Recalling Route 110 when it was the only way to the beach

By Jill Harmacinski
Staff Writer

July 08, 2008 12:15 am

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Bill Laird remembers the days before the big open highway, Interstate 495, was built. He and his buddies, and sometimes his best girl, would pile into a car, somebody's car, and make the hourlong trek from Lawrence to Salisbury Beach along Route 110.

"The worst part of that road was the road into Salisbury," said Laird, 66. "It was always a horror show. People lined up bumper to bumper. They weren't just from Lawrence. They were from all over."

Four decades have passed since I-495 was stretched to the coast, cutting the commute from the Merrimack Valley to the beach to mere minutes. While convenient and speedy, the highway doesn't give you the same flavor as a journey on the old road.

Gone are the old drive-in theater in Haverhill and the Coach House hotel, now only marked by an overgrown sign. But withstanding the test of time is one of the longest curves in any highway anywhere, along with farms in Methuen, ice cream shops and a major Route 110 landmark — Skip's Snack Bar in Merrimac.

The cost of a Route 110 road trip may have been the biggest change of all. Laird remembers paying 26 cents a gallon for gas at Merit on Route 110 in downtown Haverhill.

"Everybody got gas there. It was the cheapest gas around," he recalled.

Today, Merit is gone, but other stations have cropped up along River Street. The price for a gallon of gas there last week ranged from $3.99 to $4.07.

No matter how long it took — or how much it cost — to get to the beach, it was always great to get there.

Joanne Ratcliffe, 67, recalled the thrill of finally making it to Beach Road in Salisbury and getting a glimpse of the roller coaster.

"Your eyes were all looking for that roller coaster and when you saw it, you'd let out a yell," she said.

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Route 110 in Methuen has long been known for its farms, run by families with deep Italian roots. That stretch of the road, also known in this city as Merrimack Street, still has a distinctively Italian flair with delis, restaurants and even a gelato shop.

Heav'nly Donuts, a popular coffee and pastry shop owned by Greek immigrants, opened 32 years ago.

Vahey Gulezian, 88, of Andover, said he passed by Simone Farm, the Whirlaway golf driving range and a lobster pound on his trips to the beach. Down the road, there was a place called Bradley Brook, a good spot for pulling off the road and "Simonizing your car," said Gulezian, recalling how folks would pull off the road to wax their cars.

In those days, a trip to the beach "took a long time," he said.

In Haverhill, 92-year-old Margaret Buzzell remembers when there were no cars on Route 110.

"We didn't have all these cars like we do today," said Buzzell, who grew up at 1201 River St. (Route 110). She was just a small girl when "Ma and Pa bought a Model T Ford" and they'd cruise to "some little stand on the side of the road."

"There weren't too many houses out there," she said.

But her son's recollection of Route 110 is very different. Kevin Grosse, 63, would ride his bicycle to the Riverview Drive-in Theatre on Route 110 in Haverhill, which closed in the 1960s. A dangerous curve in the road outside his front door made it into "Ripley's Believe It or Not" because it's one of the longest curves on any highway anywhere.

Grosse said the good weather always brought plenty of cars and accidents.

"The traffic was always backed up," he said. "This was the main road."

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Kaylynn Perkins, 19, of Haverhill works at a newer Route 110 business, Pedro Diegos in downtown Haverhill. The restaurant opened 27 years ago and just last week, reignited its lunch menu. Perkins said she knows very little about the history of the old way to the beach, but admits that's the route she always takes.

"I don't like the highway ... I just think Route 110 is a little easier," Perkins said.

Her trips to the coast almost always include stops at Biggart's Ice Cream stand, formerly the Clover Leaf Dairy, which opened in 1936. David and Linda Biggart run the stand today and rely on Route 110 traffic for success.

"Not everyone likes taking the highway. A lot of people like taking the road," David Biggart said.

On warm days, the parking lot in front of his stand and another across the street "are packed," he said.

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The bright yellow arrow draws you into Skip's, which by many accounts is the most famous establishment on the old road. The restaurant opened in 1947. Today, still under the family ownership of Lori Mathews and Rob Stepanian, Skip's is running strong and still serving up it's famous Suzie Q potatoes, curly fries made with a special machine that's as old as the restaurant.

Lately, a bit of confusion has been buzzing around the restaurant. Another Skip's restaurant in Chelmsford, which has absolutely no affiliation with the Merrimac hot spot, is closing. Stepanian said they've been inundated with calls and questions.

"But we are not closing," he stressed. The restaurant will continue to serve its famous burgers and fries and host its signature Cruise Nights.

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Today, for kids and adults alike, the sight of a large purple dinosaur at Jurassic Mini Golf in Salisbury is a sign Route 110 is about to come to an end.

While the road officially stops in Salisbury Square, drivers still have a quick left on Route 1 north and then a jump onto Route 1A — Beach Road.

Just before the beach, a popular spot for homemade ice cream and fried clams is Foote's, a beach business since 1946. Dianne Foote Joubert, 62, has been working at the beach for 50 years, starting at age 12 as she shucked ears of corn for her uncle, Charlie Foote.

She's seen many people and may changes. Places such as the Kon Tiki and Peppermint lounges, the big roller coaster and the Frolics, which drew the likes of Frank Sinatra and Johnny Mathis to the beach center, are history. Instead, new homes and condominium complexes are cropping up all over the beach.

"It's changed 1,000 percent," she said.

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