Cap’n Newick’s was a landmark in South Portland for decades.

2) On the right side of this photo, the Browse Shoppe can be seen at 728 Broadway.]

Cap’n Newick’s was a landmark in South Portland for decades. South Portland Historical Society photo

The South Portland Historical Society recently acquired two slides that give a glimpse of a section of Broadway in the Pleasantdale neighborhood. I thought readers might enjoy these images from about 40 years ago. In the first image we see cars parked in front of Cap’n Newick’s Lobster House, the landmark restaurant that was located for about 30 years at 740 Broadway. The site is now home to Willow’s Pizza & Restaurant and several other businesses.

Yerxa’s Garden Center was the first to operate from that building at 740 Broadway. After about 15 years of operating at that location, Yerxa’s moved across the street in the mid-1970s.

Cap’n Newick’s Lobster House, a small restaurant chain based in New Hampshire, decided to expand and open a restaurant here in 1976. They hired F.P. & C.H. Murray, Inc., as their general contractor to retrofit the large building. With generous portions of seafood served on paper plates and in a picnic-table setting, they kept prices reasonable and the business exploded.

Growing up in South Portland in the 1970s and ’80s, I can tell you that seeing the buses pulled up at Cap’n Newick’s was a regular sight. There also seemed to be a good camaraderie among the workers who kept the restaurant running smoothly even with the crowds of people descending upon them. The restaurant chain later changed its name to Newick’s Seafood Restaurant. The restaurant on Broadway closed in May 2007.

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On the right side of this photo, The Browse Shoppe can be seen at 728 Broadway. South Portland Historical Society photo

The slides were not dated and with Cap’n Newick’s longevity, it would be hard to date them based on that business alone. The second image, however, gets us very close. The photographer was obviously taking a picture of the Cap’n Newick’s sign, but what they also captured was a very rare image of the Browse Shoppe at 728 Broadway.

We’ve never before seen a photograph of that business, due in part because it wasn’t there all that long. The Browse Shoppe, known also as Ken & Babe’s Browse Shoppe, was only there from roughly 1978 to 1980. The antique and gift shop was operated by Bob Dunlop and his wife, Constance.

Do you have photographs to share that show scenes from around South Portland in earlier years? Please contact South Portland Historical Society at 55 Bug Light Park, South Portland, ME 04106, by phone at 767-7299, or by email at sphistory04106@gmail.com. Thank you.

Kathryn Onos DiPhilippo is executive director of the South Portland Historical Society.

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