Man Wandering In Inman Square

From Dave Brigham:

I have no idea whether any of the places I shot for this post many, many months ago have gone out of business. I hope not.

I used to frequent Inman Square, which is mostly in Cambridge, Mass., but spills over into neighboring Somerville, primarily to eat at the S&S Deli, an award-winning eatery that's been around since 1919, and where I once saw Robert Reich, who served as Secretary of Labor under President Bill Clinton. On other occasions I shopped at a toy store, ate Brazilian barbecue and saw live music at the former Ryles Jazz Club (see September 28, 2019, "Waving Goodbye, With Jazz Hands").

I recently walked through as much of the square as I could given my time constraint. Here's what I found.

I was happy to see the S&S is still going strong. I miss going here, and to other breakfast/brunch places. My kids aren't eating-out-for-breakfast types, unfortunately. The restaurant's original matriarch, known as Ma Edelstein, used to greet customers in Yiddish, imploring them to “Es and es" (eat and eat), per the eatery's web site. This inspired the name of the restaurant; I'm not sure what it was called when Ma worked there. On the rear, outer wall of the restaurant, Ma still keeps an eye on things, even though she's gone to that great kitchen in the sky.

Another place I dined at a few times is the Brazilian BBQ joint, Midwest Grill.

I love the logo in this not-terribly-good photo. If you haven't had Brazilian BBQ, let me set the scene for you: most importantly, there is meat on swords. Waiters ceremoniously bring said swords of meat to each table, set down a small plate under the sword to catch blood, drippings, stray pieces of meat, and you indicate how much sausage, chicken, beef or pork loin you want them to shave off onto your plate. Each waiter has a different meat, and they make the rounds of your table as often as you like, or until you explode, a la Mr. Creosote.

You don't have to order the eat-until-you-pass-out sword-meat extravaganza, but I recommend it. As my buddy who took me and some fellow coworkers to Midwest Grill said, "Don't waste your time with the salad bar."

Those are the only two places I recall eating at back in the day. If I were young and kid-free today, I'd definitely go to Bukowski Tavern.

Named for foul-mouthed postal worker/poet and novelist Charles Bukowski, the tavern (there is also one in Boston, near a failed development that I wrote about a while back) has been around since 1998 and seems a pleasant enough place. And that's the problem. Bukowski was a dive bar guy, for sure, not one to be seen hanging out in hipster yuppie joints. I read a few of his books back in my 20s, and loved "Barfly," the movie based on his life and writings, starring Mickey Rourke and Faye Dunaway. The man was a misanthropic alcoholic who wrote down-and-dirty stories and poems. In my immediate post-college years, my friends and I would give out the "Chanaski Award," named for Bukowski's alter ego in "Barfly," to whichever one of us got the drunkest, or bled while partying, or did something disgustingly stupid.

I probably would only go to this bar once, although I like that on the bar's web site they promise "surly service." If you are able to, expand the photo above. You may be able to see the quote in neon that says, "Find what you love and let it kill you." It's a great quote, but while many people attribute it to Bukowski, it apparently wasn't something he wrote. Another reason to limit my visits.

Alright, that's way too many words about a place I've never been. Let's move on to some other watering holes.

Trina's Starlite Lounge -- what a great name, eh? -- opened in 2009. It's known for fried chicken and, as you can probably guess by the Miller High Life sign out front, hipsters. OK, I should lay off the tattooed, trucker-hat wearing crowd, right? The tavern, which is in Somerville, opened after the dissolution of longtime dive bar the Abbey Lounge, where I saw former Phantom Tollbooth bassist Gerard Smith play in some band.

The owners of Trina's also run Parlor Sports next door. The place has cool murals on the exterior that evidently change on a regular basis.

The Thirsty Scholar Pub opened in 1995, one of countless Irish bars inspired by public houses on the Emerald Isle. Seems like a pretty cool place; I hope it doesn't fall victim to the trend that has seen many local Irish pubs close their doors in recent years.

Regular readers know I love social clubs, so let's cover a few.

Clube Desportivo Faialense (Faialense Sports Club) is a private Portuguese club that seems to be open to the public for meals and parties on occasion. Faial Island is located in the Azores, an autonomous region of Portugual.

The Portuguese American Civic League is located on Springfield Street, not too far off the main part of Inman Square. Cambridge and Somerville have quite a few Portuguese clubs like this, which makes sense, as East Cambridge had a sizable Portuguese community beginning in the late 19th century.

