton in 1815 and the two were parents of five children: Sarah, Henry, Mary, Hiram and Joseph. Sarah married George Reed Morrison, a Deacon in the First Parish Congregational Church and one of the first corporators of the Wakefield Savings Bank. Frederick died in 1858. It is not known when the house was built. The Frederick Ballard Eaton House is believed to be the house occupied by William Stimpson in 1812. According to Lilley Eaton's book, Stimson "was a bricklayer by trade, a peaceable, industrious, and honest man. He afterwards purchased and occupied the farm at the 'head of the pond', now or lately known as the 'Stimpson Farm'," probably the historic house now at 22 Prospect Street. Frederick Ballard Eaton built another house, the Greek Revival style home to the south of the original house, now 196 Main Street, for his son Hiram. A map of 1856 shows two Eaton houses at the corner of Main and Sweetser Streets.
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One of the oldest commercial buildings in downtown Wakefield, the Kingman Block, was built around 1860 during the tenure of Samuel Kingman, a tailor who later became Postmaster. Now known as the Bourdon Building, the building housed the Post Office until 1901 when it moved to the corner of Main Street and Richardson Avenue. During the late 1800s, Kingman's Hall was on one of the upper floors and was used for social parties and assemblies. The third floor was once the armory of the Richardson Light Guard, as well as the A.O.H. Hall and the Red Men's Hall. After the Post Office vacated the building, the bottom floor of the building was altered over the years to accommodate many businesses, including Wilhelmina's Smart Shop, O'Connor's Men's Shop, and Wm. M. Deadman's Market which was on the Albion Street side of the building. Kenwood's Lunch was the occupant of the first floor when this picture was taken on September 21, 1923 just before the razing of the Bessey Livery Stables pictured on the right. Kenwood Lunch advertised that it was an American restaurant with American food and management and encouraged readers to "come and enjoy a real good meal. We solicit your patronage and guarantee satisfaction." The Willard Service Station, the taxi office of Richard Barrett, and the Victor Shoe Shine Parlor, to the right of the Kingman Building were also razed in November 1923 in preparation for the Wakefield Trust Company building.
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Company A, Sixth Regiment of the Richardson Light Guard, was mustered into service on April 6, 1917. Less than 12 hours later, Company A was on its way to Fort Revere in Hull. On August 25th, the company was allowed to return home for a day before being sent to war. A farewell parade was held on Sunday which started at the Armory (now the Americal Civic Center) and ended at the Upper Train Station. According to Wakefield Massachusetts in the World War 1917- 1920, a book started by Emma Florence Eaton (who worked on the project from 1919-1921), and completed in 1935 under a W.P.A. project, more than 900 Wakefield men and women were enrolled in the various branches of the service. A total of 41 gave their lives to the cause, 97 were "gassed" or wounded, 27 received "decorations for valor," and 37 were cited for gallantry in action when the war ended in 1919. Pictured after the company passed through the town during the 1917 farewell parade, thousands of local residents returned to their homes or walked or rode to the train station for the final good-bye. It is interesting to note that the sign in the foreground reminds drivers to "keep to the right. Please observe the law." It is also important to not only note the dress on what was probably a hot August day, but to also note the cars, one of which has the steering wheel on the right.
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The annual Fourth of July celebration, sponsored by the West Side Social Club, featured children's activities and contests, a three-division parade which began at Moulton Playground and ended at the Common, a band concert, and fireworks. The parade, the largest in the events history, stepped off at 2 p.m. on a route that traveled along Albion, Gould, Walnut and Chestnut Streets, North Avenue, Main and Church Streets. Several of the children's activities, including the fishing derby, home run hitting contest, pet "show", and a boys-only bicycle, tricycle and cart parade were held the night before, beginning at 6:30 p.m., followed by a band concert, variety show featuring three vaudeville acts and a "sample" fireworks display. The remaining children's events, including the children's races and doll carriage parade were held on the morning of July 4th, some of which were featured on WBZ-TV's live broadcast from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. and on Bob Emery's Big Brother show. The parade floats which "appeared in the line of march" in the afternoon "assembled for a trip before the cameras on Church Street in front of the bandstand and several marching groups also were shown at 11 o'clock." Brian Goss, on the bicycle was the second-place winner in the bicycle parade, which won him a "crest lite." He and his mother, Ruth, are pictured with what may be the other winners who were reported to have been interviewed by Bob Emery on his show.
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According to the photo caption on the back of the photo, "PIRATE HIDEOUT - Shipfitters set the rigging on a pair of pirate boats moored to the wharf on the shore of Pleasure Island's currently calm inland sea." The photo was taken just weeks before the June 22nd public opening of the park. The designers and construction crews were able to turn swampland into the Disney of the East in less than one year, starting earth-moving operations in the Fall of 1958, working through a New England winter and above average rainfall amounts during the 1959 spring and summer. This photo shows portions of the park's main themed areas, Clipper Cove, on the left, and the Western section called Goldpan Gulch, above right. Clipper Cove was designed to represent a New England seaport from the mid-1800s. It incorporated the Pirate Cove and Moby Dick attractions as well as the Wreck of the Hesperus dark ride. The Western section featured the narrow-gauge steam train "Old Smokey" and the Goldpan Gulch Station, the Diamond Lil Saloon, Quannapowitt Publishers Print Shop, the Chisholm Trail dark ride, and an 1800s and Contemporary Hotel exhibit by Hotel Corporation of America. At the top of Clipper Cove (left to right) is the Hotel Exhibit, the dark ride, Print Shop, and Saloon. Facing Clipper Cove at the rear of the Hotel Exhibit was the Sheriff's Office and Jail. Across from this complex was the popular Tilt House, often referred to as the Slanty Shanty. On the left beyond the launch platform for the Pirate Cove attraction was Cap'n Snow's Chowder House, which was still under construction. Several other attractions also opened in the park's first season, some survived for the entire 11 seasons while others were either added or removed, including the park's shops and dining facilities. This year also marks the 50th anniversary of Pleasure Island's 11th and final season. Wakefield hosted the second of three theme parks built across America after Disneyland and although long gone, Edgewater Office Park maintains much of the past landscape and water features enjoyed by the millions of former guests, young and old.
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This building, occupied by the Wakefield Clothing Company in 1923, once numbered as 390 Main Street, was located across from Avon Street. While most prominent buildings in downtown Wakefield were often referred to by either the name of their builders or occupants, this building is not as identifiable. It could have been called the Daland Building in the late 1800s, as it was owned and occupied at the time by the Everett G. Daland Dry Goods Store. The store measured 75' x 20' and provided a "large and fine assortment of dry goods, children's clothing, men's furnishings, hats and various small wares too numerous to mention." It is reported that Everett George Daland, a Wakefield native, opened the dry goods store in 1878 at the age of 18. He opened the store for 23 years and went on to work as a traveling salesman for Simon, Hatch and Whitten Company of Boston, a wholesale men's furnishings company for the next 30 years. The building itself is similar to, and often mistaken for, the Butler block which is located on Main Street across from Albion Street.
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Although there were several houses owned and occupied by members of the Emerson family, this is probably the home of Thomas Emerson, founder of Thomas Emerson & Sons at the corner of Main and Lawrence Streets. According to the Historic Homes and Places and Genealogical and Personal Memoirs Relating to the Families of Middlesex County, Massachusetts published in 1906, Emerson was born in 1785 and died in 1871. He and his wife Elizabeth Hartshorn, said to be the sister of Col. James Hartshorn, were the parents of five children: Thomas, Augusta, Sarah, Maria and James. James, the youngest, is the only child listed as being born in the home in 1830. Thomas Emerson was credited with instituting a system of paying wages in cash instead of "barter at the store," once a practice of shoe manufacturers. A Selectman, member of the School Committee, Representative to the General Court and a State Senator, the elder Thomas was one of the "most prominent citizens and business men active in political affairs" with a "charming personality and sterling character," traits carried on by his two sons, Thomas and James, both of whom are credited with growing the business in "volume and prosperity" and continuing his community and civic service. After their father's retirement in 1854, his two sons renamed the company Thomas Emerson's Sons. The younger Thomas was one of the founders of the Wakefield Horticultural and Agricultural Society, and although he was an integral part of Thomas Emerson's Sons, he also served as President of the Mechanic and Agricultural Institution, a bank, for 24 years, and as a trustee of the Wakefield Savings Bank and director of the National Bank, along with many other organizations. James Emerson followed his father's civic sense of duty as Town Treasurer for 28 years. He is credited as being a "leading spirit in the organization" of the Richard [i.e. Richardson] Light Guard, serving as Commander of the company, was the second President of the Wakefield Savings Bank, and was an organizer and charter member of the Wakefield Home for Aged Women (the Boit Home.) He played a "prominent role" in bringing water, electricity and gas to the town, and in acquiring land bordering Lake Quannapowitt for use as a public park. He died in the family home in 1906.
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The building at 29 Water Street, former home to L.B. Evans Son Co. Shoe Manufacturers, was built as a three-story, 60' by 40' building in 1894. Founded in 1841 by Lucius Bolles Evans in a building at the at the rear of a dwelling house at 9 Salem Street, the shoe manufacturing shop moved to 8 Salem Street in 1884. In 1894, Lucius' son, Harvey B. Evans built the new shoemaking factory on the site formerly occupied by the Episcopal Church, employing 80 people.The company was incorporated as the L.B. Evans' Son Company in 1905 by Harvey Evans' sons following his death. A 40' addition and a fourth story were added somewhere around 1904, with many other additions made over the years, bringing the total square footage to 117,000 sq. ft when the final addition was completed in the late 1960s. Once recognized as the oldest shoe manufacturing concern in the United States and the oldest industry in Wakefield, the company and its building were purchased by a Fitchburg Company in 1979 and the company began to be phased out in 1980, eventually closing around 1987. The company was best known for its slippers and casual shoes in its later years. Although it appeared that the Burche Manufacturing Company was located in the L.B. Evans building, the angle of this photograph made it appear that the company's sign was on the building, according to a press statement on the back of the photograph.
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Frederick Tudor, a prominent Boston merchant referred to as the "Ice King of New England" in the early 19th century began harvesting ice from ponds and lakes across Massachusetts beginning in 1805. He harvested ice from both Lake Quannapowitt and Crystal Lake, as well as several other area lakes and ponds, that were shipped to areas as far south as Charleston and New Orleans, and as far as the West Indies. Ice harvesting in Wakefield increased with the creation of the Quannapowitt Railroad Company in 1849 to transport ice from storage to the main railroad and to points beyond. By 1855, 27,000 tons of ice were harvested from both Lake Quannapowitt and Crystal Lake for an estimated value of $13,500, employing 20 men, making the town the fourth largest source of commercial ice in Middlesex County. In its heyday, there were more than three dozen ice houses operating at one time: the 24-ice house Boston Ice Company, the People's Ice Company, the Whipple-Morrill Company, Morrill-Atwood Company, and the Nichols Ice Company, all on Lake Quannapowitt; and three on Crystal Lake: the Philpott houses near the "Greenwood Bridge", a "set of houses" on [sic] at the corner of Crystal Lake Park near the Town nursery, and another on the east shore near the Junction railroad station. The picture shows the workers getting the cut ice into the ice house. According to Alonzo Colson's accounts published in the Wakefield Daily Item in 1947 and 1948, the connecting links between the ice houses and the "ice fields" were called runs, which were two 100-foot platforms of heavy boards, each five feet apart, five feet wide and two feet above the water. The ice cakes would float between them and long chains would go down into the water to pick up the cakes that workers had "poled" along and put on the chains, which were two "flat-faced" link chains five feet apart and seven to eight inches long. A hardwood cross bar connected the two chains which picked up the ice cake from the "submerged big wheels upon which it rolled." The ice was then slid onto iron tracks to the desired storage level.
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Boothby's Specialty Shop began as Boothby's Beehive when Asa and Mabel Boothby purchased The Emerson, a dry goods store owned by Bernice Emerson across the street in the Traders' Block, in 1907. Daily operations were handled by Mabel while Asa worked as a salesman, and later as sales manager, for Wadsworth-Howland Co. The store moved across the street into the Butler Block, then numbered 432-434 Main Street, in 1919 in a store previously occupied by Butler's variety store and, with the addition of more merchandise, became a women's specialty store. The couple purchased the building from the estate of Aaron Butler in 1923 and remodeled it in 1936 by adding a 75' one-story addition in the rear, removing the yarn shop on the second floor and adding four kitchenette apartments. Both Asa and Mabel Boothby were active in the community; he as a Selectman, Chairman of the Salvage Committee during World War II, and as an officer of several professional, civic and religious organizations; and she as Noble Grand of Goodwill Rebekah Lodge, No.22, I.O.O.F, and as an officer of other civic and religious organizations. The business was sold to W.T. Grant Company Manager Leslie Gaquin in 1944, who also purchased in the building in 1946.
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The stately First Baptist Church was destroyed by a seven-alarm fire on October 23, 2018. The church is described in the 250th anniversary publication of 1894, after addressing a fire that destroyed its second house of worship in 1871, as follows: "The people had already felt the need of more ample accommodations, and, with strong hope and courage, secured a lot of land on the corner of Main and Lafayette Streets, where the foundations of worship were laid. This structure, which is no exception to the unwritten law that calls for attractive public buildings in the town, was dedicated (on) Dec. 11, 1872. Built of wood, it belongs to the Romanesque order, with minaret and lofty spire, one hundred and eighty feet from the base. the spacious auditorium was designed for one thousand people".
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Image from the Wakefield Municipal Gas and Light Department annual calendar, 2021
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The other half of the Greenwood gathering appearing elsewhere in this calendar features a glimpse at some of the local businesses that exhibited their wares at the circa 1930 gathering in Greenwood. H.S. Sorensen, a local jeweler, is in the center, and on the right is the display of the J. Wallace Grace Hardware Company, a hardware and plumbing store that was located at 14 Albion Street and started in business in the mid-1800s. The store may have been associated with the International Oil Burner display, at right, which touted the new type oil burner that, according to industry publications, "took the place of wood or coal and automatically and silently changes cheap oil into one of the quickest and hottest fires known." It was said to burn 96% air and 4% "cheap oil" and fit in the fire box of any range, stove or furnace. George Archibald is also in this part of the picture, wearing a sweater, knickers and striped socks, standing alone with his left hand touching his face.
