The Fitchburg Line Industrial Corridor errata

[tastyanagram.livejournal.com]

Hi, everyone. I'm a Somerville resident, formerly of Davis Square, and currently living on Prospect Hill. I'm contemplating starting an LJ community for the Union Square area, if anyone's interested, but in this post I just wanted to share an extremely interesting page I've found this morning: http://pixels.furiousbees.com/somind/

The author mentions LJ in the introduction so forgive me if it's already been posted here. Here's an excerpt taken from the text at the link given above:

There are at least four large businesses that I know of occupying this little cluster of industry: Ames Safety Envelope, which occupies a dwindling share of a huge complex of buildings divided by Dane Street; the Peter Forg Manufacturing Co., which does metal stamping and fabricating right across the track from Ames; L. Bornstein Flooring, which operates a large and ugly structure north of Washington Street; and the H.D. Chasen Company, which sells industrial supplies out of a small complex on Lake Street. There's also a clutch of smaller industrial businesses or former businesses operating from smaller buildings. I've collected some information on the history of the locations on this page from the Sanborn maps available through the Somerville Public Library.

I had been meaning to photograph this area for some time, but ultimately it was an LJ friend's comment that "you are near a METALWORKING plant and I haven't seen pictures?!?!" that spurred me to action. So, beginning on a beautiful day in May, I went on a series of expeditions to explore and document some of the last working factories in Somerville. (The lighting conditions weren't always great, so I've done a fair amount of quick and dirty enhancement in Photoshop to create the final images.)

I found this page extremely informative, but I found at least one error. The author states that the Paper and Provisions Warehouse currently houses "the Somerville Boxing Club and an organ repair company", but to my knowledge it's artists' studio space. I left a comment on the associated Google map but couldn't find a way to contact the author.

If anyone has any more information, I'd love to hear about it. I absolutely love this area—there's so much to learn about its history. Did you know that Union Square used to be called Liberty Pole Square, for example?

Comments

[notnatalie.livejournal.com]

My Dad was a first-generation Greek-American, born in 1927 and grew up in Roxbury, in an area that was then Greeks and Jews. One of the few stories I remember him telling of his youth is the lasting impression it made on him as a child when he visited a friend who lived in Somerville, I believe Union Square area. He was bowled over by the stink - like slaughterhouse stink - in the neighborhood, and that people seemed to be unaware of it; his friend certainly didn't remark on it. He found it sobering; I think for him it was a defining moment of youth when you begin to recognize that others may have different from you....and appreciate what you got.
By the way, I would be ecstatic for a Union Sq LJ, having moved from Davis closer to Union a year ago!

[avjudge]

My dad, also born 1927, grew up on Gore St in Cambridge, at a time when I believe one of the 3 big packing houses was still there. He lived there into high school. After reading the Somerville Past and Present book I mentioned, and knowing that at least one packing house was still there in his childhood, I asked him if he remembered it smelling, and he said he can't remember any smell at all!

[notnatalie.livejournal.com]

Ha! There ya go....I work for a bakery and always am surprised when, hours into my shift, people come into the shop and tell me how good it smells ( it does? I wish I could smell it!)

[ron_newman]

Which bakery? (Would you like DSLJ folks to visit you there and buy stuff?)