We've covered bars and social clubs; how about some restaurants and coffee shops?

Richards -- named for four generations of Cambridge natives with that first name -- opened last October along Cambridge Street, offering "Exceptional Food/ Art / Hip-Hop." The new eatery replaced Tupelo, a Southern restaurant that had occupied the space for nearly a decade. Tupelo shuttered due to difficulty finding staff, per this article. Several months ago I shot a picture, below, of Tupelo, which is the name of the town where Elvis Presley was born.

Puritan & Company on Cambridge Street serves modern American cuisine, per its web site, and has done so since 2012. I've never been to this restaurant, but I love it because of the sign and the story behind it. The eatery is named after a prior tenant in this space, Puritan Cake Company, which was in business from the 1930s to 1950, per the restaurant's web site.

I wanted to return to Inman Square to get a better shot of this place, and a few others, but I haven't ventured out much in recent months, for obvious reasons.

M'lor Caffe, also on Cambridge Street, serves coffee, baked goods and other breakfast and lunch items. I love the artwork on the exterior, below.

The 1369 Coffee House (exterior, below) in the heart of the square has been around since 1993. The building dates to 1894, and was home for five years in the 1980s to the 1369 Jazz Club.

The jazz joint was highly regarded, booking local and national acts. But a dispute with the landlord resulted in the club shutting down. A documentary, "A Place for Jazz," was filmed but from what I've read online, the film was never released. Below is a clip:

There's a cool mural on the side of the coffee shop.

Heading east from the 1369 Coffee Shop, I saw what is perhaps the major commercial showcase building in the square.

Home to Highland Fried, a chicken, BBQ and exotic Tiki drinks spot; Christina's Homemade Ice Cream (and the related Christina's Spice & Specialty Food); Quick Food Mart; and the All Star Sandwich Bar, the building at 1245-1273 Cambridge Street dates to 1884. Try as might, I haven't been able to find out any background/history on this place.

Moving on....

Howzabout we look at some other old buildings that, with any luck, the Internet will tell us about?

The Cambridge Auto Center across from Bukowski Tavern has closed since I took this photo. As you can see at the roofline, the building dates to 1914. That's all I've been able to find out. Man, I need to improve my batting average here!

We're in Somerville at this point, near the Thirsty Scholar. This is 108-118 Concord Street, which sits on the corner of Beacon Street. The building dates to 1900, per the Somerville assessing web site, but I'm guessing it's older. Anything white on this building, I believe, is after-market crap that ruined what seems like it was a nice brick apartment building.

Across Beacon Street sits a much nicer old apartment complex. With all the beautiful trees in front of this place, however, it's tough to get a very good picture.

Built in 1880, 28-36 Beacon is known as George Wyatt Apartment Row, according to my new best friend, MACRIS. Across the street is the former home of George Wyatt, who owned a brickyard in the area in the 19th century.

Home to Vasquez Barber Shop and Alegria Dental, among other businesses, 1052 Cambridge Street, below, is an oddball.

The story above the red line appears to have been added on after the original construction. The back part of the building (not pictured) has only four levels. I haven't been able to find out anything about its original or former uses.

On the other side of Cambridge Street, opposite Puritan & Co., I saw the boldly designed building below.

Built in 1849 (!), 1157 Cambridge Street is currently home to Cambridge Rug Co., which has been in business since 1964. I haven't found anything more to say about this building than that, which is a shame.

Maybe I'll have better luck with the building below, which is located at the nexus of the square, at the intersection of Hampshire, Cambridge and Springfield streets.

Great picture, eh? I took that picture because of the date "1874" chiseled into the building's facade. That's a long time ago. Let's see if there's any info on this beautiful brick behemoth.

Known as the Middlesex Bank Building, this Italianate-style hunk of architecture is home to, well, I'm not sure.

Let's get to some old signs, shall we?

Now home to coworking space IndustryLab at the corner of Hampshire and Norfolk streets, just a little outside of Inman Square, this place was home to Monk's Laundry at some point in the distant past. I haven't found out much about the company, but per the beautiful ghost sign I now they offered French cleaning, which is what dry cleaning was popularly known as, and dyeing services.

The former Automatic Cone warehouse across Cambridge Street from Vasquez Barber Shop and Alegria Dental has been vacant for years.

