Looking north from Washington St.

Special Notes:

• There were three major snowstorms around this time that can be considered in dating this photo: February 13, 1899; November 27, 1898; and January 28, 1897
• There is a large unexplained group of men massed outside the front door of the T. H. Dyer store.

From left to right in the group of buildings in the center of the photo:

• 287-289 Washington St. The sign is not legible
• 285 Washington St., the post office. By 1902, it had moved over to the National Bank Building, a few doors to the right and across Harvard St.
• 279 Washington St.. The store of Nelson C. Thompson who took over the furniture and upholstery business from his father.
• 13 Harvard Sq., the grocery store of T. H. Dyer. li>
• 11 Harvard Sq., Frank F. Seamens, Groceries
• 4 Harvard St. (on the right side of the Harvard Hall building), entrances to upstairs businesses: Brookline Co-op Bank; Riverdale Press; Brookline Chronicle, Charles A.W. Spencer, proprietor.
• 8 Harvard St. (on the right side of the Harvard Hall building), the sign for Charlie Sing, Laundry is visible.
• Also visible in the right foreground corner of the photo is the partially obscured “Catering” sign for the store of Everett E. Pierce, baker and caterer.

[Source: Brookline Preservation Department]

Special Notes:

• There were three major snowstorms around this time that can be considered in dating this photo: February 13, 1899; November 27, 1898; and January 28, 1897
• There is a large unexplained group of men massed outside the front door of the T. H. Dyer store.

From left to right in the group of buildings in the center of the photo:

• 287-289 Washington St. The sign is not legible
• 285 Washington St., the post office. By 1902, it had moved over to the National Bank Building, a few doors to the right and across Harvard St.
• 279 Washington St.. The store of Nelson C. Thompson who took over the furniture and upholstery business from his father.
• 13 Harvard Sq., the grocery store of T. H. Dyer. li>
• 11 Harvard Sq., Frank F. Seamens, Groceries
• 4 Harvard St. (on the right side of the Harvard Hall building), entrances to upstairs businesses: Brookline Co-op Bank; Riverdale Press; Brookline Chronicle, Charles A.W. Spencer, proprietor.
• 8 Harvard St. (on the right side of the Harvard Hall building), the sign for Charlie Sing, Laundry is visible.
• Also visible in the right foreground corner of the photo is the partially obscured “Catering” sign for the store of Everett E. Pierce, baker and caterer.

[Source: Brookline Preservation Department]

Visible on the left:

• 214 Washington St., Kenrick Bros., Plumbers
• 222 Washington St., “Law Office” sign in the upstairs window probably for the office of Foster and Nash, lawyers
• 222 Washington St., the upstairs office of John F. Fleming, gasfitter and electrician
• 224 Washington St., Young & Brown, pharmacy

In the center:

• 287-289 Washington St. The sign is not legible
• 285 Washington St., the post office. By 1902, it had moved over to the National Bank Building, a few doors to the right and across Harvard St.
• 279 Washington St., the store of Nelson C. Thompson, furniture and upholstery.
• 13 Harvard Sq., the grocery store of T. H. Dyer in the Harvard Hall building.
• 11 Harvard Sq., Frank F. Seamens, Groceries, in the Harvard Hall building

On the right foreground:

• 205 Washington St. on the corner with Station St., Nelson Bros., Grocers

[Source: Brookline Preservation Department]

Visible from left to right:

• 239-241 Washington St., William H. Butler, Apothecary
• 235 Washington St., Everett E. Pierce, baker and caterer, right side of the first Colonnade Building
• 225 Washington St., Brookline News Depot, center of the second Colonnade Building
• 221 Washington St., upstairs sign of the Brookline Storage Warehouse Office in the second Colonnade Building
• 211 Washington St., a partial view on the right of Edwin F. Crosby plumbing and kitchen goods, in the third Colonnade Building

[Source: Digital Commonwealth]

In the darkened building on the left:

• 220 Washington St., a partial view of F. E. Palmer, Florist
• 222 Washington St., sign in the window for the upstairs office of Frank G. Russell, Real Estate and Fire Insurance
• 222 Washington St., the upstairs office of John F. Fleming, gasfitter
• 224 Washington St., Young & Brown, pharmacy

In the center:

• 279 Washington St.. the store of Nelson C. Thompson who took over the furniture and upholstery business from his father.
• 13 Harvard Sq., the grocery store of T. H. Dyer.
• 11 Harvard Sq., Frank F. Seamens, Groceries
• 4 Harvard St. (on the right side of the Harvard Hall building), entrances to upstairs businesses: Brookline Co-op Bank; Riverdale Press; Brookline Chronicle, Charles A.W. Spencer, proprietor.
• 8 Harvard St. (on the right side of the Harvard Hall building), the sign for Charlie Sing, Laundry is visible.

