A vintage late-19th-century photo shows the eastern side of Main Street, looking north from near Dwight Street. The center of the photo shows the light color of the Whiting Street building, which was significantly used by small businesses and upstarts.
Today’s installment centers on the building in the foreground with the partially obscured sign, which identifies this as a harness shop. The question becomes: whose shop was this, and what background do we have on the owner? Hopefully, further research will determine some additional history surrounding this building.
On April 1, 1868, the Holyoke Water Power Company (HWPCo) sold the land, which later would become 40-42 Main Street, to Eli and Alzene Newton for $4,640. On November 14, 1871, the Newtons granted Holyoke Savings Bank a mortgage on the property securing a $7,500 loan. The mortgage instrument only identified the property as land.
On August 12, 1882, a foreclosure sale resulted in Joseph N. Prew purchasing the property for $7,930. Mr. Prew went on to own the property into the 20th century. Under whose ownership the building was constructed remains a mystery. The building does not appear on the 1877 Bird’s Eye View of Holyoke Map. However, the subsequent 1881 map shows all spaces filled on that segment of Main Street.
With a bit of the real estate’s history now explained, it’s on to the story of the harness shop. John T. Hunter, whose shop is captured in the photo, was born in Sand Bank Hollow, New York, on May 25, 1854. His father, Thomas Hunter, learned the saddle trade at an early age and pursued it for the rest of his life. Thomas passed along the skills of the harness maker’s livelihood to his son John, who was one of the 9 children in the family.
John T. Hunter relocated to Holyoke, where he started his own saddlery and harness-making business around 1882. He was located at 44 Main Street, and in 1888, the address was listed as 42 Main Street. He sold harnesses, collars, whips, blankets, fly nets, halters, brushes and other accessories. He also performed repair work for customers.
He continued to work at his business for 30 years, until he died in 1912. He was one of New England’s oldest harness makers. John T. Hunter’s son, Roy John Hunter, had been taught the saddlery trade, and a partnership under the name John T. Hunter & Son was previously formed. Upon his father’s death, Roy J. Hunter continued the shop at 42 Main Street until 1920.
In 1921, the business relocated to 56 Suffolk Street and was renamed The Luggage Shop. The store carried a line of auto tops, harnesses, trunks, luggage, and many accessories. Times were changing, as motor vehicles became more prominent, replacing horses as the primary mode of transportation.
The business closed in 1925, and at the time, was situated at 277 Maple Street. Roy J. Hunter, then age 40, moved with his family to the Berkshires, where he worked as a car salesman in Lee and Great Barrington, Massachusetts.
Citations:
Newspapers.com (paid subscription): Citations: Holyoke (Massachusetts) Transcript & Transcript-Telegram; publication dates and pages are shown.
Ancestry.com (paid subscription): Price & Lee Holyoke, Massachusetts, City Directories
Hampden County Registry of Deeds, Springfield, Massachusetts
1877 Bird’s Eye View of the City of Holyoke, Massachusetts, Poole, Beck, Stoner & Pauli, Madison, Wisconsin
1884 Sanborn Fire Insurance Map of Holyoke, Massachusetts
1911 Richards Atlas of Holyoke, Massachusetts
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