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This photograph was taken from the steeple of the Baptist Church, looking southeast. The view shows several prominent buildings and structures, most notably the Unitarian-Universalist Church of Wakefield, at the right, the factory building once referred to as the "Old Rink Building" and former home to the Richardson Light Guard armory, the Lincoln School, and the Heywood-Wakefield Company, formerly the Wakefield Rattan Company, and later the Robie Industrial Park. The photograph was taken before the 1951 police station was built, now part of the Public Safety Building. The 1900 fire station is not pictured but is to the right of the top of the church steeple. Note the homes with barns and the absence of automobiles in the driveways and on the roadways.
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Wakefield's Veteran Firemen's Association appears to have been among the most active of the veteran firemen's organizations in the Commonwealth in the late 1890s. Comprised of "old-time firemen," the members of the association took part in numerous balls, parades, and competitions organized by the New England States Veterans Firemen's League in the 1880s and 1890s. The Veteran Firemen's Association was organized in January 1889 with 45 charter members. Early officers included President W.A. Cutter, Vice President E.H. Walton, Secretary George Weston, Treasurer E.E. Whiton, and Foreman Alexander Flanders. The April 1889 Town Meeting approved the use and custody of the Yale Engine No. 1 to the group, later selling it to them for $1 in November 1891, with the condition that the hand tub be kept in good condition for use at all fires, and "subject to duty whenever required by the Fire Engineers of Wakefield." The engine could not be sold without the consent of the Town and would revert back to the Town when the company disbanded. During one outing in Boston in September 1892, the Wakefield group was among more than 3,000 uniformed members representing 25 companies and 23 engines, some of which were hailed as the "best in the nation." The competitions included engine tests with Wakefield's Yale Engine coming in third with a horizontal stream of 205', 2.75". The Yale, named after noted citizen and benefactor Burrage Yale, was destroyed in a fire at the Central Fire Station in 1899. the association participated in the Town's 250th anniversary celebration in 1894, which may be the occasion for the photograph. Note the Yale name on the belt buckles.
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The Greenwood Branch of the Beebe Town Library opened in October 1904 at the "new" Greenwood School building. According to the 1904 Town Report, the library started as a twice-weekly delivery "by an attendant" to Greenwood residents. By February 1905, 876 books had been circulated and 60 "application" cards had been requested. The Greenwood Branch Library was open on Mondays and Thursdays from 3:30 p.m. to 5 p.m., and in January 1906 its hours were expanded to include Saturday evenings from 7 p.m. to 8 p.m. The library branch was so popular that the Saturday hours were increased to 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. and a room in the school was eventually dedicated to library operations on Mondays, Thursdays and Saturday, a schedule that remained in place for decades. During the early 1930s, improvements were made to the Greenwood Branch Library under the direction of Librarian Clara Wilson. The 1933 Town Report describes the library rooms as "inviting and homelike and are taking on a real place in community life. Decorations suitable to the various seasons are arranged and there is always some scene in the glass case of interest to both children and grown-ups." In 1962, the library rooms were needed for classrooms, and the branch library was moved to smaller space within the school. The branch closed in September with its books stored in the basement until its new home was finished in "conjunction" with the Greenwood Fire Station. The Greenwood Branch Library officially opened in its new home in the station on May 5, 1963.
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The building of a new brick schoolhouse in Wakefield North Ward was approved at Town Meeting in early 1898 to address crowded conditions in the existing schoolhouse which had required "96 scholars" to attend the Lincoln School. The North Ward was considered to be the area between Main and Salem Streets, west of the Newburyport Branch of the B&M Railroad, and the building was the third new school to open in as many years. After debate, the meeting voted to build a four-room two-story school building at a cost of $12,000 on a 13,000 foot lot at the intersection of Cordis Street and a private way which ran north of Cordis Street, rather than move and repair the existing school building. It was also voted at a subsequent meeting to name the school in memory of Dr. Francis P. Hurd, 'cultivated, refined, and philanthropic citizen' who had bequeathed $2,500 to the Beebe Library. The first and second floors were identical, with a vestibule, corridor, coat rooms and a lavatory, teachers' room, and two classrooms, each measuring 28 ft x 32 feet. In the 1901-1902 school year, the faculty included Principal Eleanor F. Emerson, a graduate of Salem Normal School; Jennie Carter, Millbury High School, grades 1 and 2; Isabel G. Flint, Salem Normal School, grades 3 and 4; and Eva Howlett, Salem Normal School, grades 5 and 6. According to the 1901 and 1902 Town Reports, 44 students were enrolled in grades 1 and 2 in all of 1901, and 50 students enrolled during the first five months of 1902.
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Before the start of the 1962 season, Pleasure Island's managing director, Walter Smith, cleared the land between Baby Animal Land and Indian Village and transformed it into an athletic event complex. According to a press release issued on July 19th, 1962, "Inspired by the President's Physical Fitness Campaign for Youth, Pleasure Island has implemented a Junior Olympics program which is the first kind in the country." The program was run by Peter Rommell of Boston University's athletic staff, and children could "not only watch shows and enjoy rides at the park, but also take part in a painless physical education program." There was no charge for participation in the fitness competition, which was held in the Olympic Stadium "set off by flags of 64 nations." According to a park press release, a member of the "carefully-selected" staff which oversaw the program was Northeastern University student Richard Kelley of Wakefield, who went on to be a long time physical education teacher in Wakefield. Pleasure Island hosted the Junior Olympics during the 1962 and 1963 seasons, with 7,850 children participating in the first season. Boys and girls from 6 to 18 scored points in several different events, including "chin-ups, push-ups, sit-ups, squat thrusts, high jumps, standing broad jumps, deep knee bends, and a 50-yard dash." The high scorers from each day were invited back at the end of the season for the semi-finals and finals. The winners of the final competitions held on September 2nd, 1962, Paul Sweeney, 13, and Leslie Stevenson, 10, traveled to Washington, D.C. with Pleasure Island's Director to meet President John F. Kennedy in January 1963. At the end of the 1963 season, winners Beth McBride, 14, and Charles Pantos, 16, each received a gold medal and a $50 US Savings Bond. The Olympic fields were located on what is now parking lots between buildings 101 and 201 in Edgewater Office Park.
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Wakefield's Crystal Lodge of the Ancient Order of United Workmen (A.O.U.W.) participated in the float division of the July 4th parade in 1922. According to regional news reports, the organization's float entry was "depictive of the order" which is credited with being the first fraternal group that introduced fraternal Insurance to its members, a benefit that was only available to "businessmen and manufacturers." Founded in Pennsylvania in 1868 by John Jordan Upchurch, the A.O.U.W. was established as an organization that would be responsive to the needs of its members while uniting labor and management. Originally intended to serve men in the mechanical trades, the A.O.U.W. opened its membership to other occupations just two years later. The parade was part of a $5,000 celebration organized under the auspices of the Chamber of Commerce. More than 50,000 people were reported to have attended the event which began with a Gallo's Band concert and bonfire at midnight the night before at the Greenwood ballfield, and continued through the day with the "street" parade at 10 a.m., a baseball game, sporting events, and another concert by Gallo's Band. The $1,000 fireworks display, and the flying exhibition on parachute drop were postponed due to weather, with the fireworks slated for the next "first pleasant evening." In addition to the floats, the parade, led by Col. Edward J, Gihon, included a military division, 20 fraternal organizations, an industrial division, veterans of three wars, decorated cars and "horribles."
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The Lucius Beebe Steamer No. 1, often referred to as the Silsby Steamer, was Wakefield's first steam and horse-drawn engine. Built by the Silsby Manufacturing Company of New York and purchased by the Town at a cost of $3400 in 1882, the steamer was a replacement for the Yale hand pump engine. The Town had its first look at the Lucius Beebe steamer and its 400 gallon-per-minute capabilities at an exhibition at Carter's Pond on the corner of Main and Crescent Streets that year. The steamer and its hose and supply wagons were first stationed at the fire station on the lower Common, and later moved to a newly built firehouse on Crescent Street in 1894. The horses were housed at the nearby Hathaway Stables. To keep the horses active, they were loaned to various Town departments, including the Highway Department which use the steamer to water its gravel roads during the summer. The Silsby Steamer was replaced by the Amoskeag Steamer in 1908 and placed in reserve service. The steamer was taken out of reserves and given to the Water Department for use at the Broadway pumping station in 1928 "for standby in the event of failure of electric power." In the early 1940s, the steamer remained at the Broadway station "ready to be used to quench fires and for auxiliary water supply." Wakefield was in a severe two-year drought in 1940 and 1941 which caused Crystal Lake to be 81" below the high watermark in 1941. The Silsby steamer was rebuilt and used to pump water from Crystal Lake into the filter. The drought created an expansive shoreline as the picture shows. Note the Junction train station which can be seen in the background.
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Historical references indicate that the Old Smith House was built by the Reverend Samuel Haugh prior to 1662 and stood at Main and Water Streets. Haugh is believed to have "come over" to this country from England with his father after Atherton Haugh in 1634. As the second minister of Reading, now Wakefield, he began preaching in Reading in 1648 and was ordained in 1650. He died in 1662 and left all the houses, land and "quick stock" that he was in possession of within the Town of Reading to his daughters Elizabeth, Sarah and Mary. In addition to the Reading possessions he also owned land and houses in Boston, Cambridge, and Braintree. Elizabeth lived in the house with her husband Capt. John Herbert, a mariner and sea captain who went on to serve as Town Clerk and as a Selectman several times. The house was later occupied by her daughter Mary and husband, Deacon Thomas Nichols. The house was sold by Thomas Nichols to Capt. David Smith. Smith's son Noah lived in the house until his death in 1859. Noah was also a Selectman as well as a justice of the peace, representative and an officer of the calvary [i.e. cavalry]. The house was moved to 15 Lincoln Street in 1868 to make room for the Cyrus Wakefield Town Hall and remained standing until the 1950s. Smith Street was originally the alley that ran behind the Smith house, according to the August 21, 1921 edition of the Wakefield Daily Item, and it later became the street between the Town Hall and the Miller Piano factory. The article also claimed that Smith Street was probably the shortest street in Massachusetts, at just 100 yards in length, and without a single house.
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This undated landscape picture, believed to have been taken around 1930, belongs to Ola Florence Dow Archibald Hatch of Greenwood, the social correspondent for the Wakefield Daily Item and a member of a large family with many local ties. Ola was one of five children of George and Clara Dow, born in 1892; Charlotte (Da)y, born in 1895; Clarence "Click", born 1897; Everett, born in 1900; and Ida (Glidden), born in 1901. Clara was also the social correspondent for the Wakefield Daily Item, a position Ola took over when her mother retired. The photo is two pictures put together; the other is featured on the back inside cover of this calendar. Ola's husband Samuel Archibald worked in the Town Clerk's office and is the tall man standing at the left with his hands in his pockets, while their son George is the sixth boy to the right of the man in the striped suit. Sadly, George died in 1931 of meningitis, and Samuel in 1933 of tuberculosis. Ola married Milan Hatch, a widower who had three sons and a daughter, in 1934. Their daughter, Judy, was born in 1935. Milan also served the Town as a blackout warden during World War II. In addition to the Dow, Hatch, Day and Glidden families, other Wakefield family members included the Forlizzi and Pelletier families. The photo was taken in Greenwood at what may have been the Greenwood ballfield/park off Pitman Avenue, behind the Pitman estate, or the Grove which was located near Forest Street. The Greenwood ballfield was the site of many community events in the 1920s and 1930s, including a midnight bonfire on July 3rd, 1922, which kicked off a massive $50,000 July 4th celebration.
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According to US Census reports, Rev. Robert Woodward Cushman, D.D., a highly respected preacher and teacher throughout the Northeast, lived at the Vernon Street home in 1865 that had once been occupied by Thomas Emerson in 1765, and shoemaker John Sweetser in 1795 and 1812. The Baptist "clergyman" lived in the home with his wife Eliza and their daughter Ella, a teacher. Records indicate that the real estate was valued at $4,000 while his personal wealth was $1,000 indicating that he was a man of wealth. Born in Maine in 1800, Dr. Cushman was orphaned early in life, and at 14, According to US Census reports, Rev. Robert Woodward Cushman, D.D., a highly respected he began working as a cabinetmaker apprentice, watchmaker and jeweler. At the age of 16, "the influence of religious truth awakened him to a new life" and he went "from house to house, exhorting the people to repent." He went on to study under several notable preachers and graduated from Columbian College, now George Washington University. He was ordained as pastor of Poughkeepsie, NY's Baptist Church in 1826, and supplemented his meager $400 per year salary through teaching. His love for teaching and his great religious convictions continued onto Philadelphia where he founded the Cushman's Collegiate Institution for Young Ladies, while continuing his religious studies, and to Boston in 1841 as pastor of a newly founded Bowdoin Square Church. He returned to Washington D.C. where he served as pastor of the E Street Church and founded the French and English Protestant Seminary, a school of "high order" and said to be among "the best in the nation." He was twice nominated as Chaplain for Congress but declined. He returned to Boston in 1853 to establish the Mount Vernon Ladies School at 6 Allston Street. It has been said that, "As a writer, his style is chaste, elegant and terse, and as a speaker he is eloquent and convincing. He has, therefore, been called upon to give sermons and addresses on public occasions, almost without number, - several of which have been published." He published 22 works in 77 publications and was revered and widely read throughout the world.
