…all the old familiar places | Dedham Tales

Archive for the ‘…all the old familiar places’ category

New Deal Art in the Post Office

April 23, 2011

Early Rural Mail Delivery by W. Lester Stevens
© Damianos Photography

Early Rural School by W. Lester Stevens
© Damianos Photography

How many times have you been in the post office in the Square and seen these paintings in the lobby and wondered who painted them, when were they installed there, and why? Well, now the wondering is over.

The two murals, Early Rural Mail Delivery and Early Rural School are the work of Rockport based artist W. Lester Stevens (1888-1969), who created the oil on canvas murals in 1936 as part of the Treasury Relief Art Project (TRAP), one of several art programs which fell under the umbrella of the Works Progress Administration (WPA), the New Deal agency that employed millions during the Depression.

The federal art programs were created to not only help out-of-work artists, but to enable average Americans to view and enjoy works of arts for free in public spaces. Hundreds of murals were installed in post offices, schools, and federal buildings across the country. Most of the art depicted inspiring scenes from America’s past. You can view 40 other works of New Deal art that survive in Massachusetts (and many more across the country) at this website: http://www.newdealartregistry.org

A comic strip from 1939 featuring a Post Office mural

Dedham is fortunate to have such a treasure; go see it in person in the Post Office lobby, 611 High St.
Thanks again to Joe Flynn and George Milne of the Dedham Post Office for their help in photographing the murals, and to Lynne Damianos for the great photos.

Categories: ...all the old familiar places, History/Mystery

Comments: 2 Comments

The Dedham Post Office at 75

April 19, 2011

July, 1935

September, 1936

April, 2011 © Damianos Photography

The Dedham Post Office on High St. celebrated its 75th anniversary last October. The cornerstone was laid in a ceremony the previous April. Thanks to Customer Service Supervisor Joe Flynn for the following pictures which show the progress of the construction throughout 1935.

February, 1935: I love this picture which shows a great side view of Memorial Hall, which was located where the police station now stands.

April, 1935

June, 1935: Looks like Bonnie and Clyde have stopped by to check out the progress of the construction.
NEXT: The Post Office Murals

Categories: ...all the old familiar places

Comments: 1 Comment

More Mall!

May 20, 2010

These scans are ads from the Dedham Transcript’s 1986 supplement celebrating the town’s 350th anniversary. The first pic shows that odd little sunken garden where people could sit and relax. Also visible is one of my favorite stores- Paperback Booksmith. I would browse there while my father did the grocery shopping at Stop and Shop down the other end. I remember once spotting this creepy looking paperback with a silver reflective cover and being immediately drawn to it- Stephen King’s The Shining.

This ad lists all the stores that were still in business in September, 1986. Woolworth’s was still hanging in there in ’86, but. alas, looks like Wrangler Wranch had reached the end of the trail.

Categories: ...all the old familiar places, JP's Dedham, Lost Dedham

Comments: 6 Comments

Working at the Mall

May 13, 2010

My first job at the Mall was as a stockboy at Woolworth’s during my junior year. A few of the neon letters in the outdoor sign were always broken, so we called it oolwo’s. They let me have a bookcase they were going to throw out, and I still have it in the classroom in which I teach in Framingham. And I still have this name tag for some reason.

Wrangler Wranch
Senior year I moved down the mall to Wrangler Wranch, across from Bradlee’s. This was one of the Mall’s first stores and was originally called Mr. Slacks. It was a fun job, even though I was a lousy salesman. I remember making a little boy cry when I told his mother that maybe a “husky” size would fit him better. I used to go into Pewter Pot and get a chocolate chip muffin heated up in the microwave smothered in butter. I think I worked here through my senior year in college, when my retail career at the Dedham Mall ended.

Note the Wrangler corduroy flares and groovy Earth shoes

Categories: ...all the old familiar places, JP's Dedham

Comments: 2 Comments

Welcome to Dedham Tales! by Jim Parr

May 8, 2010

EXTRA!! EXTRA!! New Dedham Blog goes live!
Ghosts! Legends! Scandal! Crime and Punishment! Mr. Ed! Wrangler Wranch! Dedham has it all, and you’ll read all about it on these pages. This blog is a followup to my recently published book Dedham: Historic and Heroic Tales from Shiretown. Most of the tales in the book took place decades, even centuries ago, and some of those stories will be highlighted here. But there will also be tales from the Dedham that I knew as I grew up here in the ’60s, ’70s, and ’80s. The Dedham from that time may also be the Dedham that you know best, so I hope that this blog becomes a conversation where lots of stories and pictures are shared. If you would like to buy your own autographed copy of the book, just let me know!

Categories: ...all the old familiar places, Dedham Then and Now, History/Mystery, JP's Dedham, Lost Dedham

Comments: 11 Comments

Who remembers Frosty’s?

May 8, 2010

I thought I’d start out with a sweet Dedham memory for all to enjoy on this warm spring night. These are a couple of ads from the Dedham Transcript in 1963. Frosty’s once stood where Legacy Place is now. I remember going there on summer nights and getting soft-serve vanilla cones. Frosty’s was replaced by the Showcase Cinemas. I’m told that the original Frosty’s was on the other side of Rte 128 before it became a six-lane highway. Anybody have any more Frosty memories or pics?