Picture Somers - Then And Now

SOMERS, CT — For our first historic excursion of the new year, we return to the amazing photo book, Images of America: Somers, compiled in 2001 by Jeanne Kenyon DeBell for the Somers Historical Society. Today's trip lands us on page 68, at the old John Spencer Barber Shop.

One of the smallest buildings in town, the house/shop at 118 Main Street in Somersville was constructed around 1900, and consists of just 360 square feet. Spencer and his wife Malvina operated the barber shop for two decades.

According to Somers land records, Bruno and Victoria Kaplan bought the property, situated on just over a quarter-acre, in 1968; it was transferred to a limited liability company owned by Victoria Kaplan and her son Brian in 2007. Bruno Kaplan, a U.S. Army veteran of the Korean War and an avid devotee of antique automobiles, passed away on Oct. 24, 2011.

Here is a more contemporary look at the structure from Nov. 2019, courtesy of Google Maps.

Do you have a photo of an old Somers business which no longer exists, to which you own the rights and which we could feature in this column? Email tim.jensen@patch.com.

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