The University Monuments showroom at the corner of Cambridge Street and Webster Avenue has been abandoned for years, as well. A developer has proposed demolishing the warehouse and showroom buildings and putting up -- wait for it.... -- apartments on top of commercial space.

Founded in 1903 by Italian immigrant, James Denaro, Automatic Cone Company manufactured cake cones, and also invented and patented the Icy-Pi, per the web site for Por-Shun, a dairy distribution company that acquired the Cambridge company. As for University Monuments, I know it was in business a long time, but I haven't found out information about when it launched and when it closed up shop.

Not much to say about this sign, except I like how long it's obviously been telling people, "Piss off and get the hell away from our driveway!"

Now for a different type of mural than I've seen around the area before.

This is an ad for a five-night stint that British punk/folk singer-songwriter Frank Turner played at Boston's Royale club in late June and early July 2018. I took this picture in May 2019, and the ad was still there when I returned to Inman Square last fall. I've never seen an ad for a concert painted on a wall. I'm guessing there have been others in the Boston area, but I doubt they last very long.

Speaking of murals....

Painted by Ellary Eddy in 1980, and restored by the artist in 1999, this fantastic mural is a showcase of Inman Square. Located on the station for Engine Co. 5, the painting dominates the major intersection of Hampshire and Cambridge streets. You need to enlarge the photo to see George Washington and Ben Franklin, along with firefighters. For an explanation, read this Centers & Squares blog post. Below is the station.

I'm gonna wrap up with two churches, and a photo that I think is cool but that has no backside connection.

The First United Presbyterian Church is just up Cambridge Street from the firehouse, heading toward Harvard Square. Built in 1892, the church has always been occupied by the FUPC congregation, according to this history.

The Immanuel Seventh Day Adventist Church, below, dates to 1940, according to the City of Cambridge assessing department, but I'm guessing it's older.

As I was pointing my camera at the door, a teenage boy was exiting. I quickly dropped my camera, and he went back inside. I snapped a quick shot and moved on.

Finally, a cool window display at a travel agency along Cambridge Street.

For more recent posts about Cambridge, see June 23, 2020, "Walking Through the He(art) of Central Square" and April 3, 2020, "Walking Through a Waterless Port."

Kickin' It Old School-house

From Dave Brigham:

Built in 1894 for less than $2,000, the Cataumet Schoolhouse sits in a bucolic landscape in Bourne, on Cape Cod. I have vacationed nearby for nearly 20 years, and driven by here many times, but it was only this year that I finally pulled up the dirt driveway, past the tennis court and checked out the old one-room affair.

(The school dates to 1894, but the trough out front is from 1893.)

(Rope leading up to the flagpole.)

At various times, the school housed students in grades 1-8, 1-6 and 1-4. The facility shut in 1930. I'm not sure what, if anything, the building was used for after that. The property was evidently in disrepair for quite some time before a group formed in the 1990s to restore the school to its original glory. The group, the Cataumet Schoolhouse Preservation Group, runs educational programs for elementary schoolers as well as community events.

Gettin' Maverick-y

From Dave Brigham:

Located between Boston Inner Harbor, Route 1A and the Mystic River, the Maverick Square and Jeffries Point neighborhoods were the earliest areas of East Boston to be developed, back in the 1830s, per Wikipedia. In short order, the East Boston Company laid out a street grid and built a bridge connecting to Chelsea. During this time, the East Boston Lumber Company and the Boston Sugar Refinery were founded in the area, and several wharves were built.

Shipbuilding became a mainstay of the economy; in 1836, Boston annexed its eastern neighbor. This is a simplified history, but here you go: eventually railroads came, as did immigrants over the decades, from Ireland, Canada, Russia, Italy, Southeast Asia and, more recently, Central and South America. This is the kind of neighborhood I love to explore. And so I did. Here's what I found.

What better place to start than a mural about East Boston's history.

Located on the side of the Americano Espresso Bar along Meridian Street, facing the Walgreens parking lot, this giant mural is somewhat faded, but is a great work. Noteworthy people, sites and events include the Battle of Noddle's Island (the former Noddle's Island now consists of much of the southern end of East Boston; the battle was the second Boston campaign of the Revolutionary War); Wood Island, a former park, much of which was razed to expand Logan Airport; the first underwater tunnel in America, linking East Boston's trolleys to downtown Boston; the East Boston Shipyard; and Amelia Earhart, who took off from the then-East Boston Airport on her historic flight as the first woman to fly across the Atlantic. There also appear to be random folks who I'm guessing represent the neighborhood's history of welcoming immigrants.

