Tobacco growers in Southwick, Massachusetts, and Simsbury, Connecticut, filed suits against Kutinsky, Adler & Co. of New York and Luther M. Case of Winstead, Connecticut, with Constable George B. Woodruff of Suffield, Connecticut, serving the defendants papers on August 11, 1906. Constable Woodruff also placed attachments on the tobacco, about $10,000 worth, that Kutinsky, Adler & Co. had stored in Suffield. (Serving Case was a formality as a court-approved petition forced him into bankruptcy in June.) Below is a list of the Southwick tobacco growers and the amount of each suit against Case and Kutinsky, Adler & Co. (Some growers also sued Starr Bros., who Case did business with or for.) Fred Arnold $6,000 ($5,500 tobacco, $500 damages) Adrian Coe $2,500 L. A. Fowler $2,500 Llewyn Wetherbee $1,800 Cooley Griffin $1,600 Fred Warner $1,200 Clement Robinson $1,200 Charles Noble $500 Walter S. Steer $400 Robert Nicholson $300 Fred Miller $300 Firms Boyle & Avery $1,500 Boyl...

On August 23, 1929, seven Massachusetts State Police officers went to Southwick, Massachusetts. At 5:45 p.m., they smashed their way into a popular resort on North Pond at Congamond Lake.  When the raiding party arrived at the Point Grove Inn, they found the doors locked. Busting in, they surprised the proprietress and her son, who had sat down for supper.  The long-planned raid on the inn (and two adjacent cottages) netted eight gallons of assorted liquors (mostly moonshine whisky), 2,000 bottles of beer, and two arrests: Margaret (Shea) LeFeave, charged with keeping and exposing liquor for sale, and her son Walter, illegal selling and manufacturing. The pair were taken to Westfield and later released on bail. (Walter: $500, Margaret $200).  In court, the judge fined Walter $100 for illegal liquor manufacturing and $50 for selling liquor; Margaret was fined $100 for keeping and exposing liquor for sale.  About one week later, just after 3:00 p.m. on August 30, 1929,...

The Rum Train Massachusetts State Police at the Agawam Barracks received word that a Packard Twin Six was leading a couple of Hudsons and a Chrysler toward Southwick (from Connecticut) on March 28, 1926. Connecticut State Police were already pursuing the train of vehicles, the second one carrying illegal spirits. Still, they could not stop them before they crossed the state line into Massachusetts at Southwick. Massachusetts State Police joined the chase, taking the lead, Connecticut following. But their machines were no match against the mighty powerful Packard.   One of the Hudsons (the one loaded with 150 gallons of illegal, high-grade, high-priced wholesale liquor) broke down. With the police hot on their trail, there was no time to unload the goods, so the Chrysler towed it.  Meanwhile, Massachusetts State Police officers were waiting in front of infamous Southwick physician Dr. Harry Carr's house on College Highway, ready to pounce on the bootleggers.  Catching...

It had all the markings of a stereotypical Hollywood gangster-themed motion picture. But instead of featuring a character based on Chicago's own Scarface, it involved Springfield's real-life Scarnicis, and it was no movie. This wild episode of hi-jacking and robbery with double-crossing, bootlegging, and gunplay unfolded in Feeding Hills and Southwick on December 16-17, 1924.  Cast  Louis Scarnici Leonard Scarnici Pellegrino Bonavito Alfred E. Brown Joseph Dubian Francis Bills Daniel Coffey and starring  Timothy J. Malone as the Deputy Sheriff After making a deal for 35 gallons of alcohol, a group of men headed from Springfield via Feeding Hills and Southwick to Westfield in a three-automobile convoy.  The Scarnicis, a father and son team, drove a large Buick touring car containing the illegal spirits; Francis Bills of Southwick and Joseph Dubian of Westfield accompanied them. Following them was Daniel Coffey of Westfield, who drove his auto alone. Behind the wheel i...

Village Green Shopping Center Southwick Building Inspector Francis Ehrhardt issued a building permit to Clyde Jones and Robert Pollard in October 1965 to construct an $80,840 shopping center. They tapped the Medical Development and Construction Company of Westfield to head the project. (The general contracting company went bankrupt in 1973.) The Village Green Shopping Center held its grand opening on April 20, 1966, with Jones Market as its anchor. Other tenants included a barbershop relocated from the Southwick Shopping Center and the Venetian Bakery, a new business in town. A branch of the Third National Bank of Hampden County opened about a month later. The new center's parking lot capacity was 200 cars. (Jones Market, founded by Charles H. Jones, was initially located nearby on College Highway. Due to increased business, the new store afforded more square footage than the original.)  1968 - Tragedy Strikes John Graham, of Gargon Terrace, worked at Jones Market and was well...

Liquor raids were common in Southwick, Massachusetts, especially around Congamond Lake, before, during, and even after Prohibition. The Lake was a popular tourist destination, and demand for intoxicating spirits from vacationers, even tobacco plantation and ice-harvesting workers, fueled illegal booze manufacturing. Residents complained to selectmen, who were slow to act or purposely turned a blind eye. When they did act, authorities would routinely target hotels and inns. No establishment was immune; they raided them all, including the Lake House, most notably in 1903 and 1906, and the Southwick Hotel, the predecessor to today's Southwick Inn, in 1869, 1887, and 1904.  Pre-Prohibition In 1908, Massachusetts had 249 towns and 18 cities that banned alcohol, up from 100 towns with local prohibition laws in 1840; enforcement proved challenging. Across the nation, a rise in bootlegging and gangland violence prompted more citizens to join the call for a nationwide ban on alcohol.  ...

Southwick Real Estate Listing Prices over the Years 1868 Described as a fine farm, it comprised 110 acres about 3/4 mile from the Southwick train station and about 4 miles from Westfield. In addition to the land, the sale included a two-story house, carriage house, stock barn, shop, hog house, tobacco sheds, ice house, and a slaughterhouse complete with hide and meat rooms. The asking price and terms were $8,560, half cash.   Home in the Cottage Grove 1882 Real estate salesman George Kingsbury listed what he described as a beautiful farm in Southwick Center. (Price unknown.) 1887 A "beautiful home in the village of Southwick; cottage house in perfect order" was listed for sale by George W. Doane & Co. of Springfield for $1,500. The house sat on 2.5 acres of land with choice fruit and shade trees.  A farmer listed his 33-acre property near the North Longyard schoolhouse for sale for $1,000. It included three acres of meadowland, pasturing for three cows, outbuildings, and ...