The White Tavern

766 Longmeadow Street- c. 1982 via MACRIS

Longmeadow was home to multiple taverns in earlier centuries. One well known tavern in town was the Old White Tavern located at 766 Longmeadow Street. It has also been referred to as the Colton Tavern and the Allen Guest House. Some of what we know about the Old White Tavern comes from Annie Coomes Leete (1856-1961) who lived in the house as a young girl. Living to the remarkable age of nearly 105 in Longmeadow, Mrs. Leete recorded some of her memories about the home during her lifetime.

100 years after the home was built, Seth Steele was the first to operate it as a tavern from The Hampden Federalist,1818

Taverns were meeting places for both travelers and local residents, and the Old White Tavern was no exception. Being located on the Green, the Old White Tavern was centrally located. Travelers passing through could rest and replenish themselves and their animals and exchange news. Local residents held dances and gathered to casually discuss topics of public interest as well as hold official meetings, although the tavern had to be kept clear during church services. Town residents also used the inn to celebrate victories in competitions like turkey shooting. Annie Coomes Leete even describes the discovery of a paper from 1822 advertising the exhibition of an elephant for one day only!

The property transferred ownership through different families for about 100 years until it was deeded to “Seth Steele, Tavern keeper” in 1811. This is the earliest indication we have at this time of this property serving as a tavern, though we know there was at least one other house operating as a tavern in the 18th century. The deed passed to Calvin Burt in 1819 and then to William White in 1825, who also operated the building as a tavern. Dimon Colton, Sr purchased and took over the tavern in 1832. The house has also been referred to as a hotel while in the care of Colton.

A sign bearing an eagle hung from an elm tree on the property at some point in time. According to the recollections of Annie Coomes Leete a sign reading , “The Old White Tavern” or “Hotel D. Colton, Keeper” also identified the property. The space inside the Old White Tavern was adaptable to suit different social settings. One floor housed a bar in addition to three dining rooms. These were separated by folding doors that could be opened to create one large room. The second floor was also partitioned by hinged panels that could be fastened to the ceiling. The third floor was one large hall suited to many different purposes.

Dimon Colton is the last known tavern keeper of 766 Longmeadow Street. When Dimond Chandler bought the house in 1856, it served for a time as a boarding house for workers at the Newell family button shop. More history on the Newell Button Factory can be found in this History Note from last year by board member Beth Hoff, and this article by former board member Michael Gelinas from The Town Crier. Later, the house passed to the Coomes family in 1866, when some alterations and remodeling were done. The Old White Tavern then became a private residence, occupied for almost thirty years by gold and silver manufacturer William Coomes, who operated out of a nearby shop. The house has continued to serve as a private residence since.

We'll be continuing our research into the taverns of Longmeadow and look forward to sharing more stories with you as we uncover them.

Sources:

1. Annie Coomes Leete’s recollections via Massachusetts Cultural Resource Information System database (MACRIS)

2. Genealogy Bank

3. Longmeadow Assessor Database

4. LHS Archives National Park Service's National Register of Historic Places

5. National Archives (NARA)

Contributed by Becky Vitkauskas, Longmeadow Historical Society Board Member

Originally published January 13, 2022

Turner Park- A Photographic History

Turner Park on Williams Street has 84 acres of wooded terrain, two baseball diamonds, one softball diamond, walking trails and a two acre stream fed pond. It became a town park in the late 1960s.

The property has an interesting past that may not be well known today. The present park’s land was owned by the Springfield Turners. The “Turners”, derived from the German word “Turnverein,” were a social club formed in the late 19th century to promote German culture, physical exercise and liberal politics. A clubhouse and an informal German restaurant (Hofbrau) existed at the property starting in the late 19th century. “Turner Park” off Williams Street in Longmeadow, was the site of many outdoor outings by local businesses and organizations until the late 1960’s.

Early advertisements and photographs reveal that the popular restaurant was renowned for its shore dinners/clambakes, dance hall, and pleasant setting.

