Since I sometimes get inspired, and plan out posts weeks in advance, occasionally things happen, and I miss out… Like this for example. The fire last month on Ouellette Avenue.
The store front that was once home to Valerie’s Ladies Fashions was among my favourite places along Ouellette. It was once of the few unaltered store fronts along Ouellette where you could get a feel for the boom years of the 1920’s.
The window displays retained their art deco lines…
And the floor!
Great art deco geometric patterns. The terrazzo floor was laid by a true craftsman.
When the rub & tug moved in, I was initially worried about a renovation… However…
It looked better once they got in. The ceiling was painted, and all the loose bits removed, and a new fixture added.
It’s all gone now, and another link to the past is wiped away.
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The Nut House was next door at 419 Ouellette. The building was renovated beyond recognition before the inferno.
Andrew,
Are there any councils, organizations in Windsor to protect its heritage, architectural or otherwise?
Andrew is a member of the heritage commitee!
Thanks for the reply Andrew,
I understand what you mean. But if you've ever read 'The New American Ghetto' by camilo josé vergara, you know how powerful that is. Ah well, no worries. Thanks for a great web site.
David
David in CA - Thanks for the comparison, CJV is certainly an influence in some of my photos. Because of his works, that's why I have returned over the years to some of the sites. I will probably return to this one as well, but just haven't had a chance.
If 417 Ouellette wasn't the Nut House, what was it? The windows and entranceway look so much like how i remember when I would walk in to buy a 25 cent piece of fudge after swimming at the Y and then wait for the bus home while scarfing it down. And yes, i too remember the colored popcorn layering the front windows with boxes of popcorn and blocks of fudge displayed.
The souvenir shop next door was Rings & Things and I'm pretty certain what became "Awesome" women's clothing (one door north) was my dad's old store, "Bert Weeks Jewellers" where I used to work in high school. It moved around the corner onto Park Street when Harry, one of his watch makers bought it back in the the late 1970s early 1980s.
I wish I had an old photo of that block from the "olden" days so I could figure this out.
The nut house was narrow and only had a display along one side of the entrance. And the case was only waist high up, not full length like 417.
that spot is an empty lot now i hope the city does something good with it like wall murals and grass and flowers and benchs
i think Valeria's was the nut house i was sorry to see it moved to goyeau street it just wasn't the same
Well dave if some new retail goes in that spot i hope to hell it's not another shawarma palace talk about saturation