On Wednesday 10-Mar-2010 I had to go to the bank. The sun was shining, I had lots of time, so I took my camera with me. What follows is a photo journal of Main Street in Cambridge, NY starting from my home at 39 East Main Street. I grew up here in the 1950s and 1960s so many of the captions of these photos refer to the places by their names during my youth.
Click on any image to start browsing the photo album
Across the street from the Methodist church is the house where Geno Furfuro used to have his shoe repair shop. I'm told that when they cleaned out the basement, they found numerous metal shoe forms, one custom form for each of Geno's customers over the years. The house has been restored in the past few years and is once again a thing of beauty
I'm standing in front of the new Post Office, looking eastward toward the traffic light. I'm told you can tell you're from a small town when directions are given in reference to traffic light since there is only one in the village ;-) The new Rite Aid drug store is in the distance on the left edge. In the middle on the right edge is Steve Alexander's True Value hardware store, known as Frank Higgins' hardware store when I was growing up. Just east of that is Cumberland Farms, where the Red Brick Hotel used to be.
I'm done with my business at the Post Office so I'm heading west to the bank. At the corner of Washington Street and East Main is the brick building that used to house Beanheads. This was the Cambridge Valley National Bank until the early 1960s. Up until a few years ago, Beanheads was Cambridge's Internet Cafe. They served King Bakery pasteries on the weekends and were open in the evening to serve patrons during intermission from shows at Hubbard Hall. Hubbard Hall is just west of the "old bank". This was John Henry's store during my childhood.
I headed north on Washington Street to check out the latest in the Cambridge Freight Yard. I'm looking westward. The railroad tracks are just the other side of the old Beacon Feed Building and the old Lovejoy Building. You can see the cupola of the RR passenger depot in the distance. In the foreground is where Walt Dunbar's Welding Shop used to be. The old building (aka the Blacksmith Shop) was torn down last year. The structure is being rebuilt to the same measurements and the original siding will be re-applied. The building will have its old charm but all the benefits of the modern era.
Behind Walt Dunbar's shop is the restored Freight Depot. Hubbard Hall has been holding some of its performances in here during the winter months. This is the building where we held the Friday night reception at last year's Reunion Weekend for CCS Alumni Association. The "community oven" is between the Freight Depot and the Lovejoy Building. I'm told they plan to bake some community pizza pies or breads but I've yet to see it (or smell it from my backyard).
I'm standing in front of the Freight Depot, but have turned to face the south. The Lovejoy Building is on the right, then the Beacon Feed building (orange) where Hubbard Hall holds its dance classes. Beyond that is The Wrigley building (pink) which housed Bill Robertson's barber shop during my youth. In the distance on the left is the back of the Cambridge Diner. Beyond that is East Main Street The yellow brick walkway is a salute to the yellow brick road that paved Main Street in 1913. The street lights that line the walk are replicas of the ones that lined the streets of Cambridge in the 1960s. Notice that even after 10 straight days of sunshine and 40-degree weather we still have piles of snow.
I've emerged from the Cambridge Freight Yard back onto East Main Street and I'm standing in front of the Cambridge Diner looking east.The old Movie store is at the left (Joe Vitello's old barber shop). East of that is the new Battenkill Books where Dan McInerney used to have his furniture store. Next is Jackie Whitman's antique store and Dean Whitman's real estate office (Arno Wilson's Philco TV store). Then Hubbard Hall and Beanheads on the corner.
I finally start wlaking westward again, but as soon as I reach the railroad tracks I stop again. Jerome Wright Insurance agency is now home to the Cambridge Food Co-op. The Co-op had shared the eastern half of Hubbard Hall with the Village Store, but moved into their new digs recently. Many people said "I didn't know Cambridge had a Co-Op" never going inside the Village Store. This building was built in 1852 by B.P.Crocker. B.P. also built the large brick house on the southwest corner of Avenue A and South Park Street (known to me as Henry Bates Sr house). B.P.'s brother R.K. ran the Washington County Post out of the upstairs. After 150 years you can still see the WCP name in the brick at the top of the building.
Nope, I haven't moved. I just swiveled to the west and took yet another shot of the Cambridge Hotel. My brother-in-law and sister-in-law, Jack Alexander and Nancy Moses Alexander (both members of CCS class of 1974) own and operate the Eagle Bridge Inn so that's my normal eating-out place. However, Thursday Night Prime Rib night at the hotel is hard to pass up.