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Thomas Emerson's Sons, manufacturers of gentleman's dress shoes, was located at the corner of Main Street and Yale Avenue. Born in 1785, founder Thomas Emerson was said to be "obliged from very early years to work at the bench" and is reported to have started his shoemaking in earnest in 1805. According to Lilley Eaton's Genealogical History of the Town of Reading, he formed a partnership with Ebenezer Nelson in 1810 for the manufacture of shoes, which "continued with a fair measure of success" until Nelson felt the calling to become a preacher and the business was amicably dissolved. Emerson was joined by his sons, Thomas, Jr. as a partner in 1837, and James Emerson in 1851 when the company became Thomas Emerson & Sons. The name was changed to Thomas Emerson's Sons, with the retirement of the founder in 1854. Originally located near Lawrence Street, the company moved to Albion Street and then to Yale Avenue/Main Street in 1863, the site formerly occupied by Burrage Yale's tin factory. The addition of the labor-saving McKay sewer required the expansion of the business and the enlargement of the factory. The Thomas Emerson's Sons factory closed in 1902, and the building was razed to make way for the YMCA. In Eaton's book, published in 1874, three years after Emerson's death, he was credited with inaugurating a system of cash payments to "workmen" in place of the customary barter system. "By the frequent introduction of improved machinery and methods, he was able to furnish profitable occupation to large numbers of people."
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The house at the corner of Salem and Pleasant Street is reported to have been built around 1820 by Elias Boardman, around the time of his marriage to Huldah Green, daughter of Reuben Green, a "respectful farmer" who lived on Greenwood Street. According to information submitted to the Massachusetts Historical Commission for the National Register of Historic Places, Elias was an architect, carpenter and builder who had worked on homes in the Beacon Hill section of Boston. Incorporated the open "high-style" typical of that area into his own home, unlike the simpler style found locally. As a result, it was considered to be extravagant and was dubbed open "Boardman's Folly." The submission also notes that "at one time, before indoor plumbing, the house had two owners, each of whom had title to 1/2 the house, 1/2 the yard, 1/2 the well, and 1/2 the back house." The Greek revival-style ell in the back was thought to have been built in the mid-19th century. The street was laid out in 1839 and the road from "Elias Boardman to E.S. Upham" was named Pleasant Street in 1847. The Boardman family was said to have owned the home for more than a century. Elias' grandson Arthur Boardman served as Town Treasurer in the 1920s and 1930s.
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Wakefield Park on the lower common has welcomed generations of Wakefield residents and others who spent many summer afternoons on the shores of Lake Quannapowitt. Catherine Kennedy Fitzgerald and her family were among those who enjoyed such an afternoon sometime around the late 1920s. Catherine and her husband, John F. Fitzgerald, were both born in Ireland and emigrated to the United States separately in the early 1900s. The couple and their five children: Eileen (Black), Rose (Day), John, Edward, and Bernard Fitzgerald, moved to Wakefield in 1924 where they lived on Broadway and later Emerson Street. The family has established deep roots within Wakefield, with several generations still residing in the community.
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"This street railway car traveled to Lynn through the snowy streets of Wakefield during this storm in 1915. The storm may have occurred in December, as the winter of 1915-1916 is recorded as the ninth "snowiest" season in the season city city of Boston, with 76.2 inches of snow. Wakefield was an important street railway center soon after the Wakefield and Stoneham Street Railway Company was established in 1889. The first tracks ran from Wakefield center to Stoneham, connecting Wakefield with the Lynn & Boston road to Melrose and Woburn. In 1893, tracks were laid from Wakefield Town Hall via Water Street through Saugus to the Lynn city line, establishing a direct connection with the city of Lynn." -- Text from calendar by Jayne M. D'Onofrio.
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"This is one of the many photos taken during the 50th wedding anniversary celebration for Dr. Allston Gray Bouvé and Delia Carter Bouvé. The photo session itself is also featured in this calendar. The photographer captured this image using what was probably a field camera, complete with a partial hood." -- Text from calendar by Jayne M. D'Onofrio.
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"The Methodist Episcopal Church of Wakefield was organized on June 4, 1865 with a membership of 26. According to the Proceedings of the 250th Anniversary of the Ancient Town of Redding, services were held in the Universalist house of worship for the first four years until the congregation purchased Albion Hall at the corner of Albion and Foster Streets. After "several years of prosperity," a lot of land was purchased further west on Albion Street in 1873. Designed by T.B. Samuels of Boston, the Swiss timber constructed building "adapted to the 14th century Gothic outline" was completed and dedicated in February 1874 at an expense of more than $25,000 with a mortgage of half that amount remaining on the property. A parsonage was established in 1883 at 42 Chestnut Street. Through the "earnest efforts" of Rev. Gilbert Osgood and the "friendly offerings of the membership and other societies," the debt was lifted and a grand jubilee was held on April 9, 1886, complete with a mortgage burning ceremony which also featured "biscuits and griddlecakes provided by the Horford Baking Powder Company at no expense to the church." To say they were excellent would be expressing it mildly, according to the Wakefield Citizen & Banner. The 130' spire was struck by lightning three times: 1916, 1917 and 1926. The church's chimney fell victim to the Hurricane of 1938, causing it to crash to the roof, leaving extensive structural damage. The building was razed on October 11, 1938. Services were held in the Universalist Church for a year until a fire caused them to move to the Lafayette Building (now the Town Hall), the Grand Army building on Foster Street, and eventually to the current location on Vernon Street in 1955. Rev. Benjamin G. Seaboyer, appointed pastor in 1918, served in that capacity at the time of the photo and for a total of 15 years, making his the longest ministerial appointment." -- Text from calendar by Jayne M. D'Onofrio.
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"Erected in the mid-1870s, the Greenwood Boston & Maine train station was originally planned for a location closer to Forrest Street. There was a contentious debate in 1873, according to the December 20, 1873 Citizen & Banner: "The report of 'leave to withdraw' given the petitioners for a change of location of the Greenwood depot, by our Road Commissioners, we presume will be generally satisfactory. We only hope that now the point is decided the Railroad authorities will begin the erection of a new depot at once. We believe that room enough is obtainable on either side of the track for the depot and trust that no personal preferences will be urged against the common good." The station was eventually located in front of Mr. Locke's Grove, also called Greenwood Grove. According to "A History of Greenwood", written by high school senior Betty Jones in 1939, the area included a "picnic grove with the dancehall, cook house, monkey cage, band stand and an observatory." By 1939, all the buildings had been torn down or burned and the land was owned by Mr. Fell. The station was again the subject of debate when the Atlantic Refinery Company put in an offer to buy the station from Boston & Maine to build a "modern, two-bay filling station" in the late 1950s. That never materialized and the station was moved on January 29, 1959 to the soon-to-be opened Pleasure Island. The station was destroyed by fire in April 1971." -- Text from calendar by Jayne M. D'Onofrio.
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"The Spanish War Veterans' Hiker Monument was dedicated on Columbus Day, Tuesday, October 12, 1926 as part of the 75th anniversary celebration of the Richardson Light Guard. The day consisted of a morning target shoot at Camp Curtis Guild, a military parade said to be "one of the finest military parades ever held in Greater Boston," the dedication of the monument, an evening parade on the park by a battalion of the 182nd Regt with companies of infantry from Wakefield and other communities, luncheons in halls and church vestries for visiting organizations, a reunion of the 6th Mass. Regt Spanish War veterans, and a banquet at the state armory attended by 400 people. The dedication took place after the parade with the marching organizations on three sides of the Rockery, the Spanish War veterans having the "post of honor at the front and at least 2,000 persons within sight and hearing of the exercises." Col. Edward J. Gihon, former commander of the Richardson Light Guard during the Spanish War, presided over the "impressive exercises." The unveiling of the statue was performed by two Congressional Medal of Honor recipients, Joseph Scott of Cambridge and Anthony Carson of Boston. The Hiker stands on a rock that bears a plaque with the names of the 29 citizens who risked their lives during the war, with the inscription: "This monument erected by the town of Wakefield to commemorate the valor and patriotism of the men of this town who served in the war with Spain, Philippine insurrection, and China relief expedition 1898-1902; dedicated October 12, 1926 under the auspices of Corporal Charles F. Parker, Camp No. 39, United Spanish War Veterans Department of Massachusetts." The foot soldiers of the Spanish American War trekked over rough terrain, earning them the name "hikers." The Hiker monument was created by Boston sculptor Theodora Alice Ruggles Kitson, a well-known sculptor of war memorial statues, whose original statue was unveiled in Minnesota in 1906. There are approximately 50 replicas of the statue at war memorials throughout the country, including Arlington National Cemetery." -- Text from calendar by Jayne M. D'Onofrio.
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"Wakefield High School Class of 1917 held its 47th year reunion on Saturday, September 23, 1944 at the Lord Wakefield with 54 (39 classmates and their spouses) in attendance. The evening included a business meeting, reception, dinner, music and entertainment by Mr. & Mrs. Charles Nute and James Morse, members of the Nute Trio. During the business meeting, the class members voted to make a donation to the Heart Fund in memory of a classmate, and another donation to purchase a tree on the Floral Way. Class President G. Leonard Black and his wife, Bertha Hanright Black, of Sarasota, FL and Anne George Cox of Altadena, CA received prizes for traveling the greatest distance. Reunion attendees included: Lillian Anderson Cannery, Mildred Anderson Prince, Leonard Bayrd, Carl Belmore, Class President G. Leonard Black, Bertha Hanright Black, Treasurer Raymond Boardman, Warren Branch, Charles Burke, Gregory Clines, Ada Dadley Ahman, Mary Donegan Creedon, Margaret Douglass McAuliffe, Dr. John Drugan, Esther Dulong Malonson, F. Olive Eager, Ruth Flannigan Cranston, Alice Flannigan Gray, Joseph Fober, Anne George Cox, Dr. Paul Gove, Gladys Grant Barwise, Mary Lally O'Rourke, Dorothy Learned Glidden, Gertrude McFadden Wensell, William MacDonald, Marguerite Mullen Meskell, Mary Murray, Marion Oliver Smith, Clayton Sanford, Helen Powell Sanford, Bella Rattray, Effie Rattray, Vice President William Rattery, Agnes Regan, W. Irving Scott, Margaret Stewart Davison, Nellie Wanamaker Wells, and Helen Webster Fitz." -- Text from calendar by Jayne M. D'Onofrio.
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"The home built by Cyrus Wakefield was razed on October 17, 1921 to make way for the new high school on Main Street. An October 18, 1921 Wakefield Daily Item editorial reflected on the once-stately home: "Much has been written and said about the old Wakefield Mansion, and its destruction by building wreckers brings a tinge of sadness to old-time Wakefield people who knew the attractive estate at its best, and who perhaps shared in some of the activities in which the senior Cyrus Wakefield took such an active part of, 70 years ago. In its day, people came here from miles around to see the beautifully kept flowerbeds, the attractive grounds and the imposing mansion. The stately halls of the mansion witnessed many gay and festive occasions when dignitaries from far and wide, and beyond the seas were entertained by Mr. Wakefield. Even up to the time when the Red Cross temporarily occupied the house during the World War, it seemed a great pity to use some of the rooms, for they were in an excellent state of preservation. The 'magic mirror' in the front hall where both young and old were fascinated by its myriad reflection and the numberless nooks and corners about the spacious rooms formed attractive features until the last." In closing, the editorial noted, "...and now the house that long since became historic gives way to a new high school building where children of generations yet to come will know about the mansion only by reading local history or by hearing what their elders may tell them in the line of reminiscences." The 10-acre estate stood on land which now houses the Galvin Middle School." -- Text from calendar by Jayne M. D'Onofrio.
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"In an advertisement and listing in the 1970 edition of the Hotel and Motel Red Book, published by the American Hotel Association Directory Corporation, the Colonial Statler Hilton Inn was listed as a Colonial Hilton in with "180 rooms and suites with a year-round, glass-domed swimming pool, spacious foyer and ballroom to accommodate 500, a health club, gymnasium, coffee shop and cocktail lounge." Rates per night were $16 to $17 for a single, $21 to $22 for a double. Original plans for the Colonial Inn called for the hotel to be built in Lynnfield, adjacent to the Colonial Country Club and its "18-hole golf course, restaurant with ten separate dining rooms, dancing and nightly entertainment." After Lynnfield Town Meeting rejected the plan, grounds for the new "s-curved hotel" was broken in Wakefield in March 1965 and the hotel open to the public on Monday, December 6, 1965. Owner George Page held a "series of dazzling champagne parties" the weekend before for the press, politicians, "businesspeople, and other dignitaries." The ribbon to officially open the hotel was cut by page and Wakefield native Governor John Volpe during the festivities on Sunday. One of the most "interesting" features of the hotel was the "year 'round swimming pool enclosed with a big bubble-top of acrylic" which the hotel boasted would be open in the summer. As a Statler Hilton Hotel, the Colonial was equipped with a Totel, a message and call system that alerted each room that a call was received while the guest was out. In addition to the Colonial Inn, Page, also a Wakefield native, owned the Olde Coach Motor Lodge and restaurant in Nashua, NH, and the Colonial Country Club. He was the president of Seabury, Inc. on Cape Cod and operated the Unicorn Golf Club." -- Text from calendar by Jayne M. D'Onofrio.
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"Dr. Allston Gray Bouvé and Delia Carter Bouvé posed for a photograph in honor of their 50th wedding anniversary. The celebration took place at their home at 16 Summit Avenue with their son Alan Bouvé (watching at right), and daughter-in-law Millie Bouvé (on the porch), along with son and daughter-in-law Henry and Edith Bouvé, daughter and son-in-law Stella and Riberot Dutton, and granddaughters Olive and Dorothy Bouvé and Kathryn Dutton. Grandson Howard, a student at Harvard Medical School, could not attend as he was serving in US Army Medical Reserve Corps during World War I. He served from December 17, 1917 to December 11, 1918 and went on to become a "well-known" Boston surgeon. The couple married on June 4, 1868 in Mount Pleasant Church, Roxbury with Reverend C.J. Bowen officiating. They celebrated their 64th wedding anniversary in 1932 at their son Henry's 39 Fairmount Avenue home. Allston Gray Bouvé, D.M.D. was born in 1845 and was a graduate of Harvard Medical School, Class of 1877. He was a clinical instructor as well as an instructor of Operative Dentistry at Harvard's Dental School and a practicing dentist on Tremont Street in Boston for more than 40 years before his retirement in 1918. Dr. Bouvé was a Civil War veteran and was the next to last surviving member of the H.M. Warren Post, G. A. R., Wakefield when he died in 1936 at the age of 90. Delia Carter Baker Bouvé was born in Boston in 1847 and was a descendent of John Baker who served in the Continental Army in the siege of Boston. She was a member of the Faneuil Hall Chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution and was active in the T.T.O. Club of Wakefield. She preceded Dr. Bouvé in death in 1932." -- Text from calendar by Jayne M. D'Onofrio.
