Here are some more photos shared by my friend Bill Olson from Iselin...
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| Iselin's train station, before it was "Metropark" |
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| The Good Old Iselin Theater |
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| Carrols... at Hill Top |
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| Do you remember Milk Machines??? |
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| Hill Top Shop Rite - You'd see the sign on the parkway and know you were home! |
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| Eagle Hardware |
Do you where Carroll's was on Hilltop? What about the location of Eagle Hardware and the Milk Machine above? I know the Shop rite was across from the old Pizza Hut-which is now Sukhadia's Sweets. Do you have pictures of the old A&P which is now a Buy-Rite liquor store on Oak Tree in Edison? Thank you.
ReplyDeleteCarrol's was there BEFORE Pizza Hut, across the street from the ShopRite on Oak Tree Road. I think that's a gas station now, across from the Patel Cash & Carry on the other corner (which was Steve's Citgo when Carrol's was still around).
DeleteActually, there was a Philadelphia Joe's Cheesesteaks before Pizza Hut was and there was a Gino's Hamburgers there before that. Eagle Hardware was on the corner of Correja and Oak Tree road across from the old Iselin Theatre. I'm not so sure that Carrols is where you think it was because the lettering on the building next to it looks like the same typeface that Goodyear uses and I'm sure there was never a Goodyear tire center up there. I moved here in 1979 and it was Gino's then.
DeleteThe Carrol's pictured is NOT the Carrol's that was on Oak Tree Road in Iselin. It is the Carrol's that was located on Parsonage Road across from the Menlo Park Mall. After Carrol's closed, it became a Jack-in-the-Box, and later a McDonald's Mini-Mac Drive-Thru only location. It is now a T-Mobile phone store. The Carrol's in Iselin became an Arthur Treacher's Fish-n-Chips, and after that a Pizza Hut. Carrol's did not go out of business, btw, but became a Burger King franchisee, converting most of its stores to Burger Kings. They are still in business. Notably, the New Brunswick location near Rutgers University became Greasy Tony's.
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ReplyDeleteCarroll's was were they put the old Pizza Hut, across the street from the Shop Rite. Eagle Hardware was on the same side of Oak Tree Road as the Iselin Theater, on the block right before that. I'm not sure where that milk machine was, but there were a few spread around. And I have no pictures of the old A&P in Edison - does anyone out there have any?
ReplyDeleteHi, I just came across these old pictures. I arrived in Iselin in the late 1950's. I lived there about 26 years. Then I moved to Los Angeles. What was the buidling date on the old school No. 6? 1906 or 1909? We used to wait at Klein's corner (Middlesex Turnpike and Oak Tree Road) for the school bus to Woodbridge Jr. HS and later to Woodbridge HS. They were all double session in the late 1950's and early 1960's. I remember the old Iselin Post Office in the late 1950's was next to the Movie Theater. I also have some old photos of Iselin. I have to find them. I remember the objects of all these photos, except the Milk Machine. The Harware Store and the Movie Theater were separated by Coreaja Avenue. I had a Newark Evening News (and Sunday News) paper route that extended from Dow Avenue (Near Hwy 27) to the streets off Coreaja Avenue, and its extension ... all the way to the connection to New Dover Road in Colonia. Coreaja Avenue's extension beyond the hill climb towards Colonia was a dirt road in the early 1960's. In the winter, it became very muddy.
ReplyDeleteHi, here are three more old landmarks I remember from the late 1950's to the 1970's in Iselin. 1) Right across the Catholic School on Oak Tree Road, one building East of Middlesex Turnpike, was a small white house with a shoemakers shop on the ground floor-basement. The sheoemaker was a nice old gentlemen named James Carbone. We used to take our family shoes to him for repairs. His House-Store was next to the Prespitarian Church.
ReplyDelete2) The Old Firehouse was vacant, and it was on a street just off the extension of Middlesex Turnpike between Oak Tree Road and Highway 27 (Lincoln Highway). It was used for Scouting Meetings. 3) The old Iselin Public Library was also located on this extension of the Middlesex Turnpike. It was a small one story old building. I was into reading Charles Dickens novels as teenager, and I used to go there to borrow Dickens novels, like "The Pickwick Papers." Remembering Iselin in the 1950's and 1960's brings back fond memories. (Pen Name: "The Paper Boy" (Ananymous).
Mr. Carbone had a sign out front with a black cat for "Cat's Paw" heels and soles. Remember it well. In Iselin in those days "Kleins" could be two different things - the variety store on Oak Tree or the department store out on Route 1 across from the empty field that would one day be Woodbridge Center but was then just Metuchen Avenue (Gill Lane on the other side of Rt 1).
DeleteThat was my Dads Uncle Jimmy the shoe maker! Remember DiFino oil an ice?? Ours too! Miss the old Iselin
DeleteI REMEMBER HOW MUCH TROUBLE I WAS IN BECAUSE OF THE "CLEATS" ON MY SHOES. ST.CECILIAS NUNS WERE NOT HAPPY ABOUT THE NOISE THEY MADE ON THE GRANET FLOORS BY 150 BOYS. BOTH MR.C AND DIFINO INSTALLED CLEATS ON MY SHOES MANY TIMES. GOOD TIMES.
Deleteremember gangs in kenndy park ogotree and kim buying nickel bags by the cement pool. I remember biker gangs in old green house at the end of dow av.and 27 enyone remember that? remember a gang hanging out at old shoprite at the other end of the shopping center 5and10.
