Looking north on Main Street in Southington from along the town green, in May 1942. Image courtesy of the Library of Congress, FSA-OWI Collection.
The scene in 2015
These two photos were taken less than 75 years apart, but over that time most of the east side of Main Street has changed. The First Congregational Church on the far right is still there, but all of the buildings beyond it are gone. To the left, the Soliders’ Monument is still visible in both photos,
Members of a youth drum corps on the town green in Southington in May 1942. Image courtesy of the Library of Congress, FSA-OWI Collection.
The scene in 2015:
Very similar to the angle in this post, the 1942 photo here shows members of a fife and drum corps at the 1942 Memorial Day parade. They are probably in high school, and they may be some of the same people seen in this post. Today, the church is still there, as is the Town Hall to the right, although it isn’t visible in the 2015 photo. However, all of the buildings to the left of the church are gone and have been replaced by parking lots. As mentioned in the previous post, the tree in front of the church was standing in 1942; it had been planted in 1935 and can barely be seen beyond the bicycle in the lower center of the first photo.
The First Congregational Church of Southington, seen from the town green in May 1942. Image courtesy of the Library of Congress, FSA-OWI Collection.
The church in 2015:
The caption of the first photo reads, “Southington, Connecticut. The First Congregational church, oldest of the town’s eleven churches looks substantially the same as when it was erected in 1830.” In the 73 years since the first photo was taken, the church still hasn’t changed much, and its design is very similar to several other historic churches in Connecticut. Its Greek Revival style architecture was popular for early 19th century New England churches, and this building was one of six in the state that were built between 1817 and 1830, using essentially the same design. Located in Old Lyme, Milford, Cheshire, Litchfield, and Guilford, all of these are still standing, although the one in Old Lyme is a replica of the original, which burned in 1907.
One noticeable difference between the two photos here is that the church is now partially hidden by a large oak tree. However, the tree is actually visible in the first photo; it was planted in 1935 as the Tercentenary Tree, marking the 300th anniversary of the founding of Connecticut. It is probably only about 8-10 feet tall in the first photo, and can be seen just to the right of the corner of the church. It is still standing after 80 years, and it still has a plaque next to it, indicating that it was planted by the Hannah Woodruff Chapter of the D.A.R.
A view of the spectators at the Memorial Day parade on Main Street in Southington in May 1942. Image courtesy of the Library of Congress, Detroit Publishing Company Collection.
The scene in 2015:
The first photo was taken by Charles Fenno Jacobs for the Office of War Information as part of the agency’s efforts to document life in a “typical” American town. Some of the photos were distributed overseas as part of a pamphlet to promote American ideas of freedom, democracy, and equality. This particular scene emphasizes the patriotism found in America, with the original caption reading, “Southington, Connecticut. An American town and its way of life. The Memorial Day parade moving down the main street. The small number of spectators is accounted for by the fact that the town’s war factories did not close.” Even the caption has some subtle wording; the “small number of spectators” reference is clearly intended to imply that this large gathering is small by American standards.
The photo shows the Memorial Day spectators watching the parade from the town green, with the Soldiers’ Monument in the distance to the left and the First Congregational Church on the right side of the photo. The scene in the foreground is interesting; the group on the left appears to be posing for a photo, with the young man in the band uniform as the photographer. In between them, the girl in the white dress looks like she is crying; perhaps she is upset that she was left out of the photo, or perhaps she was left out of the photo because she was crying about not wanting to be in it.
Today, the church is still there, but most of the other buildings along Main Street are gone. The place where the crowds once stood on the green is now the site of the town’s monument for veterans of World War II, the Korean War, and the Vietnam War. On the other side of the monument are the names of all the men and women from Southington who served in those wars; undoubtedly many of the people in the crowd had children, siblings, and/or spouses who were serving in the military in May 1942 and whose names now appear on the monument.
Looking down Elm Street from Main Street in Agawam, around 1895-1896. Image courtesy of the Agawam Historical Association.
Elm Street in 2015:
Today’s view doesn’t have the same pastoral look that it had 120 years ago, but the two buildings from the 1890s photo are still standing today. On the far right is the Rufus Colton House, which was built in 1806 and is mentioned in more detail in the previous post. To the left is the First Baptist Church, which still exists but in a heavily modified form. Baptists had been meeting in Agawam since 1790, and the present church was built around 1830 on Main Street, just south of Elm Street and diagonally across from the Agawam Congregational Church. Substantial additions from the mid 20th century added wings on both sides and behind the original church, so not much is left from its original appearance except for the front entrance. Nonetheless, today it is a contributing property in the Agawam Center Historic District on the National Register of Historic Places.
The parsonage on Main Street in Agawam, around 1895-1896. Image courtesy of the Agawam Historical Association.
The house in 2015:
This house on Main Street opposite School Street was built around 1850 as the parsonage for the Agawam Congregational Church, which is located a few hundred yards south of here on the opposite side of Main Street. The church building that it once served was several decades older; it was built in the early 1800s and was demolished in the 1960s, when the current church was built on the same spot.
Today, the parsonage is partially hidden by trees from this angle, but it is still there, with some alterations. It appears to be a multi-unit apartment now, with additions in the back of the house where the barn once stood in the 1890s photo. The area around the house has also changed; the house to the right was probably built in the early 1900s, and later on the land behind the parsonage was subdivided and Raymond Circle was developed. Despite the changes, however, the building is a contributing property in the Agawam Center Historic District on the National Register of Historic Places.