Desi’s — the latest, long-time incarnation of the even longer-time “general store” at the corner of Riverside Avenue and Railroad Place — is closing.
The Lotto machine is gone. Shelves are not being restocked. An employee says the business is moving to Hartford. The last day is Friday.
Sure, it’s been a while since anyone bought a newspaper there. (Or anywhere.)
Cigarettes are a dying product too.
But there still has to be a market for candy, sodas and batteries, right?
The post offices of our imagination are solid, imposing buildings.
Certainly Westport’s was — at least, from the 1930s till a few years ago. Then the Post Road post office moved to Playhouse Square. Today it’s a cramped, crowded, crummy shell of its former self.
Saugatuck had a fine — if smaller — post office for many years. It’s now an auction house. (There is a mail drop nearby, on the corner of Franklin and Ketchum Streets. That’s a step up from the interim trailer, which squatted off Saugatuck Avenue.)
Saugatuck’s very first post office was located at the corner of Riverside Avenue and Railroad Place. Some Westporters know it as Desi’s Corner. There’s a newspaper stand there now.
Back in the day, it must have been a great post office. And — across from the bustling train station — quite a meeting spot.
Click on or hover over to enlarge. (Photo courtesy of Seth Schachter via Bill Scheffler)
Posted in Friday Flashback, Looking back, Saugatuck
Tagged Desi's Corner, Westport Post Office
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