On the right:

• 239-241 Washington St., William H. Butler, Apothecary
• 235 Washington St., Everett E. Pierce, baker and caterer, right side of the first Colonnade Building
• 227 Washington St., upstairs sign for Charles A. Lunney, Plumber is visible, above the wagon, in the second Colonnade Building

[Source: Digital Commonwealth]

The Harvard Hall building has been replaced with the building that still stands today.

This is a rare photo of the Harvard Hall building just prior to its replacement after a battle with the town and the invocation of eminent domain. The town needed to widen both Washington St. and Harvard St. and was literally shaving off sections of the building which sat at the apex of the two streets. The grocer, T. H. Dyer, insisted on remaining open and the building owner, in litigation with the town, covered the reduced and now-asymmetrical building with makeshift boarding.
[Source: Historic New England]

Looking north on Harvard St. from Harvard Square. Rhodes Bros., Groceries and Provisions, which opened at the very end of 1905. This building, which still stands today, replaced the Harvard Hall Building which, following a contentious struggle with the town, was taken down after being downsized to accommodate the widening of Harvard St. Rhodes Bros. remained there until World War II.
[Source: Digital Commonwealth]

The majority of the structures in this photo are still standing. From left to right:

• Rhodes Bros., Groceries and Provisions, which opened at the very end of 1905. This building, which still stands today, replaced the Harvard Hall Building which, following a contentious struggle with the town, was taken down after being downsized to accommodate the widening of Harvard St. Rhodes Bros. remained there until World War II.
• Cast-iron watering stand for horses, with a lower rim for dogs, manufactured by Henry F. Jenks. More information
• The horse of the cheese-delivery wagon drinking from the fountain.
• The steeple of the Baptist Church, later the First Presbyterian Church, directly behind Rhodes Bros. It burned on New Year's Eve 1960-61
• The steeple of St. Mary’s church
• Woman exiting and woman entering the trolley car
• The National Bank building
• The Woman's Exchange, the one-story building at 5 Harvard Sq. Woman's Exchanges were part of a movement that enabled impoverished women to sell their wares in consignment stores whose organizations were run by women.
• The doorway at #2 Harvard Sq. leading to a rooming house called Somerset House. The sign announces Board and Room By Day or Week, Single Meals
• James Rooney Boots & Shoes at #1 Harvard Sq.

[Source: Joel Shield]

Looking north from Washington St.

Looking north from Washington St.

Looking north from Washington St.

238 Washington St., Brookline Village, the southwest corner of Davis Ave. The St. Andrew Building, still standing, remains virtually unchanged today. Traceable names of those working at the shop in 1901 are hairdressers Charles E. Schmalz, Adolf Koffinke, William Pebler, William Pickering, and John J. Moloney and boot black Samuel Short.

Charles Schmalz had a remarkably long working life in Brookline and maintained his business at 238 Washington for over fifty years. Here is his Brookline timeline:

• [1883-1896] By the age of 18, and possibly several years before that, he begins work at the barbershop of Peter Keiser at 157 Washington St., situated roughly at the western edge of today's Hearthstone Plaza. He lives upstairs above the shop until 1887. It appears that Keiser is his uncle.
• [1895] Runs the shop at 157 Washington St. Peter Keiser remains the owner but no longer works there.
• [1897] Opens his own shop at 238 Washington St. Peter Keiser returns to his old business.
• [1897-1949] Continues to maintain his business at 238 Washington St., apparently working there into the 1940s when he would have been in his seventies
• [1954] Dies at the age of 88

[Source: Joel Shield]