DeleteHi there, Paper Boy! Thanks for sharing your memories!
ReplyDeleteHey there everyone. I grew up in Iselin. Mr Carbone was a friend of my Dad's they used to make wine together and I remember his daughter Sandy we used to play together. I don't remember a school #6 in Iselin. I lived on Pershing Ave across the street from School #15 and it looks the same. This is great brought back many happy memories. Thanks
ReplyDeleteYes, I thought that was my old school, PS 15 on Pershing Avenue before the "portables" were added. I don't recall any school 6 but they later built "Kennedy Park" school in Iselin.
ReplyDeleteI went to school 6 for kindergarten, december 1962 mrs mcglocklin
ReplyDeleteI had her also for kindergarten, mid 50's. My dad was the Cooper's Dairy milkman
DeleteHow many remember the old turkey farm on Wood Avenue near Oak Tree Road? It was between what is now Livingston Ave and Charles St. In 1960 Wood Ave was still a dirt road.
ReplyDeleteI remember. I lived in the Woodbridge Oaks section behind Hilltop and we use to ride our bikes to the farm.
DeleteDOES ANYONE BESIDE ME REMEMBER COOPERS DAIRY?
ReplyDeleteYep. Next to the old Iselin post office before they expanded onto the land that used to be the dairy.
DeleteI have a milkbottel froum the dairy
DeleteI have a milkbottel from the dairy
DeleteI have a vintage milk box that says Cooper's Dairy on it.
DeleteI have an old milk box that says Cooper's Dairy on it.
DeleteTHE SCHOOL PICTURE LOOKS LIKE SCHOOL 15
ReplyDeleteI remember the turkey farm. We would watch the workers grab the live turkey by the neck near Thanksgiving to be killed for someone's dinner. I was young and felt sorry for those poor things.
ReplyDeleteI lived in Iselin from 1953 untill 1960 in Woodbridge Oaks,I also went to school 15 which is no longer there,does anybody remember the shoemaker across from St. Cecilia's he used to have a parrot on a perch outside of his store,also next to the Shoprite we had a ballfield with a giant rock on it.
ReplyDeleteI believe the ballfield with the giant rock was across the street from the ShopRite behind Carrols. Great times.
DeleteThat picture is of School 6 where I went to Kindergarten in 55-56 right before School 18 opened. It was on Green Street right next to the Fire Dept.
ReplyDeleteI had miss morrison in 3rd grade and she paid me to clean her house,I was a patrol boy at ps-15 and had a paper route.Iwas raised by my gradfather,during retirement he worked for George THE GREEK.Iwent on to work at ciccones weding works.
ReplyDeleteHello Al, I had Miss Morrison for my 4th grade teacher. I remember her well with flowing hair and fancy dresses. I left Iselin in 1954 when my Dad was transferred to a new job in Ga. This brings back so many memories. Did you have Mr. Jago also. Great teacher.
DeleteI had Miss Morrison also. I remember her well with all that hair and the fancy dresses. Did you have Mr. Jago also.
DeleteI had Mr. Jago also. I lived right across from the school and remember playing on the school lawn after school and taking our sleds down the hill behind the school and hoping we didn't hit the basketball hoop. I moved to GA when my Dad's job was transferred.
DeleteHere's something. I'm looking at an old aerial photo from 1947 at the place where Shop Rite used to be and I see airplanes. Was there an airfield up there in the 40's?
ReplyDeleteYes there was an airport in Iselin at the top of Oak Tree Rd.
DeleteYes there was an airport at the top of Oak Tree Rd. It was taken out when the Parkway was built and the land was used for houses.
DeleteYes, this location was an airport prior to about 1947. They say the very first iteration of Shoprite was in an old hanger.
DeleteLook in the background on the far left of the train station photo. You can see Flip's tavern. The train station actually wasn't where Metropark is now. It was near where Bobby Noll's garage is. There were concrete steps leading up to it from the train trestle.
ReplyDeleteMy grandmother, Ms. McLaughlin, was the kindergarten teacher. She loved every minute and enjoyed all her students. I went to St. Cecelia's and would go to her classroom to help with boots and coats at the end of the day.
ReplyDeleteShe was a great teacher...I had her in '58. Loved Tony, the crossing guard. Then we moved to School 26. Lois M.
DeleteMy first job ever, in the summer, was at this Carrols Hamburgers, circa 1974. They closed at the end of that summer, I was out of a job and back to school.
ReplyDeleteHow many people know there was an Old Dover Road (Dover Road)? It was located just before crossing over the east side of the Parkway bridge heading west on New Dover Road. I lived on the west side of the same Parkway bridge off of New Dover Road and Semel Avenue.
ReplyDeleteMy dad owned hilltop American in the sixties. He had the huge paul bunyon holding tires.
ReplyDeleteIt was school fifteen. I went there from kindergarten to sixth grade. Miss Eisenstat was my kindergarden teacher. I had miss curry, Mrs. Long, Mrs. Salls, Mr. Fazack.
ReplyDeleteMy dad owned Hilltop American gas station. He had the huge Paul Bunyon holding tires.
ReplyDeleteI remember when the turkey farm burned. Big smokey fire. Does anyone remember the ice house on Route 27 ? Right across from Metropark
ReplyDeletedoe's anyone remember Mrs Geary, Mrs Morrison
ReplyDelete