Prohibition (1919-1933) did not seem to deter some of the activities at Turner Park, though it seems that the restaurant was raided several times. A 1928 newspaper article reported that agents “seized in the raid something like a gallon of distilled spirits and 10 cases of home brew beer, the latter being boxed 24 bottles to the case.” Petitioners seeking a “Padlock Action” said that the inn was a “common nuisance” and asked that it be padlocked for one year.

The business survived and rebuilt after a fire in 1947, though in a different location on the property. Typical of a German Hofbrau German food, music and drink were the specialties. As time passed the restaurant’s popularity declined and eventually closed permanently in 1968. William Kreiner, who owned the property for 40 years, remembered hosting 500 people at a time for clambakes, but never allowing swimming in the pond. “Beer and swimming do not mix, the surest way to die is to have a large clam supper, some beers, and go in swimming,” he told a reporter during the final auction of items from the restaurant.

The property was purchased by the town and was reborn as the current Turner Park facility. Little, if anything, remains of the old German Hofbrau but this is part of Longmeadow history that should be remembered. So now, if you ever hear the faint melody of a Bavarian band as you walk your dogs around the pond at Turner Park you will know why. It's just the ancient echo of fun times from long ago.

Turner Park Pond, 2021

Most people would likely be surprised to hear this was formerly

the site of a busy restaurant.

Aerial View of Turner Park- 2021

c. 1890's (Photos courtesy of Andrew Fullerton)

This was the site of many outdoor outings by local businesses and organizations.

Many local businesses, like the Indian Motorcycle Co.,

were known to host events for their employees at Turner Park

Clambakes were a customer favorite

Management and ownership was turned over to

Eugene Kreiner in the late 1920s

and eventually to William Kreiner.

1927

Lobster dinner and Music for $1.00

Prohibition (1919-1933) did not seem to deter some

of the activities at Turner Park.

The restaurant was moved to another site on the property

and the original structure was not rebuilt.

Typical of a German Hofbrau German food, music and drink were the specialties.

Beer Stein Shaped Menu

Blue Plate Specials for $.50:

Wiener Schnitzel, w/ Pickled Beets and Fries,

Sauerbraten w/ Dumpling and Vegetables

and much more!

As time passed the restaurant’s popularity declined

and eventually closed permanently in 1968.

Contributed by Leonard Shaker, LHS Associate Member

Originally published January 6, 2022

All I Want for Christmas

I can imagine the delight of some little girl upon receiving this wonderful doll sometime in the mid-19th century. At 28" tall, she would have been quite a handful for a little girl! With her sweet face, blue eyes and black curls, she is a lovely doll. She also wears a beaded necklace, a dress with two petticoats, and white leather shoes with buckles.

Being curious about her origins, I searched the archives for information. I didn't find much--she had a "found in collection" accession number of 19xx-427, which meant that she was already in the collection before the first formal inventory was undertaken.

But we have other ways to learn more about dolls, and even though it seems wrong, I undressed her to look for more clues. Eureka! Attached to her back was a maker's label reading "GREINER'S PATENT HEADS, No. 10 Pat. March 30, '58."

A little work on Google, Ancestry and GenealogyBank yielded more information. This doll was made by Ludwig Greiner (1805-1874), a German immigrant who lived and worked in Philadelphia. The city directory listed him in 1840 as "toy man." The 1850 Federal Census lists him as a "paper machinist,", but in 1854 an advertisement in the Sunday Dispatch shows that he is selling "dolls heads, arms and toys" at his store. The 1858 patent was for "improvement in constructing dolls' heads." The heads were made from linen-reinforced papier mache and then painted with oil paints. It seems likely that he sold the heads, and the buyers would create their own bodies and clothing at home.

Ludwig's sons joined him in the business. In the 1850 census, his eldest son Amandis is also listed as a paper machinist. By the 1860 census, His sons Lewis, Edward and William are all listed as doll makers along with their father. The Greiner fame didn't end here, though. A 1997 series of US Stamps, called "Classic American Dolls" featured one of Greiner's dolls.

Am I too old to play with dolls?

Contributed by Betsy McKee, LHS Board Member

Originally published December 30, 2021