Classic Diners of Massachusetts

Food and Fun! Classic Diners of Massachusetts

Join us as we delve into the history of diners, sample yummy diner food, and welcome Larry Cultrera, author of Classic Diners of Massachusetts (The History Press).

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts was birthplace to the burgeoning

"night lunch wagon" manufacturing industry in the late nineteenth and

early twentieth centuries. These horse-drawn food carts eventually

evolved into classic American diners. For many years, diner builders

like the Worcester Lunch Car Company and J.B. Judkins Company operated

in the Bay State, while few new diners opened for business after 1960.

This left the state with a high concentration of some of the

best-preserved diners built during the early to mid-twentieth century,

including the Capitol Diner in Lynn, the Route 66 Diner in Springfield

and Buddy’s Diner in Somerville (which is also home to Kelly's Diner and

the Rosebud Diner.) Diner historian Larry Cultrera discusses this

appetizing history and what should not be missed on the menus.

Larry Cultrera has been documenting the American Diner and other

roadside businesses since 1980. In this time he has photographed

approximately 820 diners. He is a past member of the Medford Historical

Society and a 30 year member of the Society for Commercial Archeology.

He lives in Saugus, MA.

Books will be available for purchase at the event from The Harvard Coop Bookstore for $19.99.