From Dave Brigham:
Last spring, I hung out with my buddy (and photography guru) Joe Viger in South Boston, a neighborhood I've visited plenty of times (see links at bottom of this post) while somehow missing a LOT. I'd mentioned in a public post on Facebook that I felt the need to see friends who I hadn't seen in a while; Joe replied that he'd been having the same thought. We had a great time catching up and making photos. Here's some of what we saw....
While zooming through South Boston on Google Maps looking for things to check out on our walk, I was instantly curious about the Whitey McGrail Monument located on an island of land surrounded by East 6th Street, Farragut Road and William J. Day Boulevard. I decided that needed to be our first destination. And boy was it a doozy!
It's gotta be tough to be "the other Whitey" in South Boston, aka Southie. For those who aren't familiar with the history of this Boston neighborhood, Whitey Bulger was a ruthless crime boss who was an FBI snitch and then went on the lam for 16 years after getting tipped off by his handler of an impending arrrest. He was eventually captured, found guilty of multiple crimes and beaten to death in prison in 2018 at the age of 89.
Robert "Whitey" McGrail, however, seems to have been up to the difficult task of moving in Bulger's shadow. McGrail "used to walk the boardwalk of Carson Beach, in his fancy outfit and greet one and all," according to this tribute web site. He owned a bar, Whitey's Place on West Broadway (now known as Croke Park, a place I will feature below) for years, before being gunned down there in 1985 at age 47, allegedly over a gambling debt, according to this Medium article. "No connection to Bulger was ever proved," the article indicates, "but that’s how things used to roll in Southie. Nobody said nothing. Not if they knew what was good for them."
Inscribed on the monument is a poem, which reads in part:
IT BROKE MY HEART TO SEE HIM GO
FOR THERE WILL NEVER BE ANOTHER YOU KNOW
THE "WHITEY STORIES" ! HEARD AS WE SAID GOOD BY (sic)
MAN, HE WAS ONE HELLUVA GUY
I'LL MISS THIS POLITICIAN, THIS BANKER,
PRANKSTER, AND LOVABLE HAM
HE MADE ME STAND TALL, HE MADE ME PROUD
HE MADE ME WHAT I AM
HE WAS SOUTHIE PRIDE, HE WAS WHITEY
The final line is: WHO AM I? I AM SOUTH BOSTON
The Southie of the two Whiteys, of organized crime and bloody gun battles, of the Irish-Catholic influence and blue-collar residents, has faded significantly in recent years. Like many Boston neighborhoods, Southie has gentrified, with expensive apartment and condo buildings rising in many locations, and high-end bars and restaurants catering to the newer residents.
My guess is that the bike below, spotted along N Street, belongs to a newer resident.
I don't know anything about this bike, other than it looks cool. Is it vintage? Is it a reproduction? Is it expensive? Does it ride well? Can you twirl your hipster mustache while carrying locally sourced hops for your home-brewed beer in one hand? I don't know.
On the same street, I saw a nice old architectural detail on a front door.
Joe and I walked through Medal of Honor Park on East Broadway, before heading west on that avenue. There's a lot of great architecture along here. I was quite taken by the double entryway below.
From East Broadway, we cut north along L Street. At the corner of L and East 1st streets, Joe and I each made a shot of some faded warnings stenciled onto the brick.
"POST NO BILLS" signs, to me, speak of times gone by, when folks would paste posters to brick walls for upcoming concerts or other events. "POLICE TAKE NOTICE." Do they really?
On the same corner, but opposite wall, of that building -- home to Commune Hair Boston -- is a ghost sign for Condit Electrical.
On K Street, on the exterior of Lifted Fitness, I had to make a photo of the homage to Lucky the Leprechaun, the Boston Celtics mascot.
I'd made photos in this part of Southie before, and I knew that Joe would love Ethel & Andy's, at the corner of K and East 1st streets.
Good to see some old school still left in the neighborhood, which is slated to change drastically when the redevelopment of a former Edison power station is completed.
On the corner of K and East 3rd streets is another nice slice of local flavor.
We got back onto East Broadway and headed west. I really like the 6 Twelve Convenience sign, and frankly, the name of the store, because it tells me everything I need to know.
Steps away, on Emerson Street, is Tom English's Cottage. Check out that Facebook page - it's very entertaining!
I'm not sure how long this place has been in business, but I'm assuming at least a few decades. For a sense of what it is/was like, check out this blog post.
We got back onto East Broadway and stopped at another place I'd made note of in advance: South Boston Candlepin.
These lanes have been been run by the same family for more than 20 years. I'm guessing this place has been around a lot longer than that.
Another place I had on my radar was the former Broadway Theater at 420 West Broadway, in the heart of New Southie, surrounded by bars and restaurants where Gen Zers and Millenials hang out. In the photo below, you can see (if you zoom in) a medallion with "BT" for Broadway Theater on it.
"Opened in 1920 as a vaudeville & movie house, the Broadway Theatre was designed by architects Clarence H. Blackall, Clapp and Whittemore," according to Cinema Treasures. "Following a fire, it was rebuilt in 1938 to the designs of architect Clarence Kivett. By 1957 it was operated by Daytz Theatre Enterprises Corp. By 2011 it was standing vacant & boarded up and was still the same in November 2020. By August 2022 it had been converted into 42 condominiums named The Mezz."
