BLOCKS - 1

While today’s article isn’t about directions, a little background might be helpful. Today we can easily get step-by-step directions door to door for a quick trip down the street or a destination thousands of miles away simply by going online or consulting an app on our smartphones. Of course, that luxury wasn’t available in the 1800s and most of the 1900s. It’s interesting to consult early material that included directions. The New England edition of “The Official Automobile Blue Book” for 1914 provides a good example. The book gives two possible routes from Hartford to Providence and each goes through Willimantic. Use your imagination and you’ll know the route. From Hartford, one would take today’s RT6. After arriving in Willimantic and going as far as the Hotel Hooker, the directions to Providence are such…”Straight ahead with trolley on Main Street (0.1 mile). Store in fork; bear right with trolley crossing (0.3 mile). Iron water trough in fork; bear right with trolley across small bridge and under RR. Follow state road (0.3mile).” The directions all the way to Providence are similar, the markers being iron water troughs, small houses, schools, cemeteries and the like. And this was 1914. Imagine travel in 1850. Historian Allen B. Lincoln said that in 1850, Willimantic was, “in the height of its prosperity”. Main Street’s real growth began just after 1850 with the coming of the railroad. The railroads attracted many businesspeople to Main Street and thus new buildings were erected featuring a wide range of architectural designs. Now, people needed to find these businesses. Early directories gave some help. And before long, larger and larger buildings were erected. And so by the late 1800’s, with the coming of city directories, people could find where to go by looking for “blocks”.  “Block” was a term borrowed from British usage and referred to, “a large single building subdivided into separate rooms, apartments, or offices”. Looking for a barber? Go to William Connor in “The Cranston Block”. E.T. Hamlin sold boots and shoes in “The Loomer Block”. Dentist G.B. Hamlin was located in “The Union Block”. The businessperson who wasn’t lucky enough to be in one of these larger buildings had to be located simply by a street name, sometimes narrowed down a bit by wording such as “Main Street near Mansfield Avenue” or “over Fuller’s Drug Store” and, of course, Fuller’s Drug Store was to be found “opposite the depot”. So, after a long introduction, let’s take a look at some of Willimantic’s “blocks”. How many were there? I’ve compiled a list that I’m sure is incomplete even with 55 names which were referred to as blocks  in city directories, maps, newspapers and other material. There were probably many other buildings that could have been referred to as blocks. The list also contains blocks that changed names over the years, such as the Flaherty Block which became the Gelinas Block and then the Mazzola Block. By the time the 1960 city directory came out, only 21 buildings were listed as blocks. Those of us who were around in the 1960s will remember many of them. Those who are younger may be surprised to learn that a large number of these blocks still exist today. So let’s begin our look at the blocks that graced Willimantic’s streets. Of course, most of them were located on Main Street but today we’ll start on North Street. The Washburn Block on the corner of Valley and North Streets this week’s photo) would have been the most prominent and important block. Unfortunately, it was demolished during Willimantic's "Redevelopment" period. For many years It served both the town and the city well since, until the erection of the town hall, it was used for all Town of Windham public meetings. The main floor was used primarily by a funeral parlor and the upper floors were evidently rented rooms and/or apartments. For many years, Hiram Fenn worked as an apprentice undertaker at the funeral parlor even as he pursued his hobby of photography. Scores of his historical photo postcards of Willimantic and vicinity are in existence as collectibles today.