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"The annual Memorial Day exercises were held on Memorial Day, Tuesday, May 30th on the Upper Common, now the Veterans' Memorial Common. A procession formed at 2 p.m. on Walton Field near the armory, now the Americal Civic Center, and ended at the Soldiers' and Sailors' Monument. According to news reports, the annual tribute attracted far fewer attendees than in previous years due to the Town's tercentenary celebration and dedication of the World War II monument and American Legion's honor roll plaque two days before, on May 28th. The line of march was led by a platoon of police led by Chief John Gates and Motorcycle Officer Morton Griffin, Chief Marshall William Wenzel, chief of staff Ernest Johnson, Col. Edward Connolly, Col. J. Theodore Whitney, World War I veterans, past commanders of the American Legion Cpl. Nelson Post, Board of Selectmen, Red Men's Band of the Wampatuck Tribe (whose three trumpeters played Taps at the ceremony), State Guard unit of the Sixth Company 23rd Infantry, Red Cross truck, Gold Star Mothers and members of Daddie's Club, WHS band, Spanish American War Veterans, Sons of Union Veterans, VFW Post 2106 and Cpl. Nelson Post members and auxiliary, service men on leave or discharge, Middlesex County Cadets, Sea Scouts and Cub Scouts. Federal Court Judge and former Congressman Arthur D. Healey was the speaker. As was customary, flower petals were scattered at the base of the monument by high school "girls" Marjorie Holmes, Ruth White, Jean Geary, Louise Ormsby, Ruth Wells, Mary DeFelice, Jean Hochberg, Ramona Zwicker, Patricia Nardone, Jean Barrett, Betty White and Patricia Millett, all of whom were "in the charge of" Mrs. Grace Martin. From 1868 to 1970 the holiday was held on May 30th. The Uniform Monday Holiday Act changed the holiday to the last Monday of May to increase the number of three-day weekends for federal employees." -- Text from calendar by Jayne M. D'Onofrio.
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"This picture shows not only how Main Street looked in 1908, but also provides a look at some of the buildings from the early 1900s, all of which are now gone. The site on which the second building was erected is thought to be the location of the Town's first post office in 1812. The Wakefield Citizen & Banner was located there during the 1880's and early 1900s, and the building later housed the First National Store in the 1930s." -- Text from calendar by Jayne M. D'Onofrio.
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"Dedicated on Saturday afternoon, April 14th, 1923, the Lucius Beebe Memorial Library was referred to in the Wakefield Daily Item as a new building "of which the citizens of Wakefield are justly proud and which for many generations to come they will use profitably and enjoy." Library patrons entered the building through a low vestibule into a larger "delivery room" where the delivery desk was located. Behind the desk was "a large opening showing the several tiers of stacks for the books and inviting the visitor to enter and browse around." The stockroom was designed "in such a manner that the stacks may be extended at a future day should the present capacity prove to be in adequate." On either side of the stockroom were working rooms for the staff, while the second floor held the "lounging room for the staff, complete with kitchenette facilities" and the Trustees room. The ceiling was "richly coffered, while in the center was a skylight to give greater light." To the immediate left and right of the vestibule entrance were two small rooms, one used as a conversation room and the other as a newspaper room. The staircase to the left led to the children's reading room while the small stairs to the right lead to the main reading room with its fireplace and bookcases around the entire room. Above the entrance to the reading room was a medallion of the Crusades. There were 14 smaller medallions in the reading room that were designed and created by Summerville sculptor Bernadette Chippolini, each carefully researched and selected as "the 14 most representative men of letters known to history." The delivery room medallions were the largest, each 42" in diameter. The card catalog was at the bottom of the stairs, complete with a poster indicating how to find a book. The building was expanded with an addition in 1969 and a more extensive addition and renovation was undertaken in the 1990s, concluding with a rededication in March 1998." -- Text from calendar by Jayne M. D'Onofrio.
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"The first meeting house of the Baptist Society of the First Parish was built in 1800 on Salem Street "near the resident of the late Sylvanus Clark, No. 37 Salem Street." according to the History of the First Baptist Church in Wakefield, Mass., 1800-1900, the newly founded organization had requested to meet in the "schoolhouse near the meeting house" but the request was denied. An additional request to build their church on common ground was also denied, leading to the purchase of the site on Salem Street and the building of a 38' x 34' "edifice with galleries." In 1820, the meeting house was moved from Salem Street to its new home at the corner of Main and Crescent streets and subsequently enlarge by a 16' addition, a porch and a belfry. The building was destroyed by a fire in December 1835. Just one year later, a new building erected on the same site was dedicated. The building measured 68' x 48' with a conference room in the basement. in 1853, the building was enlarged by 16' and the structure raised, "making provision for a commodious vestry" and a conference room in the basement. The congregation grew and the church space became inadequate. In 1871, a decision was made to build a new church on land across the common. Before work could begin at the new site, an "incendiary fire" destroyed the building on June 21, 1871. Ground was broken for the church's new home six days later, on June 27th. The third home of the Baptist Church was destroyed by fire on October 23, 2018." -- Text from calendar by Jayne M. D'Onofrio.
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"The Board of Fire Engineers formed a hose company in Greenwood in September 1886 at the request of local residents, "with but little expense to the town, as apparatus was in storage and members served without pay." The 13 men of Greenwood Hose Company No. 3 were led by foreman Joseph Gilman and were equipped with one two-wheeled hose carriage with 1000' of leather hose housed in a private shed on Oak Street near Francis Avenue. The equipment was owned by the Greenwood Library Association. In 1892, the Town approved the first Greenwood station, a 20' x 30' two-story building erected by Isaac Heath on Oak Street at Francis Avenue. The Town went on to accept Greenwood Hose Company No. 3 as a part of the Wakefield Fire Department in April 1900. In 1902, the Town voted to sell its Greenwood fire station and convert the former Greenwood School building, also on Oak Street near Main Street, into a new station at a cost of $746.75. The old station and land were sold for private use. Wakefield's first permanent firefighter, James Goodhue, was hired in 1903 to work at the Greenwood station to tend the horse purchased by the Greenwood Library Association for the horse-drawn hose wagon. In 1924, the department's 1912 Webb pumping engine was moved from the Central Station to the Greenwood station. The station's name was changed from Hose No. 3 to Engine 2. The 1902 Greenwood Hose House was razed in September 1962 and a new wood- joisted masonry building was erected in its place for occupancy by the Fire Department and the Greenwood branch of the Lucius Beebe Memorial Library in 1963. During its construction, firefighters, equipment and the alarm system were housed in a small building and a section of the garage on the property of Classen Bros. Inc., a local Dodge car dealership located at 827 Main Street in Greenwood, later renumbered as 1099 Main Street." -- Text from calendar by Jayne M. D'Onofrio.
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"Pictured on a snowy January day in front of the Riberot Dutton home at 7 Avon Street are members of the Dutton, Boothby, McMaster and Smith families. The neighborhood children: Helene Smith (front), George McMaster, Kathryn Dutton, Robert Dutton and David (Dib) Dutton (middle row), and Bradford Boothby (back) may have been playing in the snow that fell during a mid-January storm in 1923. At the time, Bradford Boothby, son of paint dealer and merchant Asa and Mabel Boothby, lived at 19 Chestnut Street, while George McMaster lived at 36 Yale Avenue with his parents, news dealer Lauren McMaster and Helen McMaster. Little background information, including an address, can be found for Helene Smith. Robert and Dib lived at 33 Avon Street with their parents, Dr. Richard Dutton and Ethel Dutton, and their grandparents, Dr. Charles Dutton and Mary Dutton. Robert went on to become Dr. Robert Dutton, a longtime and beloved Wakefield physician who practiced at the family home at 33 Avon Street, where his grandfather and father both practiced. Dib also became a physician, specializing in anesthesiology and general practice for many years in West Ossipee, New Hampshire. Kathryn Dutton, daughter of Riberot and Estella (Bouv
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"In November 2010, Town Meeting voted to fund a feasibility study for a new Galvin Middle School, and the groundbreaking for the new school was held on April 24, 2013. The school opened in September 2014, with a re-dedication held in the Veterans Memorial Auditorium on November 15, 2014. The building's gymnasium, music classrooms and site work were completed in 2015. The Galvin Middle School was completed under the direction of the Permanent Building Committee, which was comprised of the following members: John Encarnacao, Chair; Joseph Bertrand, Secretary; Lisa Butler; Chip Tarbell; James Lapery; Philip Crosscup; Thomas MacKay; Chris Callanan; and Michael Giannattasio."
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Image from the Wakefield Municipal Gas and Light Department annual calendar, 2018
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"The Captain Asaph Evens House was located on the north side of Salem Street, near the intersection of Pleasant Street. Local history indicates that the house was built before 1795, probably by Joseph Gould, and that the house is two buildings joined together. The house was owned by Lemuel Sweetser prior to Evans. The son of Paul and Mary (Hart) Sweetser, he was married to Hannah Eaton, the daughter of Lilley and Sarah Eaton. A shoe manufacturer, Lemuel was a 'colonel of cavalry, school committee, justice of the peace, and representative,' who was described as an 'original thinker, well-posted; an effective public speaker; a man of firmness, courage, and probity. In some particulars he was remarkable and peculiar.' Captain Asaph Evans was born in 1805 and married Lucinda Skinner, daughter of wheelwright Thomas Skinner, in 1828. The couple had eight children, all of whom were born between 1831 and 1850. Asaph served as a Captain in the first militia organized in Wakefield, the Reading Infantry Company, which was established in 1644, one year earlier than the Great and General Court order of 1645 that ordered all settlements to keep a military guard. This company disbanded in 1840 when old militia laws were abolished, and a new plan was adopted. Evans served as the company's last captain. Asaph Evans is listed in the 1860 United States census as a laborer. He died in 1881, and his heirs lived in the home for several more years. The house at 19-21 Salem Street is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
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"Located on the west side of Main Street, south of Albion Street, Richard Britton - Boots, Shoes and Rubbers was established on November 22, 1875. Britton, who bought the retail business from Nathaniel Clark, was referred to as the leader in the retail boot and shoe business, according to the Handbook of Wakefield, published 1895. Britton was active in the community, serving as a Selectman in 1868, 1869, 1872 and 1873; as South Reading's 11th District Representative to the General Court in 1872 and 1873; and as one of three to complete the Town's history upon the unexpected death of its author Lilley Eaton, in 1872. He was a member of several committees including the five-member committee charged by an April 1871 Town Meeting vote to consider building a new high school to replace the South Reading Academy, now the Lincoln School. The committee of five included Britton, Cyrus Wakefield, Lucius Beebe, Oliver Perkins and George Packard. Town Meeting voted in May 1871 on their recommendation to purchase the old Prentiss property at the northwest corner of Lafayette and Common Streets to build the high school, now the Town Hall. The 1890 List of Taxable Polls and Estates published by the Town shows that Britton owned a home on Yale Avenue and had a reported income of $500. Fred I. Wilkins, proprietor of the Britton Shoe Store became owner of the establishment in the early 1900s. When Main Street was renumbered, the store's address changed to 443 Main Street. The building was later purchased by Charles J. Klapes of the Colonial Spa in 1920."
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"This is a rare glimpse of the Kingman Block, now the Bourdon Block, at the corner of Main and Albion Streets, and of the Ye Barnard Inn on Albion Street. The photograph was taken on October 31, 1923 during the razing of Bessey Livery Stables in preparation for the Wakefield Trust Company building. Willard Service Station, at the left, was also razed in November. Several businesses were also forced to re-locate, including Clifford Mortimer and his lunch cart, the taxi office of Richard Barrett, and the Victor Shoe Shine Parlor. The two large elm trees in the photograph were also taken down. The Kingman Block was built in 1860 by Davis and Bryant during the tenure of postmaster Samuel Kingman, the town's sixth postmaster who was appointed in 1853. When the town changed its name from South Reading in 1868, he was reappointed as Wakefield's first postmaster. He retired from the position in 1873, and has been credited with the first free mail delivery in the community. The Kingman block remained in the Kingman family until it was bought by the Middlesex Traders, a local citizen-based realty investment organization, in June 1895. The post office remained at the Kingman Block until 1901 when it moved to the corner of Main Street an Richardson Avenue. Ye Barnard Inn was also the Albion Inn before it was purchased by Jacob Barnard, co-owner of the Quannapowitt Bowling Alley, in the early 1920s. In 1930, W.M. Brooks Company of Boston altered the structure into a two-story building at a coast of $7,500. The alterations included an office in the front of the second floor and an apartment at the rear. The post office, the former location of the WMGLD office on Albion Street, was built in April 1924 and is not pictured.