Let's look at another wonderful work of public art.

When I shot this photo this past winter, I assumed this was part of the church you can see in the background (the Central Assembly of God), but I was wrong. This beautiful mural is on the side of the Consulate General of El Salvador. That Central American nation is one of the top 10 countries from which new immigrants to Boston hail.

Want more public art? You got it!

This work showing an astronaut floating in space while looking down at Earth is located in what's called Our Garden, a community project located between Border and Meridian streets near the East Boston Skate Park. Artist Gretchen Schneider worked with the Neighborhood of Affordable Housing to turn this park from an unsafe passageway to a brightly lit, welcoming space.

The painting below is on the same building.

This one is signed Enivo, which is the name of a Brazilian street artist. Not sure if it's his work or somebody biting his moves.

The next work of art is on the side of Mi Pueblito, a Mexican/Salvadoran/Guatemalan restaurant on Border Street.

The mural faces the Eagle Hill Community Garden, which is operated by a partnership between the Trustees of Reservations, the Boston Mayor's Office of New Urban Mechanics and TD Bank. The painting is of an East Boston wharf scene, with the Bunker Hill Monument in the background.

The next one is a little different. A street mural.

This art is on the street in front of a former candy and gum factory. Backing up to the East Boston Greenway (a former Conrail train line), at the corner of Orleans and Grove streets, the old factory rose in 1917 and was home to the Cox Confectionery Company for 15 years. In the 1930s, San-Man Chocolates took over the property, per my old friend MACRIS. In the 1940s, the brilliantly named Gum Products, Inc. took over until 1982. It is now condos, and known as the Gumball Factory.

Heading northeast on Orleans Street, I couldn't miss this ugly, hulking behemoth at the corner of Porter Street.

Built in 1911 and known as the Engel-Cone Shoe Company Building, this eyesore has caused neighborhood folks trouble for quite a few years. "Since 2016 residents living in the Gove Street area have compared the dilapidated building on the corner of Porter and Orleans streets to something you would see in wartorn regions rather than East Boston," is how this February 28, 2020, East Boston Times article begins.

The developers, referred to in the article only as "the Patels," bought the building in 2017 with intentions of turning it into a boutique hotel. Their representative told the newspaper that the Patels have made progress in negotiating with companies that own telecommunications antennas on the building's roof. "When dealing with the relocation of telecommunication antennas there [is a] very complicated and legal choreography that has to occur before you can move forward. Because moving them causes a disruption in service there a whole host of issues that come with that," attorney Richard Lynds said.

As of that February article, the developers said they were awaiting city approvals, and that they hoped scaffolding would rise soon so a contractor can begin prepping the building. I have no idea if that has happened.

Across the street from this possible future chic hotel is 156 Porter Lofts, located in a former bra factory.

Prior to housing the Goddess Bra Factory, 156 Porter was home to General Electric's Edison Lamp Works, per this article. The property rose in 1913 to manufacture tungsten filament lamps, and later was used to make miniature Christmas lights, per the article.

Along Cottage Street, heading toward Maverick Street, I spied the cool detail below on an apartment building.

I next headed southeast on Maverick Street and spied the neat building below.

This is a former facility for B.M. Jones & Company, which manufactured railroad equipment. This space is now home to an auto body shop.

(Cool little door on the former factory.)

I turned around and headed northwest on Maverick Street and came across a pre-redevelopment scene.

Maverick Street Market and Swish & Swash Laundromat have been closed for a while, as you can see by the fencing surrounding the property.

In July 2018, developer Joseph Nogueira proposed replacing these businesses with a five-story apartment building. He said the market and laundromat would be invited to reopen on the ground floor. I have no idea where this project stands.

At the intersection of Maverick and Orleans streets stands this eyesore, which I hope is under renovation.

There is storefront space on the ground floor, apartment space above. The public phone doesn't work.

Continuing southwest on Orleans Street, I saw the newer face of East Boston: nice apartment buildings, the Cunard Tavern, a yoga space. Naturally, as you head toward the waterfront, things get greener and pricier. Along the East Boston Greenway is the relic below.

