Looking at the north side of Lower Washington St. prior to the start of the urban renewal project for the area known as “The Marsh”. In the center is the building at 127-131 Washington St. housing Sagamore Liquors on the left and The Village restaurant on the right. The large open space on the left had been the site of a wooden building from the 1800s known as “Russell Block”. In August 1962 the town ordered that it be demolished due to its dilapidated condition and no attempt was made to replace it with the urban renewal project pending. On the right is the building built in 1937 housing the entrance to the movie theater.

From a notebook of property-appraisal photos taken in 1965 and early 1966 for “The Marsh Urban Renewal Project” run by the Brookline Redevelopment Authority. Only a few scattered peripheral structures remain today.

Image Courtesy the Brookline Preservation Department