Timeline - The Fishbones Block
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Including 37,38-Central Square, 34,35-Central Square, and 6-Boston Road
Historical Society photo 1972.42.1024 (colorized)
6-Boston road with garage on right
Linda Prescott collection (colorized)
Center Blacksmith shop circa 1900
  • 1932 - George Day commissioned a plan of land to include his two-story wooden building with a 10-foot buffer, a passageway 10-feet wide, and a trapezoid shaped 2,649 sq ft parcel on January 20 (plan 56/75).
  • The A&P store seen in the plan was managed by Robert R Goggin this year.
  • Louis Goldblatt of Brookline purchased the 2,649 sq ft parcel from George Day on January 30 (deed 810/477).
  • This deed had an unusual restriction: "The above premises are hereby conveyed subject to the restriction that the premises shall never be used for religious or church purposes ..."
  • Daniel A Doyle of Quincy, an authorized official of the Great Atlantic & Pacific Tea Company, purchased the 2,649 sq ft parcel from Louis Goldblatt on February 2 (deed 810/479).
  • On a seperate mortgage document starting on the same page, Daniel Doyle granted the property to Isaac Rosnov of Boston along with a construction loan to build the store and right to lease the store for a 5-year period on January 30 (mortgage 810/479).
  • Doris N Stearns of Boston purchased the 5-ft southern half of the 10-ft wide passageway, totalling about 480 sq ft, on Februry 2 (deed 810/481).
  • Repayment of the construction loan and regular lease payments to A&P were secured by the terms of a lease agreement on April 28 (lease 9814).
  • When the one-story brick building was completed the A&P grocery store relocated there with Jack Caruthers as manager.
Plan of Land 56/75
Plan 56-75 dated 1932-01-20
Historical Society postcard 2010.3.44
Page's Drugs and A&P Store
Richard Lahue postcard
Page's Drugs and Empty A&P Store
  • 1948 - In the above postcard the A&P building appears to be empty and abandoned.
  • 1949 - In the photo at right the A&P building at 35 Central Square is occupied by the Center Market, under the banner of A-G Food Stores.
  • This store did not survive the competition from The Purity Food Store operating across the street from 1947 to 1952.
Historical Society clipping
Center Market in 1949
  • 1955 - Richmond Page, Helen Page, and the Union National Bank of Lowell, Trustees of the Page Trust purchased the 38,740 sq ft parcel that included the 6-Boston Road house along with half the 10 foot passageway on the north side of the Goldblatt A&P parcel from Daisy (Day) Fletcher of Orlando, FL on March 11 (deed 1287/15).
  • A correction to the above deed was registered to remove the "half the 10-ft passageway on the north side of the Goldblatt A&P parcel" on March 11 (deed 1296/220).
  • 1956 - The Page Trust was given "half the 10-ft passageway on the north side of the Goldblatt A&P parcel" by Daisy Fletcher of Winter Park, FL on November 13 (deed 1355/277).
May 1932 Plan of Land 79/100
May 1932 Plan of Land 79/100
Richard Lahue postcard
Harrington Liquors, Lowell 5-Cent Savings Bank and Page's Drug Store
  • At this time, Jo-Lee's Yarn and Hobby Variety occupied 37-Central Square. The Center Medical Building at 34 and 35-Central Square was occupied by physicians Gerald C Bousquet, Roy M Maletz, Richard C Pratt, Kenneth C Prescott, and Kenneth P Murphy.
  • The Page Building at 6-Boston Road was occupied by physician Stephen R Brovender (100), dentist Stephen Tolman (101), Management Retail Systems consultants (102), Chelmsford X-Ray (104), Chelmford Medical Laboratory (105), physician Theo J Ongaro (107), physician Vernon E Strobl (200), physician Cecil Alexander (201), physicians William R Hilll Jr and Edward F Parsons (202), and the Merrimack Valley Speech and Hearing Center and urologist Donald G Keamy (205).
Newsweekly, February 1, 1979
Chelmsford Center flood in 1979
  • 1983 - The BR Trust commisioned a Master Deed Plan that defined the layout of condominium units in buildings A (34,35-Central Square) and and B (6-Boston Road) on December 15 (plan 143/28).
  • 1984 - The BR Trust registered a Master Deed defining ownership allocation and Articles of Association for the 12-unit BR Condominium Association on April 19 (deed 2729/182).
BR Trust Master Deed Plan 143/28
BR Trust Master Deed Plan
  • 2006 - The BR Trust Master Deed Plan was amended on February 10 (plan 221/78).
  • The amended plan eliminated condominium unit 302 in the 34,35-Central Square one-story brick building and re-allocated space in units 300 and 301. This formalized a transition from multiple small rooms used by medical and business professionals into two large open spaces with a single address of 34-Central Square.
BR Trust Amended Master Deed Plan 221/79
BR Trust Amended Master Deed Plan
Chelmsford Independent, October 12, 2006

"Restauranteur hooks a site in Chelmsford By John Ciampa Staff Writer

"Ali Zosherafatain likes to spend weekday mornings down at the historic Boston Fish Pier on the southern edge of the city's harbor. He arrives early, and says getting there by about 6:30 means he’ll be able to buy some of the choicest cuts of fish coming in from the Atlantic.