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"Located on the west side of Main Street, across from the Greenwood School, the Greenwood Seminary was established around 1855 under Universalist 'influence' by Rev. Windsor B. Wait, who served as principal, his wife Hannah, who served as 'preceptress.' The Greenwood Seminary was referred to in local news accounts as a private school that was ' a fine large structure for its time, and a popular and approved educational institution.' Pupils came form various parts of Massachusetts and other states, and its fame was said to be 'widespread.' The couple had conducted a school in Lexington before taking charge of the Greenwood Seminary. The Greenwood Seminary seemed to be ahead of its time, with furnaces that provided hot and cold water to every story and 'bathing rooms' as part of the accommodations, things that were 'more than luxuries in that period.' Although some historical references indicate that the school was attended by female students, other records show that both female and male students were admitted. The male department had a 'large play room in the basement for wet weather recreation and a reading room on the first floor' while the girls' department had parlors on the first floor and a recreation room on the third floor. Among those who attended the school were Joseph Grundy, who later became the manager of the Fred I. Wilkins shoe store, and Frank Converse of Malden, son of Elisha S. Converse, a well-known manufacturer and the first Mayor of Malden. Tragically, Frank was killed in 1863 while working as a cashier at First Malden Bank where his father was president. It was said to be the first armed robbery of a bank in the United States. After the seminary closed, Dr. Albert A. Day of Boston came to Greenwood and opened a home for inebriates from 1872 to 1874. After it was abandoned as a home for inebriates, the seminary building remained vacant until it was destroyed by fire in 1880."
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"Best known as the Smith & Anthony Stove Company, the original foundry building on the west side of the Boston & Maine Railroad tracks was erected in 1854 by Abner Blanchard, Charles Tarbell, William Stewart and J.F. Dane, under the name of Blanchard, Tarbell & Co. The company prospered and demand for their products was such that it became necessary to increase the capital in 1856. A stock company was formed under the name of Boston & Maine Foundry Company and investors included the founders, as well as Cyrus Wakefield, Sewall Mack and others. The company was profitable until a fire in 1866. Although the new buildings were quickly erected, and 'the foundry and its connections were the most complete in New England,' the company failed and was bought by the Franklin Foundry Company in 1871. In April 1879, the foundry was purchased by the Smith & Anthony Stove Company. William Smith served as president, and E.W. Anthony was treasurer. The company's line of stoves, furnaces and ranges, made under the name and trademark of Hub, 'were known everywhere, and excelled by none.' The company also built a brass foundry and finishing shop to accommodate its growing plumbing and water closet business. The company is said to have made the country's first enameled bathtub. Smith & Anthony Stove Company, which once had a payroll of $3,000 per week, went out of business in 1917. George Gibby of East Boston purchased the Smith & Anthony interests in April 1917 and operated the plant for several years before moving the equipment to East Boston, while maintaining ownership of the building. The building was later occupied by A.C. Purrington for the manufacture of pipes and fittings, and by John F. Swinnerton, Inc. which made pipes, valves, fittings and boilers. Swinnerton's company left in 1937, and the building was torn down in August 1938. In June 1938, the separate Smith & Anthony brass foundry building on the east side of Foundry Street was purchased by the Diamond Tank and Welding Company, which specialized in the manufacture of oil tanks. The company was owned by William A. Hickey of Hickey Coal and Oil Company and sold the tanks to the fuel oil jobbers and other engaged in tank installation."
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"The picture provides a look at Wakefield's past, including homes and stores which were razed during the 1920s through the 1950s. To the left of the photo is the Italianate-style building which housed the Citizen & Banner, and in the center of the photo is the 1895 Richardson Light Guard Armory that was affected by the Cutler Bros. fire in 1911. At the right in the photo stands the house of Edward Mansfield that was torn down to build the Lucius Beebe Memorial Library, and further down the street is the old Bessey stable that was razed to make way for the Wakefield Trust Company. The third floor of the Taylor Building and the top of the 1871 Wakefield Town Hall are also visible on the upper left."
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"The advertisement and accompanying photo appeared in the Wakefield Souvenir of the Quarter-Millennial Celebration of the Settlement of Ancient Reading in 1894, and shows the 1834 Town House more than 20 years after it was moved from the Lower Common to the corner of Main and Salem Streets in 1873, and a third story was added. The building was occupied by Stillman J. Putney, a manufacturer of heels, rands and top piercings for footwear. In a synopsis of the business, it was noted that the 'cheapness of footwear' in the 1890s was the result of the manufacturing being divided into specialties. Putney manufactured heels in his factory which was 'fitted up with machinery of the most improved type, driven by an 8-horse power engine.'"
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"Driver Henry Russell, Chief Fred Graham and Tillerman Harry Parker (on the rear tiller) displayed Ladder 1 near the old fire station shortly after its arrival in Wakefield. The Town purchased its first aerial truck in 1928 and put it into service in December. Touted as the area's first aerial, the double-bank 75-foot truck was purchased from the Seagrave Company at a cost of $15,500. According to the 1928 Town Report, 'this machine is of the latest type having several new features which serve to increase the efficiency of same.' It was equipped with a 'water gun having a 3-inch hose,' a 75-foot, two-section wooden ladder with a spring-assist raising mechanism, and 304 feet of ground wooden ladders. The truck had an 80-gallon water tank with 200 feet of 3/4 inch booster hose, and a 75 gallon-per minute pump, as well as a life net, stretcher and an oxygen tank for 'resuscitation work.' The 1928 Seagrave replaced a 1914 Peerless city service type ladder truck that was subsequently sold by the Seagrave Company to Pascoag, Rhode Island for a cost of $1,600. Ladder 1 was taken out of service on June 15, 1954 after it was involved in a collision with Engine 5 at the corner of Pleasant and Lawrence Streets. Both pieces of apparatus were responding to n alarm from box 423 for a fire at 35 Lawrence Street, and both were declared losses. American LaFrance loaned Wakefield a 1932 Mack 85-foot aerial ladder truck that had been previously owned by the Bangor, Main Fire Department. A new American LaFrance 85-foot ladder truck was put into service in May 1955."
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"Lifelong Wakefield resident Louis Pasquale opened Vernon Market at 161 Vernon Street on November 22, 1946. A veteran of the US Navy, Pasquale served in the South Pacific aboard the battleship USS Indiana, and made plans to realize his dream to open his own 'modern' market soon after his discharge. Before joining the Navy, he had gained experience working at Henry's Market in Waltham. Vernon Market was a 'complete' food store with shelves stocked with 'the best brands of meats, groceries, and canned goods.' The store offered delivery and was self-service, with the exception of the meat counter. Customers could also order their groceries over the phone by calling Crystal 0276-R. On its 5th anniversary, local news reports noted that families in the 'four sections of town and Lynnfield' patronized the store in the building that featured the 'latest in lighting and self-service counters.' The Vernon Market continued to operate as a neighborhood store until October 31, 1970 when the Pasquales signed a five-year lease with the Richdale Group. In July 1975, Louis and Nancy Pasquale were given approval to alter the building from a two-family to a four-family dwelling. The space occupied by the store was converted into two three-room apartments."
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"Charles John Klapes, a native of Theologos, a suburb of Sparta, Greece, opened the Colonial Spa on Saturday, August 28, 1920. Charles left his home in Greece in 1906 and was ready to start his new business in 1920. According to his son Alexander in a tribute to his father upon his passing, Charles looked at the property in the middle of winter to see it in its 'least attractive state.' He l;liked what he saw and brought his young wife Aphrodite to Wakefield where they eventually raised their children: John, Michael, Mary, Alexander, Constantine (Charles), and Benjamin. According to the ads which appeared in the Wakefield Daily Item on the two days prior to the opening in 1920, the ice cream parlor and soda fountain includes a 'spacious area in the rear half of the store for the ice cream, tables,' and 'eight tables for the ladies.' The 'Spa' as it was called in the newspaper reports, also carried a large line of candies, tobacco, cigars and cigarettes. The opening was very successful, and 'the new fittings and attractive window displays, with orchestral music in the evening, brought many visits and good patronage.' The Colonial Spa continued solely as an ice cream parlor until the 1930s when a luncheonette was added. In addition to the luncheonette, the Colonial Spa evolved over the years to include a book section, an extensive candy section and a giftware section. The luncheonette closed in 1983. The Colonial Spa remained a family owned business until its closing in December 2000 following the death of Alex Klapes."
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"The Great New England Hurricane of 1938 is reported to be one of the deadliest and most destructive tropical cyclones to impact New England. The storm, estimated to have made landfall as a Category 3 hurricane on Long Island on September 21st, moved quickly through New England with the eye of the storm passing over western Massachusetts. The Blue Hill Observatory registered sustained winds of 121 mph and a peak gust of 186 mph, the strongest hurricane-related surface wind ever recorded in the United States. Most were caught unaware of the severity of the storm, due to the unusual speed of the storm and the lack of sophisticated monitoring equipment. In addition to the tens of thousands of homes that were destroyed or damaged by the storm, more than 20,000 electrical poles were toppled and an estimated two billion trees were downed in New York and New England, affecting over 35% of New England's total forest area. In Wakefield, hundreds of trees were uprooted in all areas of the Town, shingles and entire roofs were blown off buildings and homes, including the roof of the Nichols Ice House at the head of Lake Quannapowitt. Windows were blown out at several homes and buildings, including the Central Garage and Taylor Hardware Store, and chimneys were destroyed, including the newly-repaired chimney at the Methodist Church on Albion Street. The damage was so great that the church building was later condemned."
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"Richardson Light Guard, Company A, 6th Regiment departed Wakefield for Fort Devens, and eventually to the battlefields of France, on Sunday morning, August 26, 1917. The Company had been notified in mid-August that their Regiment was among those which would be 'broken up' and combined with other to make 'war strength units.' To boost the morale of the soldiers, Capt. Edward Connolly received permission on August 23rd to take the company to Wakefield for a farewell visit before the 'dreaded changes occurred.' The Public Safety Committee hastily arranged a celebration and sendoff, which were held on Saturday and Sunday, respectively. The company arrived in Wakefield at 4:52 p.m. on Saturday, and its soldiers were back at the State Armory for their sendoff parade at 10:30 a.m. the following day. A 'touching' farewell was given by Father Florence J. Halloran of St. Joseph Church before the short parade to the Upper Station. Lieutenant Colonel John J. McMahon, Captain Connolly's predecessor as Commander of Company A, was the Chief Marshall of the parade. He was joined by Captain S.H. Brooks; Lieutenants Jeremiah Creedon and Edward E. Hickey, both formerly of Company A; Lieutenants F. Manning Hartshorne, Edward O. Proctor, Paul H. Taylor and E. Hazen Walton, all of whom were from Wakefield and had received officers' commissions at Plattsburg. The line of march also included the State Guard Company, led by Lieutenant John H. Downing; the Grand Army Veterans, led by Commander J. Warren Poland; the Spanish War veterans, led by Commander Francis H. Marion; Police Chief James J. Pollard and his 'platoon' of police; and Lurvey's Lynn Cadet Band."
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"'Teenage idol' Ricky Nelson was just 22 years old when he made his first New England appearance at Pleasure Island when it opened its fourth season on Friday, June 22, 1962. According to regional news reports, an estimated 10,000 parents and children attended the park's opening day festivities which included two shows by Nelson, at 2:00 p.m. and 9:00 p.m. at the outdoor Showbowl. Nelson also performed two shows on Saturday and Sunday. Because of Pleasure Island's popular Showbowl, Nelson was the first celebrity to stay at the Lord Wakefield Hotel which opened for business six months earlier on December 15, 1961. Local newspapers reported that the star's stay at the hotel was a 'fairly well-kept secret,' with Police Chief Merritt Wenzel and 'his men keeping a close watch over the hotel during the weekend to prevent any teenage uprising.' In addition to Ricky Nelson, the Showbowl attracted national and international performers. Pleasure Island's second season, in 1960, opened with the Three Stooges who brought in nearly 20,000 guests during its first week. The park opened with Chuck Connors in 1961, with 57,000 guests during his six-day appearance. Pleasure Island hosted many local personalities such as Rex Trailer, Major Mudd and Wakefield's own Gene Jones with Community Audition shows, as well as national stars including Duke Ellington, Dinah Washington, Dave Brubeck, Gene Krupa, The Four Freshmen, Troy Donahue, Robert Horton, Jimmy Dean, Don Ameche, Joe Ross, Fred Gwynne, Clayton Moore, Lassie, Frank Gorsham, Cesar Romero, Michael Landon, Jerry Mathers, Johnny Crawford, Fess Parker, Dion, and many more. Beyond the Showbowl was the former Greenwood Station, which was dedicated on July 6, 1885 and relocated, restored and renamed the Goldpan Gulch Station for the park's narrow-gauge Pleasure Island and Western Railroad which was owned and operated by Edaville Railroad.
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"Members of Wakefield high School, Class of 1930 attended their 25th anniversary reunion at the University Club in Boston. Among the class members at the head table was Dr. Elizabeth V. Upham (sixth from left), who later became a teacher, administrator and Dean of Girls at Wakefield High School. According to the Debater, the high school yearbook, Elizabeth was an assistant artists on the yearbook staff, a traffic officer, a library assistant, and the Corresponding Secretary of the Inter Nos Club, which was in its second year of existence in 1930. Although the yearbook noted that "Lib" planned to attend an art school or Jackson College, she went on to graduate from Tufts University in 1934 and received her Master's Degree in Education two years later. She started teaching at Wakefield High School in 1936, in a career that spanned more than 40 years. As Dean of Girls, Dr. Upham was the class adviser for the Inter Nos Club for several decades, as well as countless other activities. She went on to become a major benefactor of the Lucius Beebe Memorial Library, leaving a substantial portion of her estate in a trust 'to be used for the purchase of books and materials, particularly in history, literature, and the social sciences.' Among others at the reunion, at the table directly in front of Dr. Upham, were John and Giovaninna (Benedetto) Volpe. Jennie, as she was called, was a graduate of the Class of 1930. Both John and Jennie were raised in Wakefield, with John leaving home at an early age and graduating from Malden High School in the mid-1920s. Following her graduation, Jennie was a registered nurse at Winchester Hospital and at Bellevue Hospital in New York. The couple married in 1934. At the time of Jennie's class reunion, John was the Massachusetts Commissioner of Public Works. He went on to serve as the first administrator of the Federal Highway Administration in 1956 and as Governor of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts from 1961 to 1963 and again from 1965 to 1969. He served as the US Secretary of Transportation from 1969 to 1973 and was appointed US Ambassador to Italy where he served from 1973 to 1977. Among the other class members who may have been at the reunion were Winnifred Ashenden, Sigmund Szydlowski and Constance Doyle."
