Picture Enfield - Then And Now

ENFIELD, CT — Today's installment of this weekly Enfield history series brings us back to a fabulous book of renowned local photographer Ed Malley's pictures, compiled by his son Jim, entitled "Images of America: Enfield 1950-1980." The book was published in 2003, and copies may be obtained here.

On page 16, we find a southbound look at Church Street, taken from near its intersection with Alden Ave. Visible down the left side are the John Maciolek American Legion Post 154, Nowak's Pharmacy and the steeple of the First Presbyterian Church. On the right are the Thompsonville Press, Ted's Package Store and the tower of the old courthouse building.

For a bit of useless trivia, the Thompsonville Press at 73 Church Street, which changed to the Enfield Press around 1969, was my first paying job as a journalist. In 1982, I earned 10 bucks a week to write a Fermi High School sports column.

Every one of the businesses shown has moved or closed up, as evidenced by this photo of the same scene taken by me around 5 o'clock Thursday afternoon.

Last week's trivia answer:
Last week's trivia question was, "Who was the last 7th and 8th grade girls basketball coach at Kosciuszko Junior High School?" The answer: Marilyn Baziak, as shown in this photo from the 1982 Big K yearbook, courtesy of the Enfield Historical Society. After that year, the school closed and eventually became Asnuntuck Community College, while John F. Kennedy Middle School became the sole public middle school in town. Sharon Mucci was the first person to provide the correct answer.

This week's trivia question:
Where was the big party spot in southern Enfield before the advent of a housing development in the mid-1980s? Without blatantly Googling the answer, then copying and pasting it verbatim, post the answer in the comments section below under your real name (we'll see who follows directions).

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