From bird-nest blazes and stock car benefit races to backyard clambakes and high school renovations, here are today’s snapshots from Norwood’s vault.
1950 [Sports] | Racing for a Cause at Norwood Arena
Stock car drivers packed the oval at Norwood Arena for a special benefit night in support of Junior Pooler, a prominent Quincy driver who suffered severe burns during a midget car crash weeks earlier. With Pooler expected to be sidelined for at least nine months, the New England Auto Racing Association rallied top drivers—including Ray Janelle, Bob Harper, and Red Cummings—to race for top prizes while donating a portion of the gate receipts to help Pooler and his family.
1956 [Business & Development] | Detroit General Controls Eyes Huge Route 1 Expansion
The Norwood Planning Board held a special evening session to review an ambitious rezoning request that could reshape the industrial corridor between Pleasant Street and Route 1. G.T. Mundorff, manager of Detroit General Controls Corp., presented plans to construct four new plants totaling 230,000 square feet over five years, promising a projected payroll of 2,000 workers. Board members discussed water, sewer, and traffic access, emphasizing that a dedicated border road along Route 1 would prove safer than direct access to the Boston-Providence Pike, before scheduling a formal public hearing for August 20.
1956 [Industry & Labor] | Local Veteran Promoted to Maintenance Foreman at Bird & Son
Carl L. Johnson of 207 Washington Street stepped into his new role as foreman of the maintenance department at Bird & Son’s Norwood Floor Covering Plant, succeeding 36-year veteran George Wood upon his retirement. Johnson, a local school alumnus who joined the company as a machinist back in 1921 after learning his trade at the Readville shops, takes leadership alongside long-time colleagues like Howard Nelson, who previously served as tool room gang boss producing 40 mm. shells during World War II.
1963 [Town Curiosities] | Feathered Arsonists and Roadside Robberies
Norwood Fire Chief Irving Dobson pinned a $200 roof fire at New England Metallurgical Company on an unusual suspect: a bird. Officials determined the blaze started in a bird’s nest via spontaneous combustion of nesting materials. Meanwhile, Norwood police launched an investigation down the road after $718 was stolen overnight from a filing cabinet inside Art Johnson’s roadside restaurant at Route 1 and Everett Street.
1967 [Auto Racing] | Dragsters Test the New Quarter-Mile Strip
High-octane excitement returned to Norwood Arena as more than 200 competitors lined up to test the speedway’s brand-new $200,000 quarter-mile drag racing strip. Four distinct competition classes took to the track for a Friday night showdown, drawing motorheads from across the region to sample the town’s upgraded racing grounds.
1978 [Local Lore] | Mystery Blaze Above The Depot Bar
Firefighters rushed to Railroad Avenue at 1:30 a.m. to battle a blaze in a second-floor bedroom above The Depot bar. Crews extinguished the fire within an hour, preventing serious structural damage, though heavy smoke filled the building and water seeped into the tavern below. Police treated the incident as arson after discovering the landlord had recently evicted two tenants from the room.
1980 [Community] | Backyard Clambakes and Hockey Searches
Charles and Warita McLaughlin opened their Ellis Avenue backyard and swimming pool to 55 guests for a clambake fundraiser, raising over $2,000 for Camp Fatima’s summer program for handicapped children. Down the road, the Norwood Nuggets Hockey Search Committee met to review candidates to replace 18-year director Tom Brown, kicking off a town-wide effort to guide the popular youth hockey organization into a new era.
1984 [Town Life] | A $5 Million Face-Lift for Norwood High
The Permanent Building Construction Committee presented final architectural plans to renovate Norwood High School during a public meeting at the Willett School Administration Building. Backed by an initial $275,000 planning allocation, the committee hoped to deliver the ambitious $5 million overhaul slightly under budget ahead of a crucial special town meeting vote set for September.
⚡ Quick Hits & Local Notices
- 1956 [Social Notes]: Birthday wishes went out to newly appointed foreman Carl Johnson, Mrs. Tain Smith of Jefferson Drive, and Mrs. Marie Jaras of 32 Hillside Avenue, who returned home to recuperate following a major operation.
- 1956 [Town Life]: Stanley Miller, US, appeared before the local Board to lodge a complaint regarding water backing up through his home drain.
- 1956 [Vacationers]: Vacationing residents returned to town, including Mr. and Mrs. Jack MacDonald from a month-long trip to Scotland, the Walter Downs from New England beach trips, and the Arthur Chamberlains of Dedham, who completed a 3,300-mile southern tour visiting Bird’s new plant in South Carolina.
- 1956 [People in the News]: Stanley Hayward earned congratulations on his appointment to the Walpole Police Department, while young Michael Kali celebrated winning ten concession stand prizes at the Brockton Fair Picnic.
- 1956 [Health & Recovery]: Get-well wishes were extended to Anne Cavanaugh following surgery, Ernest “Sonny” Oakes, Jr. at the West Roxbury V.A. Hospital, Bynum Vickory upon returning to work at Bird’s after a five-month illness, and Thomas Clancy, who returned home to recover after prolonged care at Massachusetts General Hospital.
- 1965 [Town Government]: Dr. William F. Ryan and John F. Keating were appointed to Norwood’s Senior Citizen’s Committee, representing the Norwood Hospital medical staff and the Board of Public Welfare respectively.
- 1965 [Town Infrastructure]: Selectmen accepted a traffic regulation amendment authorizing a new stop sign on Day Street at the Bullard Street intersection.
- 1975 [Schools & Seniors]: Supt. Philip O. Coakley informed the school committee that a proposed low-cost hot lunch program for senior citizens could not proceed in the fall due to a lack of state and federal funding.
- 1980 [Senior Life]: The Council on Aging offered senior bus trips for August, including a $7.75 lobster clambake outing to Salisbury and an upcoming trip to a Red Sox game.
- 1990 [Summerfest]: The Norwood Arts Council announced its Summerfest concert lineup on the Town Square, featuring the Roy Nutile Band, German Haffbrau Boys, and the Bullock Brothers.
- 1995 [Community Snippets]: Local notices included free Well Child clinics by the Neponset Valley Nursing Association, osteoporosis talks at Norwood Hospital, and drop-in story times at Morrill Memorial Library.
Do you or your family remember these events from Norwood’s past? Share your stories and memories in the comments below!
Archival Note: This article has been dynamically reconstructed from the original public record print archives of the Patriot Ledger
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