88 State Street

History

Located in front of the former “N.D. Dodge” shoe factory at the corner of State Street and Prince Place, this two-story, wood-frame commercial block dates to the late 19th century. Historic photographs show a building quite different from that seen today.

The first floor of the flat-roofed block had large display windows with multi-light transoms, while the upper story was lit by multiple 2/2 windows. Iron cresting originally crowned the roof. Today, the building is sheathed in wood shingles and capped by a projecting cornice with a modillion-like detail. Any cornerboards that once existed have been removed or covered. The first-floor storefront has been bricked in with standard brick resting on a concrete foundation. Centered on the State Street façade is a recessed entrance with a modern metal-and-glass door. It is flanked on one side by a 3×3-light window and on the other by a round window. The simple sign band above the windows is now obscured by awnings. There is a single off-center modern 1/1 window on the second-floor façade, in addition to a hanging, internally lit plastic sign. The Prince Place elevation has two 3×3 windows on the first floor adjacent to the storefront, with two modern 1/1 sashes and a frame on the second floor.

On July 31, 1883, the Newburyport Herald reported that the old wooden building on State Street, previously occupied by John Sumner, was being torn down to make way for a new building at the corner of Prince Place and State Street. Sumner’s store, which sold stoves, plumbing, and tinware, had occupied the site since at least 1869. After the construction of the new building, Sumner continued to occupy the first floor until at least 1891. In 1891, a new restaurant managed by Carter & Morgan opened at the store on the corner of State Street and Prince Place. The next occupant was Zatris Bros., a fruit and confectionery business. In 1925, Annie C. Ryan had a fruit and confectionery store here; in the 1930s, she also operated a tearoom next door at 86 State Street (which later became the A & P). Annie Ryan continued to operate a restaurant at 88 State Street through the 1940s. She lived at 6 Cherry Street. Sanborn insurance maps suggest that the building was somewhat altered between 1924 and 1946; the earlier map shows the front wall of the building as slightly recessed relative to that of the adjacent building.

Taffy’s was opened by William Rymsha and his bride, Olga, in 1951.