history of 84 commonwealth avenue
 

What is now 84 Commonwealth Avenue was known as the Association Hall building, originally built in 1893 and burned in September, 1903.

When the building was rebuilt, the first floor housed the Rexall Store run by C. Hayden Whitney. On the second floor were offices, and the Association Hall, which according to residents, was “a mainstay on the social life for the West Concord community”. Movies, dances and minstrel shows were held in the Hall. On the third floor was the Odd Fellows Hall, which was used for all the local fraternal organizations. An original cell door used when men at the Odd Fellows Hall had imbibed too much still remains in the modern 84 Commonwealth Building. The building served as the center of West Concord’s social and community activity.

We hope that with the opening of Saltbox Kitchen, the building will yet again become a center of activity in West Concord.