Old friend and true gentleman Jack Imperial stopped in to recount how, not so long ago, Lynn was a walking city where people left their homes on foot and headed for their jobs and got off a bus to walk on their way to errands and shopping stops.
Diners, cafes and coffee shops dotted the city and he said, “coffee an’…” became a refrain for people ordering a coffee on the go and a quick bite to eat.
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This fascinating photo comes courtesy of the esteemed Richard Pendleton Field and shows his family home on the move 49 years ago from 8 Browns Ave. to 30 Mildred St.
The move occurred smack dab in the middle of the controversial, ultimately never executed, plan to ram a highway through Lynn Woods. Browns Avenue runs off Boston Street near the Saugus-Lynn line and dead ends almost at the little river section of the Saugus River. Relocating the three-bedroom ranch house meant a several-block trip to Mildred Street off Summer Street.
“The moving firm had a couple of guys sit on the roof and lift telephone and power lines as the house passed under them,” Field said.
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I feel bad about barely acknowledging the anniversary of John F. Kennedy’s assassination. Oddly enough, my wife just a couple of weeks ago realized the new and very talented music director at St. Mary’s Church was playing “Eternal Father.” She said the hymn’s strong Navy references meant it was played frequently during Kennedy’s funeral. I was just old enough on that fateful day to watch my mother answer the telephone and start to cry as my father informed her he had just heard news of Kennedy’s death.
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It’s sad to see one of the big, beautiful trees on Broad Street near Dexter Street cut down. Its freshly-sawed stump is as wide as a patio table and lined with concentric circles marking the tree’s age and a good chunk of Lynn history.
One of my favorite Beyond Walls murals is the two women comforting one another, aptly painted on the side of the Home for Women. I also like the one of the waif painted on a wall down from the health center.
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It was great running into Lenny Melanson on Pleasant Street bundled up and smoking his trademark cigar. He shared a couple of Henry the Hatter stories, including how Henry counted Rocky Marciano as a customer and drew people from as far as Chelsea and Charlestown who came to get their hats “blocked” and cleaned.
