Community Corner

Picture South Windsor - Then And Now

An old photo and brief story from South Windsor's past, and how that site appears today.

A collision between a pizza delivery truck and a train in the early 1950s.
A collision between a pizza delivery truck and a train in the early 1950s. (Courtesy of Friends of Wood Memorial Library & Museum)

SOUTH WINDSOR, CT — We return again to the pages of an amazing picture book entitled Images of America: South Windsor, compiled in 2017 by Claire Lobdell for the Wood Memorial Library & Museum. The book, containing 128 pages of fascinating photos from the town's history, is available for purchase at the library's museum store here.

On page 90 is a look from 1953, when a frozen pizza delivery truck was struck by a train at the Troy Road railroad crossing. The truck driver sustained minor injuries to his shoulder, but the truck was completely destroyed. Pizzas were found all around the railroad tracks and the adjacent grass.

The company name is unreadable, but the truck says Manchester, Conn. Note the unique phone number (Tel. 6195) and license plate number (32-526) commonly used during the 1950s. Note also the crowd of spectators; unlike today, no cell phone cameras in hand.

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Here is a more contemporary view of the tracks, courtesy of Google Maps.

Do you have a photo of an old South Windsor business which no longer exists, to which you own the rights and which we could feature in this column? Email tim.jensen@patch.com.

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