Downtown Holyoke had many fine eating establishments and restaurants that catered to the breakfast and lunchtime customers, many of whom worked nearby.
One of these establishments was The Colony Restaurant at 280 High Street. The restaurant's grand opening was celebrated on March 3, 1964. Initially, it opened as a 24-hr operation, but after a trial period, it went to a daytime schedule.
The restaurant owner who also purchased the four-story (at the time) building was John D. Scannell of West Springfield. This was Mr. Scannell's fourth restaurant, the others being in Springfield, with a fifth in the planning stage.
Eight months after the restaurant's opening, Mr. Scannell purchased the neighboring Prew Building, Holyoke's tallest office building. The building was owned by a corporation headed by Clarence Bemis, his son Robert, and Hollis Davison, Robert's father-in-law.
In April 1970, the restaurant was sold to James McCormack, who operated the business until May 1971. John Scannell reopened the restaurant for two months and sold the restaurant to Walter Kinder of Palmer on June 14, 1971.
On May 10, 1977, the restaurant was again sold to Alan and Patricia Fletcher.
A fire gutted the upper floors of the building on November 3, 1979. James A Curran, General Contractors Inc. removed the top two stories and capped the building. The restaurant reopened on July 28, 1980.
In 1985, the restaurant was sold to Harry Pitsaladis, who owned a pizzeria and restaurant in South Hadley. In 1989, it was transferred to Sotirios Anamisis's Colony Inc. The restaurant closed around the turn of the century.
Citations:
Newspapers.com (paid subscription): Citations: Holyoke (Massachusetts) Transcript & Transcript-Telegram; Springfield (Massachusetts) Republican); publication dates and pages are shown.
Holyoke Public Library, Holyoke, Chicopee & Springfield, Massachusetts, City Directories.
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