This old Conrail caboose is evidently similar to one that was stationed nearby and which served as a kitchen for dock workers. The Greenway -- officially the Mary Ellen Welch Greenway (she was a teacher and activist who died in 2019) -- lies along a former railway right-of-way for the Grand Junction Railroad, as well as a route once used by the Boston, Revere Beach and Lynn Railroad, per Wikipedia.

Near the Maverick Street overpass for the greenway stands the former Saints + Angels giftware store.

On the corner of Maverick and Bremen streets stands the one-time City of Boston Overseers of the Public Welfare building.

This is the second one of these former welfare buildings I've seen in Boston (see February 15, 2020, "A Vital Shelter in Boston"). To quote that February post: "Boston's history of sheltering and aiding its citizens dates to at least 1772, when the legislature created the Overseers of the Poor in the Town of Boston.... In 1864, the agency's name was changed to Overseers of the Poor in the City of Boston. The name morphed again in 1921, to Overseers of the Public Welfare." This place is now home to several businesses, including La Tia Smoke Shop, Ayda Custom Tailoring, Penguin Caterers and Didi's Spa.

Along Meridian Street I found El Diamante Billares, a pool hall.

Nearby is the wonderful Iglesia La Luz del Mundo (The Light of the World), which is "a nontrinitarian Christian denomination with international headquarters in Guadalajara, Jalisco, Mexico," per Wikipedia.

Also along Meridian Street is the Brazilian Soccer House.

Are you getting the picture that East Boston is home to a lot of immigrants?

Here's more proof. This storefront church is located further north on Meridian Street, next to the previously mentioned Our Garden, home to the outer space mural.

Keeping the religious theme going....

I believe this is along either Border Street or Liverpool Street, near the Mystic River.

Also along Border Street is one of my favorite signs, which I photographed several years ago and then again more recently. The first time was a lucky stumble-across, the second pure chance that I found it again.

Wigglesworth Machinery was founded in 1928. The company is still in business, although no longer at this location, as far as I can tell. This building appears to be for lease or sale (or was back a few months ago).

Just up the street is Atlantic Works Gallery, located in the former Atlantic Boiler Works building, which dates to 1901. The old Wigglesworth building is also a former boiler works property, per MACRIS.

I'm not sure if this sign is historic or new.

Also along Border Street is a cool sign that is one of my favorite ghosts that I've stumbled across, mainly because of the setting.

Located near Central Square, the former Mystic Shore Warehouse appears to have been vacant for quite some time. I love the combination of the faded sign, the bright graffiti and the yellow dumpster.

Across Central Square Park, along Meridian Street, I spied this named building.

Payless ShoeSource closed all its U.S. stores in 2019, so this sign may have come down by now. But the W.T. Grant Building sign is etched into stone, so it ain't going nowhere. "In 1906 the first 'W. T. Grant Co. 25 Cent Store' opened in Lynn, Massachusetts," per Wikipedia. "Modest profit, coupled with a fast turnover of inventory, caused the stores to grow to almost $100 million annual sales by 1936, the same year that William Thomas Grant started the W. T. Grant Foundation. By the time Grant died in 1972 at age 96, his chain of W. T. Grant Stores had grown to almost 1,200."

The chain stores were eventually known simply as Grants. There was one in my hometown when I was a kid.

Another business along Border Street, not far from the previously mentioned Mi Pueblito restaurant, is John Smith's Automotive & Sales.

"Let Me Work On Your Body."

Um, no thanks.

Also on Border Street I saw this old sign for a liquor store, hanging on a building that appears to have been recently converted to condos.

At the corner of Border and Lexington streets I had the view below.

I see this a lot around Boston - buildings standing alone, their former neighbors having been torn down around them. In this case, a low building abutting the purple wall has been razed, leaving an L-shaped space. I'm gathering something will go up here before too long, probably something with high price tags. This building was once an outpatient clinic.

Two doors down is the back door for Iglesias Senda de Fe ("Church Paths of Faith"), which I referenced above.

Last, and certainly not least, is an old-fashioned bowling alley.

Before my second trip through this area, I'd seen something about Central Park Lanes online and knew I had to seek it out. A candlepin facility, Central Park looks like it's been in business for quite a few decades.

For more of my adventures in East Boston, check out December 14, 2018, "Eastie Ramble" and November 3, 2018, "Pictures of Eastie Pride."