"There's plenty of good catches to pick from, but he says he takes time to inspect and hold each piece before buying it. A tuna loin, for instance, may look good on the outside, but must also have the correct thickness to cook evenly and make a good presentation on a dinner plate.

Ali Zosherafatain plans to open Fishbones Restaurant

“'I enjoy it; it’s hands on and it gives me a chance to get to know the guys working there,' he said 'I might be there to get swordfish, but they could tell me that the sea bass looks good today — if I like it and buy some, that’s going to dictate the menu.' It’s a menu that’s coming soon to Chelmsford. Zosherafatain expects to open Fishbones — a soon-to-be restaurant and fish market that’s currently transforming 34-Central Square into an elegant eatery — by the beginning of November.

"It’s going to be a place where customers can not only eat traditional entrees such as scrod and fish n’ chips, but also experiment with more unusual offerings, like a mixed seafood kabob over a bed of greens, lightly topped by a sesame dressing. 'I like to go against the grain,' he said. 'But I also understand what many other people enjoy. Either way, you just let us know how you want it and we’ll make it that way.'

"Zosherafatain places a priority on responding to customers on an individual basis. For instance, one of the dishes he’s featuring is a broiled fish combo sprinkled with homemade breadcrumbs, but he says patrons can vary the combination of fish used or how the dish is prepared at will. For those who like variety, the restaurant will also feature a bar serving raw items like cherrystone clams.

"An outdoor patio for seasonal seating has just been finished, and offers a gateway to a take-out booth that will allow the lunch crowd to get its chowder fix, among other things ... Seating capacity will be 48, with an additional 20 available when the patio is open. Parking will be at the back of the restaurant, which Zosherafatain says will be emptied by 5 p.m. each evening as the adjacent office building closes.

"A large lobster aquarium will also stand against the front window, giving the pedestrians of Central Square a glimpse of the ocean some 25 miles inland.

"... Zosherafatain, 43, moved to the U.S. with his family ... (in) 1979. He started working in various Boston restaurants when he was 15, but developed a love for seafood after an extended stint at Jimmy’s Harborside on Boston’s Northern Avenue. He’s owned and operated the Atlantic Sea Grill in Acton since 1990, but says he's often driven through Chelmsford thinking it would be an ideal setting for another establishment ..."

April 22, 2010 photo by Fred Merriam
Fishbones April 22, 2010
October 10, 2010 photo by Fred Merriam
Michael's Upholstery October 10, 2009
August 19, 2013 photo by Fred Merriam
Marcus and Leslie Antidote August 19,2013
May 6, 2016 photo by FM
Cut to the Chase May 6, 2016
August 2023, Google Earth Pro
Tiny Tile Mosaics August, 2023
August 2023, Google Earth Pro
The Fishbones Block August, 2023

REFERENCES:
  1. All photos labeled (colorized) are black and white images edited by Fred Merriam
  2. Book, Arcadia Publishing, "Images of America, Chelmsford Revisited" by Fred Merriam
  3. Book, Courier Printing, "History of Chelmsford 1910-1970" by Eleanor Parkhurst and Fred Merriam
  4. Cemetery Records, Town of Chelmsford
  5. Deeds, plans, leases, mortgages, Middlesex North Registry by default
  6. Deeds, Middlesex South Registry, as listed
  7. Directories, Chelmsford Historical Society website, Media - Directories page
  8. GIS Mapping, Town of Chelmsford website
  9. Google Earth Pro, as listed
  10. Newspaper, Chelmsford Independent, as credited
  11. Newspaper, Chelmsford Newsweekly, as credited
  12. Photo collection, Chelmsford Historical Society
  13. Photo collection, Richard Lahue, Chelmsford
  14. Photo collection, Fred Merriam, Chelmsford
  15. Photo collection, Linda Prescott, Chelmsford
  16. State Inventory CLM.334, Chelmsford Historical Commission website, History - Businesses page
This feature was created by Fred Merriam for the Town of Chelmsford in cooperation with the Chelmsford Historical Society and Historical Commission. To comment: e-mail the Chelmsford Historical Society