Looking North from Washington St. Panter's Building was a remodeling of the old Baptist church building at that site. It was obtained by John Panter as payment for his work on the replacement church, seen behind it, and converted into a commerical building. He later sold it to George Joyce who moved his grocery store from the Colonnade Building circa 1874.
[Source: Brookline Public Library]

Washington St. continuing to the left, Harvard St. to the right. Note horse drinking water in front of the store. From left to right:

• The roof of town hall is visible
• Unidentified white house
• The store with the sign for A. B. Tyrrell, Upholstery. No longer listed in 1883
• The one-story building of Thompson Upholstery
• The new store of Thomas H. Dyer, grocer. Dyer, a Brookline resident, had previously co-owned a store across the street, Collins and Dyer, until 1877/78 when it became the store of Henry Collins & Co., Provisions. He then worked at the provisions store of Hartwell & Skinner in Boston's New Faneuil Hall Market. He is first listed here in the 1883 directory and would occupy the left side of the Panter’s building until 1904, when the building was replaced.
• The Joyce grocery store, which had originally occupied both sides of the Panter’s building. By 1883, Joyce had downsized to the right side only, seen here, and he was gone entirely by 1885. Frank F. Seamens, Groceries, would replace Joyce circa 1885 and also remain until 1904 when the building was replaced by the building that stands there today.
• In the far distance is the steeple of St. Mary of the Assumption Church on Harvard St.

Washington St. continuing to the left, Harvard St. to the right. The Panter's Building has been sold and renamed to the Harvard Hall building. From left to right:

• Post Office
• 279 Washington St., the store of Nelson C. Thompson who took over the furniture and upholstery business from his father.
• The stores of Thomas H. Dyer, grocer, and Frank F. Seamens, Groceries. Both would remain until 1904 when the building was being prepped for replacement with the building that stands today. Dyer would hang on into 1905 in the building’s reduced and dilapidated state, as litigation was resolved.
• The E. S. Morse making deliveries of what is likely coal. The horses are drinking at the fountain.
• National Bank building at 1-5 Harvard St., still standing.

This photo most likely shows the final stage of the building at 11-13 Harvard Square. On the left,with its delivery wagons parked out front, is T. H. Dyer, Provisions. On the right, at #13 Harvard Sq., is Frank F. Seamens, Groceries. It appears that Lucius N. Danforth, a clerk at the Dyer store for two decades and at the George Joyce store there before that, has taken over the store. But the Danforth store will be short-lived: the building that exists today is about to be constructed there with Rhodes Bros. taking over occupancy.
[Source: Digital Commonwealth]

Identified locations from left to right:

• Rhodes Bros., Groceries and Provisions. Opened in 1906 in the new building at 10-11 Harvard Sq. which still stands today.
• The two horses of the Twin Elm Spring Water delivery wagon drinking from the fountain. The banner on top advertises “Famous For Purity”
• The top of the steeple of the Baptist Church visible behind Rhodes Bros.
• An unidentified wagon with a man standing in its rear possibly making a delivery to a rear entrance of Rhodes Bros.
• St. Mary’s church at the corner of Harvard St. and Linden Place.
• The sign advertising « Ice Cream » of the Papouleas Confectionery store at 39 Harvard St.
• The store sign of T. H. Dyer, Provisions, above the awning, is visible at 33 Harvard St.
• The large brick building of the Brookline National Bank on the corner of Kent St.

[Source: Brookline Preservation Department]

At the apex of Harvard and Washington Streets in Brookline Village, looking northwest on Washington St. The building on the right is the post office, at 283 Washington St. Identifiable businesses in the store on the left are the Postal Telegraph & Cable Co. and Frank A. Carnes, Real Estate at 289 Washington St.

This photo has long been misidentified (e.g. page 59 in Brookline, Massachusetts, A Pictorial History by Jean Kramer) as being part of the town’s 1905 bicentennial celebration. The clue to its real identity is the anomaly of the large picture of a man above the store fronts. It is Admiral George Dewey and he is being feted for his victory at the Battle of Manila in the Spanish American War. When Dewey returned from the Philippines to the United States on September 27, 1899, large parades in his honor were held in several major cities, including Boston on October 14, 1899 and it is probable that Brookline was also celebrating his victory in the fall of 1899, captured in this photo.
[Source: Digital Commonwealth]