Then and Now: How many sweet memories does this Hubbardston place evoke?

One of the fondest memories of my youth was to hop on my bike with the other neighborhood guys and pedal into the center of Hubbardston.

The downtown section of Hubbardston – if that’s the correct term for it – had three stores that would be frequented by the youth of the community. All were less than two-tenths of a mile of the others.

There was the Co-op (frequently pronounced “Kwop” by some of the locals), which was located where the present Hubbardston One Stop is on Main Street. Then, on the corner of Main and Elm, was the venerable as well as historic Si Wheeler’s Store.

However, when we were in grammar school, just about everyone frequented “Howdy’s,” a store almost directly across the street from the center school that got its nickname because it was run by one-time Hubbardston Chief of Police Howard “Howdy” Taylor.

Sometimes during recess, if you were lucky and your mom would give you a note, you could venture across to Howdy’s for a 10-cent bottle of Coke, an ice cream treat or a wide assortment of the penny candies that were laid out there on the counter.

My mind races as I gleefully recall the Atomic Fireballs, black licorice strings, Mint Juleps, Smarties, Jawbreakers, Bit-o-Honey, Banana Splits, Lotsa Fizz, Bazooka Bubble Gum, Turkish Taffy and Pixy Stix, to name many.

Halloween was the best time to go penny-candy shopping for such items as Wax Lips, Fangs, Mustaches and Tongues. To have a nickel in your pocket at the end of the school day was an absolute goldmine for a kid.

First store opens around the turn of the century

Jane McCauley, historian of the town of Hubbardston, noted that the building at 10 Main St. was first listed on an 1870 town map as a factory where W.B. Bennett Boot Manufacturers was located.

From 1880 to 1906, she reported that a boot shop was still located there, as well as a house owned by Sumner Young.

Shortly after the turn of the century, the first store would be opened there by Charles H. Clark, who ran the business from 1907 to 1923. After that, Hjalmar Parila had a store there starting in 1924 before it was sold in 1934 to Otto Laitinen of Gardner.

Laitinen’s daughter, Eva Stromski, recalled that her father was “an entrepreneur and was always very busy with all types of businesses,” she said.

Laitinen was credited with building the first steam bath in Gardner, the Chair City Steam Bath on West Street in 1929. She recalled that her family moved into the apartment building above the store in the mid-1930s.

Interestingly enough, the telephone number at the store, according to Mrs. Stromski, was 45. No doubt that would be the number given to the Wheeler sisters who ran the switchboard as people would call in an order for a delivery.

In 1939, the Harlow brothers – Lawrence and John – opened the store and it became part of the Clover Farms Store chain. The store specialized in meat and, according to the sign in the accompanying photo, also sold the popular Pickwick Ale as part of its beer selection.

The Mobil gas pumps were located at the front of the store – at 23 cents per gallon, for those with a keen eye – while in the rear of the building Atlantic Lubrication Service and Lee Tires were also advertised.

While the Harlows owned the store, they employed Frank Brightman as the manager and employed a high school lad by the name of Howard Taylor to work part time to pump gas.

From 1948 to 1951, Charles Suojanen and his stepbrother, Tarmo Aalto, ran the store before Charles and Sophie Benoit had the business from 1951 to 1958.

More Then and Now:

• Then and Now: The sad tale (and legacy) of a pauper family in Gardner
• Smoking rooms and beautiful views: This was the place in Gardner where the elite came to meet
• How the iconic Gardner American Legion rose from the ashes

In 1958, Taylor and his wife, Edith, decided to purchase the store and changed the name to Family Market. Their daughter, Betty (Taylor) Bumpus, recalled also working there herself while she was in high school before her parents bought the place, when it was run by the Benoits.

“My dad ran the store and my mother (Edith) worked the cash register and did all the bookkeeping,” Betty said, noting her parents lived above the store while they owned it.

In addition to his role as storekeeper and police chief, Taylor was also the highway superintendent, deputy fire chief, selectman and member of the Finance Committee, Betty noted.

It almost seemed like something out of Mayberry, in the days when the living was fun and easy and you knew just about everybody in town.

Betty also said a variety of locals would run the cash register over the years that her folks owned the store, including Ella Heald, Dotty Salminen and Dorothy Suojanen.

After running the business for 10 years, the Taylors sold it to Harold and Pat Jones in 1968. Then from 1971 to 1973, it was owned by Conrad and Barbara Quinn, who also opened a little restaurant in the back of the store.

While the recent history seems a bit sketchy, it was once home to a used book store during the late 1970s and early 1980s. In addition, Michael Meagher briefly ran a package store there circa 1993-1994.

From the mid- to late 1990s it became Varney Real Estate, while at the present time there are multi-family apartments in the building.

There are fewer and fewer kids on bicycles frequenting downtown Hubbardston Center these days, with Hubbardston One Stop the only convenience store option.

And if they are planning on being a customer and have a form of money in the denomination of five in their hand these days to spend, it better contain a picture of Abe Lincoln.

You’re not going to get much for a nickel at the ol’ corner store anymore.

Also by Mike Richard:A star runner at Gardner High, Jim LaFreniere quit to play football. Now he's an avid hiker.

Comments and suggestions for Then and Now can be sent to Mike Richard at mikerichard0725@gmail.com or in writing to Mike Richard, 92 Boardley Road, Sandwich, MA 02563.