Remembering the Village of Baltic during the 1960's, my teen years, there are many changes. Even as I moved into the village of Baltic in 1972, it was quaint, although not as many businesses, but people still knew their neighbors The only noticeable apartments were Harringtons Apartments, which housed strictly Navy personnel. "The Brothers" did own a number of the duplex houses, but they were not considered "slum lords". The old Flatiron Building across from Fred's News was a commercial block, their tenant's, the package store, Sprague Sand and Gravel and if my memory holds true, Charron and Delaney had their offices in the building as well. In later years, the entire Jodoin Block (Flatiron Bldg.) would be apartments.
Flatiron buildings are structures built between 1880 and the early 1920's usually in the Renaissance Revival architectural style. Their shape much like the flat iron used on clothes, served two purposes: one it gave business districts a type of identity and it efficiently used otherwise useless spaces. Baltic's little flatiron building did just that. Today, many of the old flatiron buildings were considered the early skyscrapers, not the case in Baltic. Former Fred's News customer, Donnie Charron had a few postcards of the early flatiron building, in it's beginnings, only one story tall, hardly a skyscraper, the other floors added later. As it stands today, I wouldn't call it a skyscraper, but it did identify the village's business district. Although much has changed for the little building, it no longer home to local businesses, it's sole purpose is homes for a few of Sprague's citizens. On close inspection, a few of the buildings original architectural designs remain intact. I did have the opportunity to visit the upstairs apartment that faced Fred's News. A friend had rented the little place for just a short time, yet my visit to the interior was a pleasant surprise. The elegance of the hallways and staircase amazing, the view from her front window overlooking the Flowers of Fred's News, absolutely stunning. It was very much a step back in time, the shape of the rooms very much imitating the shape of the building. One could close their eyes envisioning this little building tucked neatly on a trapezoid shaped lot in early part of the twentieth century, located in a neighborhood in New York City.
The flatiron building has seen it's share of heartbreak, many of it's earlier apartment dwellers, not model citizens, vandalizing this historic gem. As each new landlord began renovations, promises were made to improve the building and it's residents, hopefully it is a work in progress that will continue. The Town has much to offer, look around the villages of the Town, themselves rough cut gems, awaiting a re-awakening and restoration of their former glory days.
Flatiron buildings are structures built between 1880 and the early 1920's usually in the Renaissance Revival architectural style. Their shape much like the flat iron used on clothes, served two purposes: one it gave business districts a type of identity and it efficiently used otherwise useless spaces. Baltic's little flatiron building did just that. Today, many of the old flatiron buildings were considered the early skyscrapers, not the case in Baltic. Former Fred's News customer, Donnie Charron had a few postcards of the early flatiron building, in it's beginnings, only one story tall, hardly a skyscraper, the other floors added later. As it stands today, I wouldn't call it a skyscraper, but it did identify the village's business district. Although much has changed for the little building, it no longer home to local businesses, it's sole purpose is homes for a few of Sprague's citizens. On close inspection, a few of the buildings original architectural designs remain intact. I did have the opportunity to visit the upstairs apartment that faced Fred's News. A friend had rented the little place for just a short time, yet my visit to the interior was a pleasant surprise. The elegance of the hallways and staircase amazing, the view from her front window overlooking the Flowers of Fred's News, absolutely stunning. It was very much a step back in time, the shape of the rooms very much imitating the shape of the building. One could close their eyes envisioning this little building tucked neatly on a trapezoid shaped lot in early part of the twentieth century, located in a neighborhood in New York City.
The flatiron building has seen it's share of heartbreak, many of it's earlier apartment dwellers, not model citizens, vandalizing this historic gem. As each new landlord began renovations, promises were made to improve the building and it's residents, hopefully it is a work in progress that will continue. The Town has much to offer, look around the villages of the Town, themselves rough cut gems, awaiting a re-awakening and restoration of their former glory days.
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