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"The H.M. Warren Post No. 12, G.A.R. participated in the 250th anniversary celebration of the settlement and incorporation of the Ancient Town of Redding on Monday, May 28th, a day proclaimed as Settlers Day. Approximately 40 members of the Post were on board the float that held four cannons, one at each corner. The barge was 'appropriately decorated with flags and bunting, in charge of Quartermaster A.D. Merritt.' The Commander was Stephen W. Lufkin and Walter Hunt was the bugler. According to the back of the photograph, the identifications are as follows: '(front row, left to right) Maj. John M. Cate, W.J. Bridges, (unidentified), S.W. Phillips, N. Cowdrey, (next two unidentified), W.J. Mansfield, G.K. Walton, Oliver Walton, G.H.S. Driver, W.O. Giles. (Second row, left to right) John Day, (unidentified), D.P. Rolfe, John Day, (next two unidentified), S.W. Lufkin, Dion Malone, in front with the rifle. Mr. Brownell, standing at right of cannon." The name of John Day is listed twice in the identifications."
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"The South Reading Academy, located on Academy Hill where the Lincoln School was later built, was built around 1828-29 'under the auspices of the Baptist denomination.' The 2-1/2 story wood frame structure was three bays wide with a front-facing gable roof. Its main facade had an entrance centered in a recess that was framed by pilasters and an entablature. The front gable was fully pedimented, with a decorative shingle pattern at its center. According to the Genealogical History of the Town of Reading, Mass., the academy, established in 1829, was intended as an Introductory School to the Theological Seminary at Newton, 'although it was open to others.' The land and buildings were reported to be obtained by private subscriptions of the people of South Reading. While the school flourished for many years, the theological students were 'withheld' and the corporations was without funds, leading to the school being closed and the building returned to its original owners. The building and land were sold to Assistant Principal William Heath and Burrage Yale, who sold them to the Town in 1847 to be used by the newly created high school. The town stopped using it as a school in 1871 when the new high school on Lafayette Street was built. In 1891, it was moved to its present location at 7 Foster Street where it has served as home to a chapter of the Grand Army of the Republic, a Methodist church congregation, and the Fraternal Order of Eagles, among others. It was severely damaged by fire in the 1970s, but was restored to be used as a commercial building. The building was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1989."
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"In 1916, the townspeople purchased a lot at the corner of Main and Avon Streets for $16,000. That same year, Junius Beebe, son of Lucius Beebe, donated $60,000 toward the construction of a new library building to be built in memory of his parents, Lucius and Sylenda. Construction on the building was delayed by World War I, and several modifications and land purchases were made before work began and the cornerstone was laid on March 17, 1922. Because building costs rose after the war, Junius Beebe and his family increased their donation to $200,000. The cornerstone was laid in a ceremony at 3 p.m. on a cold and raw Friday afternoon 'in the presence of several hundred people.' School children were dismissed early and church bells were rung throughout the Town as a reminder of the important event. During the ceremony, Building Committee member Harris M. Dolbeare outlined the contents of the copper box which was placed beneath the cornerstone: photographs of Lucius Beebe and Junius Beebe, copies of newspaper articles about the Beebe family, copies of the Boston newspapers and the Wakefield Item, circulars and printed materials regarding the campaign to raise money for the site, photographs of public buildings in Wakefield, and a statement written by committee member Dr. Richard Dutton and read to students the day before the event. Speakers included Committee members Dolbeare and Dutton, and Winfield S. Ripley, Jr., Chairman of the Library Trustees. Lucia Beebe, daughter of Junius Beebe and granddaughter of Lucius Beebe, smoothed over the cement that workers placed on the cornerstone using a silver dowel [i.e. trowel] provided by the contractor, James E. Nelson Company. The engraved dowel [i.e. trowel] was found in a basement on Daniel Road and donated to the library in 2009. The building was dedicated on April 15, 1923."
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"An antique 20-ton locomotive traveled on the back of a truck through downtown Wakefield just two weeks after the Greenwood railroad station made the same trek to Pleasure Island. The Davenport 2--6-0 narrow gauge engine was hauled by flatcar from the bayous of Louisiana and arrived at the B&M siding on the Junction railroad tracks near Broadway in mid-February. The engine was reported to be from the last of the narrow-gauge roads and had been used to haul sugar cane from the fields at Reserve, the largest sugarcane refinery in the United States in the early 20th century. It was believed that the engines was built around 1900. The locomotive was among several Canadian and American locomotives that were part of Pleasure Island's Engine City exhibit, which included the 216-ton 'old No. 3713'. That engine had been brought out of retirement from Fitchburg. According to local news reports, approximately 4,500' of spur track was laid from the B&M's old Newburyport branch to the Pleasure Island site especially for the locomotives to travel over the rails. Pleasure Island, which opened to the public on June 22, 1959 lasted for 11 seasons, closing on Labor Day weekend 1969. Nelson Blount, who owned Edaville Railroad, moved his Engine City exhibit from Pleasure Island to North Walpole, NH in December 1961. From there, the collection went to Bellows Falls, VT which became Steamtown USA. Some of this collection, which started at Pleasure Island, can still be seen at Steamtown national historic site in Scranton, PA."
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"McMasters Store was owned by Lauren L. McMaster, whose occupation was listed as newsdealer and stationer in the 1918 street and telephone directory.. He and his wife, Helen, lived at 36 Yale Avenue. According to an ad in the same directory, the store was a subscription agency which did developing, printing and enlarging, in addition to selling newspapers, periodicals, stationery, souvenir postcards and Dennison's goods. The ad also listed the availability of electric lamps, Columbia Grafonolas and records. Lauren McMaster was born in Wakefield on July 4, 1881, and died on October 10, 1943, as the result of an automobile accident. Following his graduation from Brown University in 1904, he was employed in the wholesale dry goods business and lived in Chelsea until the loss of his home in the great conflagration of 1908. He returned to Wakefield and became associated with the leading news and periodical store, becoming the owner in 1915 where he remained until 1933. He became the manager of the local office of the Western Union Telegraph Company until April 1943, when he became associated with the Malden and Melrose Gas Light Company. McMaster was active in the community, serving on the Board of Selectmen as Chairman in 1921, as an organizer and first president of the Wakefield Chamber of Commerce, and for many years was active in the Rotary Club where he served as President in 1926-1927, and with the Baptist Church and Y.M.C.A. He was active in the Masons and served as Master of the Golden Rule Lodge in 1929, and as District Deputy Grand Master of the Melrose 7th District in 1931 and 1932."
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"The new Town Hall was built on the former Noah Smith lot, at the corner of Main and Water Streets. The land and $30,000 were donated by Cyrus Wakefield in 1868 to build a soldiers' monument or memorial hall to honor South reading citizens who answered the call to arms during the Civil War. Because of his generosity, the Town of South Reading voted in 1868 to change its name to Wakefield. Governor Alexander H. Bullock approved the name change on June 30. A day of celebration was held on the anniversary of American Independence, July 4. The new Town House, referred to as Wakefield Hall, was dedicated on Washington's birthday, Wednesday, February 22, 1871. When completed, it is reported that Cyrus Wakefield had quadrupled his original donation. The dedication was held at 2 p.m. with speeches by Cyrus Wakefield and a host of other notable citizens. After the key to the hall was presented, the ceremony ended and a banquet was held in the upper hall for the 400 guests in attendance. Toasts were given to the President of the United States, Dea. Francis Smith, the State (sic) of Massachusetts, the Merchants of Boston, the Clergy, 'Our Manufacturing Industries,' Dr. Solon Richardson (who gave a gift of $1,000 for the furnishings), the Public Schools, the Farmers of New England, and the State Printer. According to the Wakefield Inaugural and Dedicatory Exercises, in his response to the toast to the farmers, Dr. George B. Loring of Salem 'touched upon the Woman Suffrage question, and as for 'woman's rights', he said, 'I go for them.' Cyrus Wakefield died suddenly, at the age of 62, on October 26, 1873, two and-a-half years after the Town Hall was dedicated."
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"Construction on the addition to the high school started soon after Town Meeting voted to acquire the land south of the school. The school was dedicated on February 22, 1955."
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"The Park Music Pavilion, referred to as the Pagoda, now the Bandstand, was built in 1885 as part of a $10,000 bequest from Cornelius Sweetser which provided money for park purposes. The bandstand 'of unique and elaborate design' is said to have resembled a pavilion in Brighton, England, and had hanging lanterns to illuminate the area. The structure, made of wood and dressed fieldstone, replaced a bandstand that was 'a square, wood platform, breast-high, the under part latticed in,' and could easily be transported from one part of the Common to another. It stood in the middle of the 'bigger end of the Common, near the big flagpole.' Just prior to its demise, the old bandstand stood on the upper Common, opposite Lafayette and Crescent Streets."
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The old Swain house was 'situated on the easterly side' of Lot End Road, now Vernon Street, just north of Lowell Street. Although some reports indicate it was built in 1720, it was most likely built around 1752 as the homestead of Dr. Thomas and Hannah Swain on land first granted to Jeremiah Swain in 1652. Thomas, born in 1705 and died in 1759, was the fourth generation to live on the land. He was the son of Dr. Benjamin Swain (1669-1749), grandson of Major Jeremiah Swain (1643-1710), and great grandson of one of the Town's early settlers, Jeremiah Swain (1615-1658). After Dr. Thomas Swain, the home was occupied by three more generations: his son Dr. Oliver Swain, who was followed by Deacon Oliver Swain and Thomas Swain. All seven generations are buried in the Town's Old Burying Ground. By 1865, the home was owned by Dr. David Batchelder. The Old Swain House, later called the Batchelder House, was destroyed by fire on December 15, 1899."
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"Although it is unclear to local historians when the cannons were placed on the upper Common, now the Veterans' Memorial Common, generations of Wakefield residents have admired, and often climbed on top of the artillery that is on the Common today. The cannon pictured may be the Civil War-era cannon that graced the Common for many years until it was removed for restoration many years ago. The cannon reportedly was never returned to the Common. The two cannons presently on the Common are 1876 Breech-Loading Howitzers which were last refurbished by the Town in 1994."
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Fountain Company No. 3, a volunteer company which was not part of the Fire Department, was organized on August 23, 1875. The hand tub used by the company was built by Increase S. Hill sometime around 1835, and was purchased by Aaron Butler from Salem in 1873. The tub was painted red with a small portrait of the Yale Engine House Fire of 1859 on the side. First housed in a stable in rear of Main Street, opposite Albion Street, the hand tub was moved to Crescent Street, between Water and Lincoln Streets, in 1885. The small building was behind the Henry F. Miller & Sons Piano Company factory, which can be seen in the picture. Fountain No. 3 disbanded around 1888 and was replaced by Volunteer Hose No. 2. Fountain No. 3 hand tub was sold to Reading for $125. The new company used the building to house the Rumsey hand-drawn hose carriage the members had purchased at a cost of $275. It is reported that the building was later moved to Water Street, across from L.B. Evans, where it became home to a cigar store. Fountain No. 3 volunteers included (left to right) William M. Hanley, Benjamin C. Flockton, W.J. Dennett, William E. Parker, Charles H.T. Brown, S.E. Ryder, William L. Block, Albert D. Cate, J,.C. Gould, H.A. Simonds, William E. Cade, Charles Whiting, Irvin E. Phipps, Charles H. Pope, Arthur Skinner and James P. Goodhue."
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"Geneva Joy (Lord) Heath lived at 617 Main Street with her husband, Elroy N. Heath. The couple married on September 29, 1886 and moved into the home soon after. Although there is little information about Geneva other than working as a clerk in the Town Clerk's office in the 1920s, there is a wealth of information about her husband. A native of Springfield, Elroy moved to Wakefield around 1879 and worked in Boston where, according to the 1883 publication Commerce, Manufactures & Resources of Boston, Mass., he was a 'Manufacturer of Heath's Improved Indexes and Letter Files.' He held several patents for his inventions, including two for letter holders and filing systems, which created 'a convenient combined index book and table, by means of which any name or subject may be found with the utmost rapidity.' A bicycle enthusiast and a member of Wakefield's bicycle clubs in the early 1900s, Elroy had two other patents, one which improved the propelling mechanism for bicycles 'and the like', and another which created an improvement for carrying packages and drawings for 'velocipede' riders. According to the patent application, 'My improved package-carrier resembles a hammock, and I have devised hammock-suspending devices by which it may be readily swung from the handle-bar or some other suitable part of the machine.' A velocipede was any of the several early bicycles with pedals on the front wheel. He moved his business from Boston to Room 5 in the Wakefield Block in 1884, and his patented files, indexes and advertising calendars were reported to have a widespread reputation. In addition to his business and hobby, Elroy was a member of the Sons of the American Revolution and was active in the Town as chairman and secretary of the Wakefield Municipal Light Board and as a member of the Finance Committee. The picture of Geneva was most likely taken at the couple's summer home, Idyll Farm in Springfield. Elroy died in 1909, and the farm was sold in 1911."