Well, I've moved about 50 feet westward and I'm standing in front of the Cambridge Hotel. Paul Dennis' candy shop has been renovated is now home to Kay Ward real estate office. Just west of that, the old Post Office has been renovated by Phil Bell (CCS class of 1974) and is the home of Ann Tearney's jewlery store (great stuff, be sure to stop by when you're in the area).
No, I didn't move just swiveled to look across the street (this walk to the bank sure is taking a long time, isn't it ;-) Joan's Shear Secrets now occupies McGhee Lumber (later Cambridge Lumber under Tink Parrish). Just west of that, at the corner of West Main and Pearl Street is the Municipal Building.Plans have been underway for a few years to move the Municipal Building to the east side of Gilbert Street (NYS Rt 313), but things take time.
I've moved about 50 feet farther west. The Rice Mansion has been lovingly restored by Geoff and Christine Hoffer. It's a bed and breakfast that has nice rooms in the carriage house out back and two or three suites in the mansion. The railing had been taken off years ago, but all the pieces stored in the basement. The Hoffers had the railing rebuilt in the original style, using original pieces wherever possible. Give Christine a call when you're in the area. She'd love to show you around.
Looking southward across the street is the old Washington County Post building. Many of you will remember Gardiner Cullinan running the paper from this office in the 1960s. There is a wonderful tribute to Gardiner in the obituary section of the CCS Alumni website. Gardner and his brother, Stuart, were quite the sports stars at Cambridge High School (CHS).
I'm still standing on the northwest corner of West Main and St Luke's, this time looking to the southwest. The Rice's Seed green foot bridge is in the foreground. Dick Record (CCS class of 1959) told me some stories of the "boys from Bucktown" (south end of Academy Street) trying to tip this over one Halloween, while avoiding to scrutiny of Police Chief Charlie Cantwell, father of Ed Cantwell (CCS class of 1958). The foot bridge goes over the Owl Kill, once known as Blair's Brook. Blair's farm was on the north side of West Main right across from the foot bridge. This area, known as the Cambridge Swamp, separated the two small communities: Cambridge (West End) and North White Creek (East End). Whenever the brook overflowed, Main Street was impassable for days. This often hindered the fire departments on the East End from getting to fires on the West End. I've read stories in the Washington County Post where Main Street was so muddy that people in parades marched on the wooden sidewalks and the crowd stood in the muddy road. All of this changed in 1913 when Main Street was paved with yellow bricks. The WCP has a great artcile from the Spring of 1914 where a late Spring storm hit Cambridge. In the past a storm like that would have turned Main Street into a mud bowl. But with the beautfiul new yellow brick road in place, people went to the street and held an impromptu "street dance" to celebrate the not-muddy Main Street
I'm almost there, though it did take me almost 20 minutes to walk about 1/4 mile. You don't ever have to be reminded to stop and smell the roses in Cambridge. It's a way of life here. Several old homes on Main Street have been converted into multiple-tenant buildings while maintaining their original beauty and majesty.
Across the street from the bank is the Cambridge Antique Center. If you're ever in the area, stop and chat with Jack Metzger of Jack's Out Back Antiques. Jack has collected a ton of Cambridge history and probably has some great stories about your relatives. This was Charlie Ackley's furniture store in the 1960s. In the 1800s this was the Barton furniture store.
Activating the zoom lens, you can see Ed Levin's jewelry place on the right. This was Bill Thomas's restaurant in the 1960s. The I.O.O.F. (Odd Fellows) lodge was upstairs. Looking westward across North Union Street you can see the old Union House, now Jay's Pizzaria. Beyond that, the red building, was West Village Market.
I've reached "the corner", the intersection of Main Street and Park Street. I'm looking south down Park Street. The old Cambridge Hinge Tube factory (later the Reis's Mill) was converted into apartments. The floors, walls, and woodworking in the apartments look beautiful. If you're in the area and there's a vacant apartment, you should stop by to check it out. Who knows, you might end of renting an apartment and staying for a while.
Across the street from the apartments is my destination, School House Pizza. This building was Randles Garage in the 1950s and George MacArthur's garage in the 1960s. In the mid 1800s, behind this building, set back from South Park was the estate of John P Putnam. In 1872 the West End and the East End decided to unite to finally form one school. However, after long debates, no agreement was reached so each end created its own school. The old Cambridge Washington Academy (corner of Academy and Pleasant) became the Cambridge Union School of the West District and the Putnam estate became Cambridge Union School of the East District. The Putnam estate required the school be called Putnam Institute. So, now you know why this is called . OK, the photo tour is over. I couldn't carry my pizza and take photos. Hope you enjoyed a glimpse of Cambridge in 2010.
