Archive Record
Images
Metadata
Catalog Number |
2023.100.81 |
Collection |
A Window on the Past columns |
Object Name |
Clipping, Newspaper |
Reference code |
US SPHi 2023.100.81 |
Title |
Whitehall was the community center of Pleasantdale |
Date |
2023 |
Scope & Content |
Feature story about Whitehall, the community center of Pleasantdale, 894 Broadway, South Portland, Maine, from 1903 to 1949. A Window on the Past history column by Kathryn Onos DiPhilippo, executive director of the South Portland Historical Society. Published in the South Portland Cape Elizabeth Sentry, July 28, 2023. William J. "Deak" White purchased land that had been part of the George H. Fickett farm, and had his "White hall" built in 1903. The address was known as 344 Summer Street in earlier days; the street was renamed and renumbered in 1928 - this site became 894 Broadway. Whitehall was one of the largest buildings in the city in 1903. Use of the building changed over time. There was a bowling alley in the basement. The first floor had a large room in the front operated as a soda fountain and variety store with a pool room in the back. Post office substation No. 11 was sometimes in the building, and a barber had a chair set up in the corner of the pool hall. Upstairs was a large hall and meeting room used for dances and other events. The hall was used by the Pleasantdale Grange and other community groups. Whitehall proprietors and operators include: 1903 to 1917 - Deak White 1917 to 1919 - George S. Soule 1919 to 1920 - Samuel Zolov 1920 to 1942 - Ernest Durost 1942 to 1943 - Paul E. King 1943 to 1949 - Fremont B. Suddy Barbers working there included Gene Roberts and Bob Stewart. After the fire, the building was razed and a gas station was built on the site: Ray's Cities Service station opened in March, 1951. Humphrey's Farm Store was operating there in the late 1970s. The Big Apple operated from there in the 1980s through the mid-1990s. |
Search Terms |
A Window on the Past (news columns) Whitehall |
People |
DiPhilippo, Kathryn Onos Durost, Ernest L. |