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"The lakeshore on Main Street was not part of the town's common land before 1885; rather, the southeast corner of Lake Quannapowitt and Main Street was dotted with buildings, such as John Aborn's Shoe Shop, which was said to be between the lakeshore and Main Street, Mrs. Courtney's hand-laundry, several houses, and Wright's Boathouse. The structures were eventually moved as a result of the bequest of Cornelius Sweetser to create public parklands, and the 1882 act of the legislature to allow cities and towns to lay out public parks within their limits. The boathouse, built by Albert J. Wright around 1886, remained on the lakeshore until 1893 when it was moved to a location behind his 228 (now 202) Main Street home. Its removal may have also been prompted by the extension of the street railway line along lakeside, which opened on May 26, 1894. Born in 1838 and educated in Boston, Albert J. Wright 'shipped before the mast' aboard the clipper ship Radiant in the mid-1850s where he sailed to San Francisco, making the passage in 135 days. In his travels he learned the tinsmith's trade in Michigan, and returned to Boston in 1858. He read law in the office of the City Solicitor, attended Harvard Law School, and was admitted to the Bat in 1861 to practice in all the courts of the Commonwealth by Chief Justice Shaw of the Supreme Court. He received a commission in 1863 as paymaster in the United States Navy, and after the Civil War he entered the printing business where he and his partner, under the name of the W@right & Potter Printing Company, became the authorized state printers. He was active in many organization, including the Loyal Legion of the United States of America, the Grand Army of the Republic, the Kearsarge Association if Naval Veterans, the Bostonian Society and the Harvard Law School Association, the Boston Yacht Club, of which he was a charter member, and the Eastern Yacht Club of Marblehead, among others. He also served as a member of the General Committee of the 250th anniversary celebration of the Town in 1894, serving as a member of two subcommittees: Procession and Out-Door Music, and Reception and Entertainment of Guests."
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Organized on October 8, 1909 in Grand Army Hall, the Wahpatuck Tribe 54, Improved Order of Red Men was a popular and welcome sight at parades and celebrations during the 1930s, 40s and 50s, including the annual 4th of July parade. According to the History of Wakefield (Middlesex County) Massachusetts, compiled by William E. Eaton and History Committee in 1944 to celebrate the Town's 300th anniversary, the Wahpatuck Tribe 54 was the largest such chapter in the Commonwealth. The Wahpatuck Tribe 54, Improved Order of Red Men Band was known throughout the East Coast, participating in parades and competitions throughout the region. The original Wahpatuck Tribe 54, Improved Order of Red Men Band split up in the 1950s, according to newspaper reports. Its original drum was discovered in the basement of the Americal Civic Center in 1994 and has since been donated to the Wakefield Historical Society. The Tribe had its headquarters at 33 West Water Street. Descended from the Sons of Liberty, the Improved Order of Red Men is a patriotic fraternity chartered by Congress which had trace its origins back to 1765. According to the national organization, the non-profit-organization is devoted to inspiring a greater love for the United States of America and the principles of American Liberty. After the War of 1812 the name was changed to the Society of Red Men and in 1834 to the Improved Order of Red Men."
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"In the days and weeks after the attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941, Wakefield residents rallied together to help by volunteering at the American Red Cross headquarters at the Lincoln School, becoming air raid wardens and joining the medical defense unit as part of the Wakefield Committee on Public Safety, and/or collecting scrap metal, rubber and paper through the Wakefield Salvage Committee. In addition to the Wakefield Municipal Light Department-sponsored (now Wakefield Municipal Gas & Light Department) school for air raid wardens, hundreds of local residents were trained in civil defense and what to do in case of a 'red alert.' As the men were registering for the draft at the Lafayette Building (now the Town Hall) or enlisting in a branch of the armed forces, local women were trained in first aid, canteen work and motor transport. One such civil defense drill was conducted by the Fire Auxiliary Department on a rainy Sunday in June on Main Street, across from Oak Street, in Greenwood under the watchful eyes of Fire Chief Fred Graham (left) and Firefighter Arthur Goodrich (center). In addition to the local efforts, more than 1,600 Massachusetts women, including approximately 70 from Wakefield, joined and trained with the Massachusetts Defense Corporation under the jurisdiction of the Massachusetts Committee on Public Safety. The Wakefield Company of the military organization was trained for duty to serve as volunteers in the local Civil Defense agency as air raid wardens, drivers, communications personnel, canteen workers, medics, chemical detection personnel and as emergency fire fighters."
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"According to documented history, Wakefield has always had common lands since the first division of land among the early settlers. A special committee was selected in 1727 to lay out the 'ways and watering places' through the Common, and a vote was taken in 1742 that required that land remain unfenced and that parish land 'never be disposed of for any other use whatsoever, without the consent of every freeholder in the parish.' The trees on the 'upper' Common, now the Veterans' Memorial Common, at the right, were planted in the mid-1800s by a 'band of public spirited residents.' who viewed the opportunity as a 'general neighborhood celebration.' Both the upper and lower Commons were unkempt and uncared for, with water coursing through the center, forming a pool of water referred to as Ken's Pond, named after a blacksmith who had a shop on the west side of the Common. In 1859, the Common was drained and graded and, in 1860, the townspeople accepted a committee report and authorized the fencing of the public Common at an estimated cost of $700. The final cost to erect a fence at the Common was $636.75. On May 1, 1871, the Town voted to purchase land between the 'old Common' and Lake Quannapowitt to extend the Common, and authorized the Town Treasurer to 'hire a sum, not to exceed $19,600 for a 10-year term.' In 1883, the townspeople accepted a $10,000 gift from the will of Cornelius Sweetser which was to be 'used and expended in furnishing and beautifying a public park.' At the left of the picture stood the Third Meeting House of the First Parish, the Town House (both not shown), the brick Yale engine House, and a blacksmith shop on the lower Common."
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"The success of the street railway system led to double-tracking of the rails from downtown Wakefield to Melrose in 1901, and on Albion Street in 1902. According to news reports, the double-tracking on Albion Street was 'a difficult proposition, for many elm trees that had stood for decades had to be removed. As in the case of Main Street it was evident that a busy thoroughfare was no place for the thrifty growth of shade tress.' It went on to state that paved streets, concrete sidewalks, trolley wires, street railway feed lines, telephone wires, etc. were 'not conducive to the growth of such trees. One after another of these old trees have gone down and have yielded to the march of progress.' The Wakefield & Stoneham Street Railway Company was formed in 1889 and received its charter in May 1892. The two-mile route from the Post Office on Main Street at the corner of Albion Street (former Kingman Block) to Farm Hill in Stoneham began operations on August 14, 1892. The system experienced rapid growth, and eventually became a four-direction electric street railway system which enabled riders to travel to Lowell, Lawrence and Haverhill to the north; Malden, Chelsea and Boston to the south; Lynn, Salem, Beverly and Gloucester to the east; and Woburn, Winchester and Medford to the west. The original Wakefield and Stoneham Street Railway Company and other similar companies eventually merged until all became a part of the Boston & Northern Street Railway System, the Bay State Company, and eventually the Eastern Massachusetts Street Railway Company. The line was discontinued on July 6, 1929."
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"Leeds Ice Cream Company was located on the northwest corner of Vernon and Lowell Streets beginning in the early 1930s, soon after the road was widened with the 'permission' of the County Commissioners, and the Town's first traffic signal was installed at the intersection in 1928. The ice cream stand was built on property once occupied by John Sweetser and later by Dr. Robert Cushman. Leeds Ice Cream Company later became Kydd's Ice Cream, stand, a popular stop for many in the 1950s and 1960s. The site is now a gas station."
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"This aerial view of Wakefield, taken sometime around 1936, provides a look at Main Street in the downtown area. Main Street runs horizontally through the center of the photo, and shows several buildings that are no longer standing, including Wakefield High School (later called the Atwell Building) at the bottom right, the old Wakefield Town Hall near the center of the photo, the Miller Piano Factory behind the Town Hall, the Wakefield Building with its top floor, the buildings which housed the Wakefield Rattan Company (later the Robie Industrial Park) on Water Street near the top right of the photo, the stores and homes that stood on Main Street before they were razed during the 1940s, and the Methodist Episcopal Church on Albion Street that was torn down in 1938. The photo also shows the L.B. Evans' Son Co. Shoe factory on Water Street, the railroad that at one time traveled to Peabody and Newburyport, and the lot of land that would eventually house the Post Office next to the Lucius Beebe Memorial Library."
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"Daniel Goss operated a heating and plumbing business at the corner of Main and Mechanic Streets, now Princess Street, until 1885. Goss, along with Oscar Noble of Wakefield applied for a patent on January 22, 1880 for an invention to improve heating stoves, 'utilizing the heat to the greatest possible extent, thereby economizing fuel' which was granted as #225,484 on March 16, 1880. Among those in his employ was George H. Taylor, who joined him in the business just days before the patent was granted. Taylor became a partner with Goss three years later, under the firm name of Daniel Goss & Co. A year later, this partnership was dissolved when Goss moved from the town. Taylor remained in business at the corner of Main and Mechanic Streets, 'doing a large and successful business for himself.' The building was the site of a fire on March 5th, 1907 that was classified as one of the town's major blazes. Soon after, he purchased the Wakefield Block at the corner of Main and Lincoln Streets and the store remained in business until June 1962. In addition to being a business owner, Taylor was a high ranking member of the Richardson Light Guard and was elected as a Major in the 'historically famous' 6th Regiment of Massachusetts Infantry. It was under his command that the Richardson Light Guard held the Number 1 position in the Massachusetts militia and its rifle team was the 'pride of the State' during the 1890s."
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"Planning for a new high school began in earnest in the late 1940s and early 1950s, with several sites and plans considered by the building committee, including the former Town Farm site on Farm Street, filling in a section of Hartshorne's cove on Lake Quannapowitt and building the school on Veterans' Field and Halls Park, and building an addition on land to the south of the existing high school on Main Street. The latter plan was approved by Town Meeting."
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In the early 1950s, the late Wiliam S. Hawkes, publisher of Childlife Magazine, envisioned creating a family recreation center to be named Childlife World, similar to the Mother Goose parks throughout the country, such as StoryLand in North Conway, NH. On July 16, 1955 the amusement park industry would never be the same! Disneyland opened, and investors followed the trend leader. Childlife World became Pleasure Island when Hawkes and Marco Engineering of Los Angeles collaborated with Cabot, Cabot and Forbes to break out 168 acres of wetland from CC&F's Industrial Park along the edge of the new Route 128. Billed as Boston's answer to Disneyland, Pleasure Island opened on June 22, 1959 and was the second of three innovative theme parks built across America to mimic Disneyland. H.P. Hood & Sons (now Hood LLC) was the first company to sign a lease for what was officially an 'outdoor entertainment and merchandising center.' As a lessee, Hood signed a five-year contract with the first year's and fifth year's rent paid in advance, which helped underwrite the cost of the park's construction. H.P. Hood & Sons invested $500,000 in a second mortgage to Pleasure Island, Inc. plus $10,000 per year for its five-year lease. The Hood's 4.5-acre farm included a large red barn and silo, and a farm tractor that would draw a wagon-train down through the farm over a winding road. The trip took guests by sheep, cows, calves and a duck pond, as well as a cow barn, a maple sugar house where syrup was boiled and blacksmith's shop. H.P. Hood & Sons also sponsored the Gay Nineties Ice Cream Parlor and snack stands at the farm, lighthouse, juice bar at Goldpan Gulch, and pushcarts. Pleasure Island went bankrupt after its first season, only to become one of the top grossing parks behind Disneyland in the early 1960s. Hood left after season one and a new petting zoo opened in its place in 1960. In 1961, a giant three-story high 'Bozo the Clown' slide was attached to the silo. The park closed in 1969. A portion of Edgewater Office Park Building 500's parking garage and Colonial Point's parking lot are on the site of the former Hood Farm. Hood LLC's corporate office is located in Lynnfield MA, just one mile from its Pleasure Island Farm.
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Thought to be a Greenwood Sunday School outing, this gathering of children and adults enjoyed a day at Tasker's Grove, which was located at the west end of Linden Avenue, near Crystal Lake. The group included Rufus Kendrick, the large man with the moustache at the right in the photograph. A resident of Greenwood, Kendrick was the founder of the Wakefield Home Fire Protection Association, 'an independent volunteer association for extinguishing fires, working entirely with small apparatus, appliances generally ignored by fire departments, such as buckets, cans, Johnson hand force pumps, garden hoses attached to house faucets, or any appliance which could readily be made use of.' Hundreds of galvanized pails, milk cans, and Johnson pumps were located throughout the town; the first 'getting a stream of water' on a fire was rewarded with $1.00, and the first one to 'give the first still alarm' was rewarded with 25-cents. Kendrick also served as a fire warden and was well informed about trees and flowers, taking great interest in gypsy moths. As a member of the short-lived Wakefield Improvement Society, he planted a row of 52 trees, from 'Mr. Lee's store on Main Street north to the railroad bridge', which he called Soldier's Row in memory of those who served in the Rebellion.
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Owned by Ebenezer Sumner Hopkins, the 'old Hopkins place' was featured in the C. F. Richardson stereoscopic view around 1880. A photographer, Richardson was active in photographic circles, both locally and nationally, serving as president of the Boston Photographic Association in 1881, and as a correspondent for The Philadelphia Photographer, 'an illustrated monthly journal devoted to photography.' In addition to stereoscopic pictures of local churches and landmarks, Richardson also photographed private residents. The 1890 List of Taxable Polls and Estates for the Town of Wakefield lists Ebenezer Hopkins' property as a dwelling house, another house and an 'old home' on Hopkins Street, a shed, stable, two carriages, 15 cows and three horses, and nearly 40 acres of land on and west of Hopkins Street, Brook Street and Prospect Street, listed as orchard, meadow, tillage and pasture. The value of this personal property was listed as $900 and his real estate was valued at $7,000 which required him to pay a tax of $128.40. He was one of 84 Wakefield residents who had a Johnson hand force pump on his property which required him to sign a pledge that he would use it to fight any fire within one-quarter mile. Hopkins was born in South Reading (now Wakefield) in 1816 and died in Derry, NH in 1907. He lived most of his 91 years in Wakefield where he worked as a farmer. He and his wife, Mary Louisa Parker, had seven children. Their sons, Herbert and Joseph, were listed as farmers on the property, in the 1917-1918 street listing.
