We’re seeking historical details about Tommy Reeds Bicycle Store/Candy Store in Long Branch (in New Jersey not Toronto)
Given that I have a website that focuses on Long Branch (in Toronto not New Jersey), I sometimes get phone calls from across the United States asking me to help track down historical details related to Long Branch (in New Jersey not Toronto).
People find the Preserved Stories website through Google searches for Long Branch.
Usually it takes a few moments of conversation before it dawns on each of us that we need to distinguish between the two Long Branches.
That is, my focus is on Long Branch, Toronto in Canada, and there’s also a Long Branch in New Jersey in the United States.
I’ve also had great discussions about Long Branch on Facebook. Again, in those conversations it took us a while to figure out that each of us was thinking at first of a different Long Branch.
Over the years, I’ve been learning about both Long Branches.
Tommy Reed’s Bike Store/Candy Store
Today I spoke with Bob Egan of PopSpots.
As Bob Egan’s website notes, “PopSpots is a website about those places, primarily in New York City, where interesting events in the history of Pop Culture took place; like album cover shots, places where movies and tv shows were filmed, and sites on which paintings were based.”
Bob phoned me to ask if I could help locate historical information about a small cottage that appears on a photo on the back cover of the 1973 Bruce Springsteen album, The Wild, the Innocent, and the E Street Shuffle.
The photo features a picture of the band in front of a small cottage where a bicycle store/candy shop owned by Tommy Reeds was located at the time.
The location of the store was Sairs Street north of Brighton and south of West End. The store/candy shop stood where the parking lot of the West Elementary School is now located.
Do you have information about Tommy Reeds’ store?
If you do, please contact me through the Preserved Stories Website or through my Facebook page (Jaan Hendrik Pill). Or please contact Bob Egan directly through his website.
Long Branch, New Jersey. Source: http://www.long-branch.net/
I grew up on Sairs Avenue and went to Tommy Reeds from the mid sixties to early seventies. The location was on Sairs Avenue on the west side of the street about 100 feet down Sairs Avenue from West End Avenue. West End Elementary School was on the opposite side of the street at the corner of West End Avenue and Sairs Avenue. Just happened to walk my old neighborhood today as I was visiting from Southern California. I left West End in 1972 and my fondest memories were of going into Tommy Reeds with about fifteen cents and walking out with candy, picking and choosing which ones I was going to buy that day. Sometimes when I had the money I would buy an ice cold coke in a glass bottle, but you had to go into the other room and walk around bicycles and open up the old ice box he had in there. It’s just a parking lot now.
Hey Lenny this is Bob decreashenzo.
I don’t know if you remember me but I remember you.
I Google’s Tommy reeds menu and Jimmy fabric came up that’s cool. I have a Facebook look me up if you’re interested.
I’m not too big on all this computer s***.
This is wonderful to know about, Len! I much enjoy learning about Long Branch (New Jersey not Toronto), much as I do learning about Long Branch (Toronto). These are two great communities and each has a fascinating history.
Do you have any photographs of your earlier years in Long Branch (New Jersey). If you do, can you scan some and send them to me as jpeg files? I would love to see such photos. Other people would be interested also.
I spent a good part of my youth in that store, From buying a nickel Coke to Penny Candy
to getting my bike tire fixed. Mr Reed always had a cigar in his mouth.
Good to have the additional detail, James!