Last week’s Friday Flashback featured Hay Day — Westport’s first “gourmet market.”
This week we travel directly across the Post Road.
And even though this photo is from a few decades earlier than Hay Day, it looks remarkably the same today.
(Photo courtesy of Susan O’Donnell)
Sure, the cars are different. The clothes too.
But the only other changes a time traveler would notice is that — as of last spring — the Carvel brand was replaced by generic “soft serve ice cream.”
And the classic cone on the roof disappeared, years earlier.
What are your Carvel memories? Click “Comments” below.
(Friday Flashback is one of “06880”‘s many regular features. If you enjoy this — or anything else on our website — please consider a tax-deductible contribution. Just click here. Thank you!)
Wonderful pic! What year was this taken? I know Carvel was in Westport as of the mid-1950s but it was never clear to me when exactly it opened its Westport location. Thanks.
Don’t know the exact year of photo, Fred, but that is a ’52 Plymouth in the shot, I think.
Dan, thanks.
Great pic and brings back memories of many trips to Carvel on a hot summer day. So good. My favorite was chocolate dipped in chocolate. yummy
I’m embarrassed to say I went streaking around Carvel back in the day with – well – I better not say. But I will say one of them was the brother of a well known contributor to the Saturday Art column (just to add a bit of intrigue).
But the real question is: “who were the first to streak at Staples and Weston High School?” A warning, the answers are trick.
But I know them well: My buddy Bill J*** (redacted to protect the not so innocent) and myself.
Details:
Bill and I decided to streak Weston High. We started at the gym lockers and ran through the school. The cafeterias had an open are on one side and a glassed wall on the other. Bill went down the more “exposed” are, and when he took a right to go down the north east hall, he slipped in front of the Board of Ed chief, Maryann Beech (not Tom Aquila) and fell on the floor. I took the other route and went along the back side. No fall.
We met up with our get away driver out the smoking area entrance (legal in those days) and took off.
Being the rocket scientists we were, we talked about streaking Staples.
We were dropped off on the south side of the campus and ran across the courtyards. Fortunately, our driver was still there (we never thought about the get away car not being there and took off).
The Town Crier (old Westport Newspaper) said no one was spilling the beans as to who streaked the school. No one told because we were from Weston.
We did return to Weston High. A vice principal, Richard Benzing, met us as we came around a corner near the gym. He gave us a hooked finger indicated to follow him. I had a feeling he was slightly amused but had to be an administrator and had to issue suspensions.
BTW a few folks from Wilton tried to streak Weston that day or the next, but the Weston PD caught them.
The statue of limitations has ended correct?
My bowling team were having drinks at the Club 300 in Westport Lanes one Friday night around 9:30 when four people came running into the bar/restaurant totally naked. Everyone started cheering and naturally, no one tried to notify the police. They were in and out in less than a minute.There was also a song “The Streak “ around 1975-ish. It was the “ in thing” back then!
Jan, You streaked in 1974.
The best memory I have is of the names of his ice cream cakes: “Fudgie the Whale” and “Cookie Puss,” the latter of which would incite protests if he put that out today.
My favorite back then was mini butter scotch sundaes. Yum!
Many years ago I represented a Carvel franchisee in a lawsuit against the company. The suit was resolved by an agreement that I negotiated with Tom Carvel at his office in a repurposed motel which he had named “The Carvel College of Icecream Knowledge” which I found and still find amusing.
Back in the 60’s during the summer our parents would take my sister and me to Carvel for a Sunday afternoon treat. Back then you could go inside to the counter to order unlike today where you walk up to the window. Whenever I go back to Westport it has always been on my list of places to visit. Now that they are no longer ‘Carvel’ branded the ice cream doesn’t taste the same to me. I love the photo.
This carvel was our go-to every Sunday after church. Knew Ellie well. The ice cream cone on the roof was gone by the early 1970s (as evidenced by a family photo).
After every soccer practice, Jack Lillis’ mom would pick me, Jack, Bill Deegan and Jerry Keneally up and give us rides home. But always on the way, we would stop at Carvel’s. For me, a chocolate shake every time.
Have any idea where Bill Deegan is now? I remember him from the bowling alley. He’s probably 80 now.
Bill died several years ago.
Thanks Dan. He was a great guy.
great pic. It’s the Cream of the Crop.
Can we please get a decent name and sign.
Back in junior high days , Dan you know when I mean, my friend Pat and I could cut through her back yard and maybe another from Hickory Lane to get to Carvel for a cone after school
I used to take my bike to Carvel from Burr Farms Road — it was down hill all the way, so there there was no need to pedal. A chocolate cone with chocolate dip was maybe 30 or 35 cents — but then I had pedal uphill all the way home. It was definitely worth the effort!