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The lot of land at the north corner of Main and Crescent Streets was once the location of the Second Baptist Meeting House. Built in 1836 and dedicated on January 20, 1837, the church was destroyed by fire on June 21, 1871. A new church was built on the other side of the Rockery, at the corner of Lafayette and Common Streets in 1873. The site was referred to as the Carter lot after the home of James H. Carter at 8 Park Street, which can be seen in the back center of the photograph. The home was later occupied by Samuel T. Parker. The Crystal Apartments were built soon after the photograph was taken, in 1924, by John S. Griffiths of 15 Chestnut Street. The apartment-house, said at the time to be the largest to be built in Wakefield, contained 21 suites.
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The meat, poultry, pork and fish counter of the First National Store at 447 Main Street was well stocked with what seems to be every cut of meat, type of fish, and fresh fowl that was available at a retail market. Due to the re-numbering of Main Street, the original First National was located to the right of the present-day Colonial Spa when facing the building. A past edition to this historical calendar featured a look at the store's produce section, which began art the far right of this photograph. Meat manager Carl H. Brown and store manager Lloyd F. Curtis moved Store #37 to a new, more 'commodious' location across Main Street on February 1, 1940. Its new location at 456 Main Street (now 404 Main Street) was in the new brick building which replaced the Walton Block. Parking was available in the rear of the building and customer could enter from Mechanic (Princess) or Lincoln Streets as well as from Main Street. The new 'self-service' store was 52' x 120' with wide aisles. The meat and product sections were located to the left of the store, with the dairy at the right and the groceries in the center aisles. The basement contained storage areas and groceries, refrigerated areas for produce and fruits, and all refrigeration. It is interesting to note that the First National Store opened its new 'super-market' on the same day in 1940 as the A&P market at the corner of Main and Centre Streets.
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These Franklin School students were the first to occupy the new school at the corner of Nahant and Traverse Streets. Planning for the new school started two years earlier, in 1900, when Town Meeting voted to study whether an addition to the existing school building on Franklin Street would be enough to address the overcrowded conditions. For the School Committee Report for the year ending January 31, 1900, the committee stated, 'The residents in the Franklin Street district are also asking for better accommodations, and their request is reasonable. They have been patient and long suffering. At the present time, all children above the fourth grade are obliged to attend either the Hamilton or Lincoln schools; the present building is entirely inadequate to the needs of the district.' In April 1901, Town Meeting voted to build a new eight-room school building, and that $30,000 dollars would be raised and appropriated to purchase the land and erect the building. When the new school opened on September 9, 1902, 240 student were in attendance, 30 more than anticipated, with more expected in the following days. According to the School Committee Report for the year ending January 31, 1904, 'For the relief of the new Franklin building, which can be repaired and put into commission again.' The old Franklin School, near the corner of Franklin and Nahant Streets, was eventually demolished.
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The east side of Main Street looking south was blanketed with significant snow in the early 1900s. The photograph shows the shops, houses and commercial buildings, most of which are no longer standing, as well as a street railway car that stopped to pick up passengers near Richardson Avenue. Buildings pictured just beyond the street car in the distance (and moving up Main Street) are the old Richardson Light Guard Armory that was destroyed by fire in 1911, the Hodkins Building, the old Cutler Bros. Grocery & Grain destroyed by fire in 1911, the old Town Hall razed in 1958, the Taylor Building with its fourth floor and Mansard roof intact, the Walton Building razed in the late 1930s, and many houses and small stores.
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"This stereograph was taken from 'the hill south of Prospect Street and east of Fairmount Avenue, looking east.' It appears to have been taken before the building of several icehouse on the shores of Lake Quannapowitt, specifically the icehouse owned by Boston hotel owner J. Reed Whipple and John G. Morrill on the Col. James Hartshorne's meadow in the 1890s. Note the style of house along the lakeshore, as well as the third meetinghouse of the First Parish Congregational Church which was razed in 1890."
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"The Atwell wing of the Galvin Middle School was built following the devastating fire that destroyed the original Willard B. Atwell Building in December 1971. The original Atwell Building was built as the high school in 1923, later becoming the junior high school for grades seven, eight and nine when the 'new' Main Street high school was built in 1955, and eventually returning to its use as part of the high school when the junior high school, now Wakefield Memorial High School, was built in 1960. Following the 1971 fire, high school students in grades nine through 12 attended double sessions on Main Street until the existing high school on Farm Street opened in September 1974, the same time the 'new' Atwell Building opened for grade six students. Junior high school students returned to Main Street that same year, and in 1991, the junior high school was named to honor General John Rogers Galvin. Grade five students began attending classes in the Atwell Building in 1988 to alleviate overcrowding in the elementary schools.
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"There were more than 20 varieties of palm trees, most over 20-feet tall, banana trees and rare species of plants in the garden area of the American Mutual building. Soil and humus were brought in from Florida and the rock gardens were constructed of Florida coral rock formations. An electronically-controlled rain and temperature system simulated tropical conditions at all times. The light court and gardens were designed by the building architect and the garden was created and planted by Mulford and Bert Foster of Orlando, Florida. Mulford was the consulting tropical botanist for the Arnold Arboretum and the Smithsonian Institute."
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"Taken as a stereograph by photographer C.F. Richardson, this picture shows Main Street looking north. In the left of the pictures is the 3rd meetinghouse of the First Parish Congregational Church which was razed in 1890. To the right of the church in the picture is the parish house and the 1834 Town House which stood on the Common until it was moved to the corner of Main and Salem Streets by J.M. Cate in 1873. The Yale Engine house is to the right of the old Town House. The bandstand had not yet been built. Along Main Street, from the center of the picture, is the brick Benjamin Wiley house, the Universalist Church, Day's bake house owned by Hosea L. Day, the Italianate style building which later houses the Citizen and Banner, a market, and Edward Mansfield's grocery store. The pictures also shows Main Street as it looked before the Rockery (1885) and the horse trough were built."
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"The Class of 1928 presented H.V. Esmond's witty farce, "Eliza Comes to Stay" on November 22 and 23. According to reports, both performances were 'well attended by appreciative audiences.' Lead roles were played by Milledge Crouse, the Honorable Sandy Verrall Lucia Buckle, Eliza; Jeannette Learoyd, Lady Elizabeth Pennybroke; Harold Decker, Alexander Stoop-Verrall; Fred Garvin, Herbert; Sandborn Caldwell, Montague Jordan; and Nita Tucker, Vera Lawrence. Other parts were played by Beatrice Seldon, Mrs. Allaway; Viola Hovey, Madeline Marmon; Lester Simpson, Ronnie Trezise; Rita Neagle, Bertha Bates; Helen Salipante, Peg des Jardins; Bessie McLellan, Maggie; Dorothy Ricker, Ethel; Carolyn Woodman, Jenny; Harry Iram and William Bradford, Porters; Staff members included Lawrence Gardiner, business manager; Walter Sherman, stage manager; Rowland Whittet, property manager; Kathryn Dutton, wardrobe mistress; and Hope McCloskey and James Cotter, publicity. Miss Hicks was the coach. Between acts, Emery Marshall sang a solo, Ellen, Madeline and Winifred Ashenden dances, and Boit Brannen played a violin solo. The High School Orchestra, directed by C. Albert Jones, played several 'pleasing numbers.'"
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"Herrick Buick at 472 Main Street was incorporated in 1945 when Fred Herrick, Sr. of Melrose purchase the Wakefield Buick Company and the building in which it was located. Herrick had previously served as Manager of the company for 10 years and had been associated with Buick for more than 28 years. When he purchased the company he became the 'appointed Buick dealer' for Wakefield, Stoneham and Reading. Herrick Buick expanded its services throughout the years, becoming the 'largest volume dealer' in its district. The Buick-built Opel Kadett line was added in 1966. In addition to the showroom for new and used car sales and service on Main Street, Herrick Buick also purchased the Avon Supply Building in 1968 at the corner of Avon Street and North Avenue as an additional showroom. The company also owned a separate automobile and truck body repair shop on Broadway for its expanded service department. Herrick Buick closed on January 31, 1974."
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"The Franklin School was built in 1902 on Nahant Street to replace the wooden schoolhouse at the intersection of Nahant and Franklin Streets. The eight-room brick school, designed by Harland A. Perkins, was built at the northwest corner of Nahant and Traverse Streets on land that the Town purchased along with a portion of an adjoining lot that they 'deemed necessary' for the project. The cost to build the school and purchase the land was $30,000, which the Town voted to pay in sums of $1,500 per year for 20 years. Construction began in 1901 and the school as ready for the first day of school on September 8, 1902. The Town originally appropriated $1,000 to furnish the school, which provided 42 desks and chairs for each of they five rooms they intended to use on opening day, for a total of 210 seats. When approximately 240 students arrived at the school, Superintendent Thompson when 'hustling about the town hunting up surplus seats and desks in other school houses, borrowed more where he could get them and set men to work furnishing a sixth room.' Miss McCormick, a resident of Boston and a teacher at the Greenwood School was telegraphed at her home to take charge of the extra room at the new school. She was able to do so, as the Greenwood School as not yet completed by opening day. The Superintendent and his workers stayed on the job until dark and resumed their work at 5 a.m. to ensure that the sixth classroom was ready for the second day of school. The buildings was enlarged in 1926 which doubled its room capacity."
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"Less than 24-hours before sending the 'boys' of Richardson Light Guard Company A, 6th Regiment to fight in World War I, thousands of residents greeted the Company at the Center Station late in the afternoon on Saturday, August 25th when they arrived by train from Ayer via Boston. A reception was held late that evening in the armory, from 7:30 to 8:30, with dancing from 8:30 to 11:30 p.m. Crowds lined Main Street the following morning, August 26th 'well before 10 a.m.' to support the Company as they marched to the Upper Station from the armory. After a short parade down Main Street to the Common and up Chestnut Street, the company 'stood at ease in the drive in the rear of the Upper Station while wives, parents, sisters, brothers, sweethearts and friends bid tearful farewell to the boys in khaki who volunteered to go out and 'do their bit' for the cause of Democracy and to guard the safety and honor of their country. There were more wet eyes than dry eyes in the great crowd that pushed forward at the end of the march for the last leave-taking.' Family members and townspeople bought flags from local merchants which they waved as the train departed the Upper Station on North Avenue."
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"The Boston-based American Mutual Life Insurance Company opened its 'ultra-modern' home office on July 14, 1958. Formerly located at 142 Berkley [i.e. Berkeley] Street in Boston, the company began negotiating with the Town in 1954 to construct its $2 million home office along a 40-acre tract of land on the shores of Lake Quannapowitt. The building, designed by Chester Lindsay Churchill of Boston and New York, was 'strikingly modern in every detail.' Special features, touted by the company in its employee pamphlet, included an employee center, complete with a cafeteria and full kitchen facilities on the lake side of the first floor of the building to provide lunch and 'coffee breaks' for more than 800 people. Other areas included a store, a chapel with a 'massive colored-glass window' from France, an employee lounge overlooking the lake that was furnished with 'modernistic and comfortable furnishings,' an electronic data processing unit off the main lobby, a personnel clinic with a full-time nurse, banking facilities provided by the Wakefield Trust Company where employees could cash their checks, an engineering research center which allowed loss prevention to develop controls, and a complete audio system that broadcast messages to all areas of the building and played music at various times throughout the day. The employees were also able to have routine physicals and check-ups at the clinic. The most impressive features of the building were the glassed-in tropical gardens - two on the first floor that extended up through the first and second floors, and a third on the third floor."
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"Wakefield Park, known as the Common, was the site of sporting, social and musical events on Settlers' Day, May 28th, the second of three consecutive days set aside to celebrate the Town's 250th anniversary. According to the Proceedings of the 250th Anniversary of the Ancient Town of Redding, 'dynamite salutes and the ringing of bells announced to sleepers that Settlers' Day was on...Tents and booths arose as if by magic in the park and vacant lots in the center of town. Fakirs, refreshment vendors and souvenir[sic] were seen and heard on every hand.' The day included a parade and visits to historic sites, as well as a concert on the bandstand at 1:30 p.m. that featured the Salem Cadet Band. The games began at 2 p.m. and included a one-mile race, 100-yard dash, boys' and men's bicycle races, tug-of-war between Wakefield and Veterans' teams, three-mile race, pole vault, three-standing jumps, a boys' doughnut race, running high jump, a dory race, and an event called running hop, step and jump. Most winners received silver cups or other silver articles. Cash prizes of $1 and $2 were awarded to the winners of the doughnut race and the boys' 100-yard dash. The winning team of the tug-of-war contest, the Veterans', won a $20 cash prize. A baseball game was held at 4 p.m., with a rowing regatta at 5 p.m. The Salem Cadet Band gave another 'fine orchestral performance from the Pagoda' beginning at 7 p.m., followed by pyrotechnics at 8:15 p.m. 'Before the delighted eyes of great crowds of witnesses flashed out a dazzling display of every kind, including colored lights, mines, rockets, Roman candles, bombs, shooting stars, and fiery serpents.' The schedule of events included a curfew at 9:30 p.m."
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"The 53' 20-ton, two-masted Newfoundland Swordfish schooner 'George and Freeman' moved from Portland, Maine to its permanent berth at Clipper Cove in Pleasure Island on May 5, 1959. The 80-year -old vessel had sailed with the Grand Banks fishing fleet before the turn of the century and was wrecked off the coast of Cuba. The schooner traveled the final leg of its journey along Route 128 which was a two-lane highway with a grass median strip in the Wakefield-Lynnfield area. The highway was eventually widened to accommodate the increasing number of cars and trucks. In addition to serving as a prop at Pleasure Island for 11 seasons, the 'George and Freeman' appeared in the movie 'Charlie' starring Cliff Robertson and Claire Bloom which was filmed at Pleasure Island during the off-season in 1967. Clipper Cove was a reproduction of a 150-year old New England fishing village, the place from which visitors embarked on two of the parks most popular attractions, the Wreck of the Hesperus and the Moby Dick rides. After entering Pleasure Island, visitors passed through the crescent shaped entrance to Clipper Cove that was outlined with barnacle-crusted anchors. The schooners 'ribs' can still be seen when the water is shallow in the area which was once Pleasure Island's Clipper Cove inner harbor."