Continuing west-northwest on West Broadway, we came to the aforementioned Croke Park.
Named, I assume, for the Dublin, Ireland, home of the Gaelic Athletic Association, Croke Park is another holdout from Old Southie. In 2016, Esquire magazine named the joint one of the best bars in America.
Moving along to a place that is so money!
In business since 1932, Boston Cash Register provides, uh, cash registers and point of sale systems to business clients.
Our journey west ended at Al’s Liquors, which has a classic old-school sign.
But the real attraction for me is the Irish-American pride mural on the side of the building.
This mural has been here for years, and seems to get spruced up every once in a while. I recall when I first moved to the Boston area, my buddy Jim, who grew up in Somerville, drove me around Southie and I recall there being other murals similar to this one. This seems to be the sole survivor.
Heading east on West Broadway, I spotted two tile entryways, one for a current business, which I was very happy to see, and one for a long-gone operation. The first is for the Southie outlet of J.P. Licks, a great ice cream shop.
Founded in 1981 in Boston's Jamaica Plain (JP) neighborhood, the ice creamery has nine locations in and around Boston.
A little further up the boulevard, I made a photo of an old entryway, this one in front of a 7-Eleven shop.
Pober's was a department store that sold "high-end" clothing for kids, including Communion dresses, from what I've seen online. There was also a shop in Taunton, Mass., and possibly other towns and cities.
In between the tile entryway buildings sits the shuttered South Boston Chinese Restaurant.
Looking through Google Street View's chronology, I believe the eatery was in business from at least 2007 until 2021/2022. I'm intrigued by the green tilework underneath the sign, and would love to know what store or restaurant was here in years past.
The next sign, located in front of a shuttered small business on East Broadway, is almost too perfect.
I mean, come on! A sign that says "DeKay" with faded paint in front of an insurance and real estate office that's out of business? How could I resist making a phot of that!
I should probably do more of these types of strolls at night, so I can catch some lighted signs. I'm not sure the one shown below for Joseph's Bakery + Deli lights up anymore, as the place is (technically) out of business.
Located at 258 K Street, Joseph's was run by the Masciave family from 1967 until 2023, according to this Caught in Southie article. The deli part of the business closed for renovations in May 2021, but never reopened. The building was sold in 2023, but Annie Nikollo, who had operated the bakery side of the business since 2012, effectively moved the bakery to the corner of L Street and East Broadway, under the name Annie's Bakery & Cafe.
Directly across East 4th Street from the former bakery location is the Boston Fire Department's Engine 2/Ladder 19 house. Behind the main station is a hose-drying tower that caught my eye.
The station opened in 1932, according to the Boston Fire Historical Society. I believe the tower -- which I assumed was used for training -- was built at the same time.
Just to the east of the station is the original Engine 2 firehouse, which was built in 1857.
In 1857 the firehouse was occupied by Hand Engine Company 14, according to the Boston Fire Historical Society, before the reorganization of the Boston Fire Department in 1859. Engine Company 2 was organized in this station on September 17, 1860.
The building is now home to the Thomas J. Fitzgerald VFW Post 561.
In 1935-36, the Works Progress Administration, a "New Deal agency that employed millions of jobseekers (mostly men who were not formally educated) to carry out public works projects," according to Wikipedia, did some sort of work on the old station. I'm assuming the WPA worked to convert the firehouse to use by other organizations, such as the VFW post.
(WPA plaque on the front of the VFW hall.)
The final stop that Joe and I made was the L Street Bath House.
Located at the foot of L Street where it meets William J. Day Boulevard, the bath house was built in 1931, and is also known as the James Michael Curley Recreational Center. The brick and concrete Art Deco structure spans 1,000 feet in length, and is 44 feet deep. When it was built, it featured hot salt-water showers, hand ball courts and a solarium. You'll notice the MEN'S BATH HOUSE carved above the door. At its construction, there were sections for women and girls and one for boys. I'm not sure how the place is laid out these days.
The bath house is home base for the L Street Brownies, a swimming club known for its New Year's Day plunges in Dorchester Bay. "Organized in 1902, it is one of the oldest such clubs in the United States," per Wikipedia. Women were admitted to the club in 1915.
HEADLINE EXPLAINER: According to WBUR's guide to Boston slang, "kid" is a "term of endearment that doesn't only apply to children. For example, you might say: 'Nah, kid, I went to the store next door.' Can be used kind of like 'dude or 'this guy.' Those with a Boston accent will say it like 'kehd.'"
For more on South Boston, check out the links below:
August 27, 2020, "Circling Andrew Square"
January 25, 2020, "The Walk of Fame"
June 25, 2019, "Wool-d You Like to Join Me For a Walk?"
January 12, 2019, "Power Move in South Boston"
November 17, 2018, "Southie to Lose An Institution"
April 22, 2018, "Fort Point Channel - It's Electric!"
February 1, 2017, "Bon Voyage, Lady"
November 17, 2014, "Whitey Wuz Here"
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