52 Ancestors Week 6: Earning a Living

From Amy Johnson Crow: Week 6

The theme for Week 6 is "Earning a Living." Knowing how our ancestors earned a living can give us insight into their lives. What occupations have you seen in your family? Is there an ancestor whose occupation wouldn't exist today or one whose job really resonates with you?

HERE COMES THE MONEY!

    A job that doesn't exist any more, huh? After thinking about it I can think of only one job in my family tree we don't really see in today's world. My great-grandfather, Alfred Hamel ran his own "Fix-it" shop on Inn Street in Newburyport up until his death in 1962 and you really don't see those shops around any more. These days repair shops are specific to one area of expertise. If your computer breaks down, you take it to a computer repair shop and hope/pray that some Geek Squad member can fix whatever is wrong with your computer. In Alfred's day, repair shops tended to be a bit less specific.

Gotta love that swagger.

     From what my mother told me, his shop tended to focus on a bit of everything from appliances to everything mechanical you can think of including safes and motors. As a little girl, she visited his shop often and saw all kinds of stuff scattered all over the place. It's little wonder that she often made my brother and I clean our rooms so often. She was not a fan of clutter AT ALL!

    That isn't to say Alfred wasn't good at his job. He was. In fact, he was a well-known and well-liked person within his community. His friends and neighbors all gave him the nickname "Mr. Fixit". So, he had to have been really good at what he did. You don't call someone "Mr. Fixit" if they weren't good at fixing things. It just doesn't work!

    Fixing things wasn't the only thing Alfred was good at doing. He also made keys. That's a pretty handy talent to have if your job was to fix a safe. I mean you're going to need keys once your safe is fixed, right? It would help.

   Shops like Alfred's tended to be places where everyone would go to because it was the only game in town. People came from all over Newburyport for his services and because of his excellent work his reputation would grow thanks to word of mouth. That's part of why he became so well-liked. I'm sure his personality might have played a huge role in keeping the business profitable.

Let's take a stroll!

    I wish I could say for certain where on Inn Street  the shop was. The area changed so much since Alfred was around and now the street is home to various restaurants, an ice cream parlor and clothing outlets. If there's one thing I know about downtown Newburyport it's that shops changed hands quite frequently. For example, one of the places where I used to buy comics is long gone. Talk about a sign of the times. 

   At least I have a good idea of where the building was since nothing was ever torn down as far as I can tell. For all I know this building I took a picture of was the fix-it shop. You never know. It could be. One thing's for sure. The neighborhood does seem kind of nice.

     If the fix-it shop was so great, why did it fall out of style? Well, times changed as illustrated by the picture. By the early 1960s, department stores like Sears appeared in the area and offered their own repair services. Small shops like my great-grandfather's couldn't compete with a corporation like that. Since he passed away in 1962 and the shop was still operating, I'm not sure if he ever felt the pressure from that specific store or anywhere else for that matter. However, we can say for certain other shops like his definitely felt the same crunch as time went on.

    It's a shame that repair shops like that no longer exist. Though, you could argue that the computer repair shops and other repair shops are the spiritual successor to the kind of shop Alfred ran. Think about it. They offer the same services at a reasonable price and sometimes the people running the joint treat you like a real person. Do they feel pressure from places like "Best Buy"? Sure. But, something about them just seems endearing and I hope they last a good long time.

See ya next time.

Picture of Inn Street is property of Google Maps.