Picture Enfield - Then and Now

ENFIELD, CT — Today's installment of this weekly Enfield history series, courtesy of the Facebook group Picture Enfield, is a rarity for this column: a color photo, which was taken in the early 1980s of a successful small business in the heart of the Hazardville section of town.

Prior to the advent of the Internet - back when people actually got out of the house to do their shopping - and the rapid growth of Teleflora, there was an abundance of flower shops in the area. Among the nicest was a small shop in the center of Hazardville, owned by a native of that village.

In 1981, a young woman in her early twenties named Ann Vasseur Buck opened the Village Florist at 304 Hazard Avenue. She carried a full supply of cut flowers, plants and mums, and the exterior of her store was always decorated beautifully according to the season.

She operated the shop through the birth of her daughter Ashley, but with the arrival of her son Travis, she sold the business in 1986.

Over the past 30 years, a number of small shops, particularly pizzerias, have operated at that location. The most successful was Joey's Pizza, which enjoyed about a decade-long run. Since 2015, the site has hosted Vinny's Pizza, Dad's Pizza and Roberto's Pizzeria, which closed abruptly earlier this month after just two months in business.

Here is a photo of the building as it looks today:

(Tim Jensen/Patch Media Corp.)

Last week's trivia answer:
Last week's trivia question was, "Longtime Kosciuszko science teacher and cross country coach Gary Blanchette was known by what nickname?" The answer: Stretch, no doubt inspired by his 6-foot-6, 190 lb. physique. He is pictured below with his Big K cross country squad from 1979, whose captain won several dual meets that year and captured a 1.6 mile road race in Bushnell Park in Hartford, besting more than 100 competitors. That captain's name? Tim Jensen. Can you spot me in this photo?

(Enfield Historical Society via archive.org)

This week's trivia question:
Speaking of pizza shops, the location of one of Enfield's most popular destinations in the 1970s is currently in the middle of a roadway. Name the shop and its site? Post the answer in the comments section below, or on the Enfield Patch Facebook page.