Welcome to the Wellesley Historical Society’s first History Mystery. This will be an ongoing series in which we pose an open-ended question related to our community’s storied past. How does your local knowledge measure up?  For those who are stumped, answers will be revealed in two weeks.

Let the mysteries begin!

January 9, 2014  Question

Do you remember this man and the famous fare he served? Do you know which current local hotspot is this locale’s successor? Look for the answer in two weeks!

January 23, 2014  Answer

If this picture brought to mind mozzarella and prosciutto and hot italian subs, then you were RIGHT!  This circa 1963 photograph shows Nino DiPirro, owner of the Linden Street Delicatessen, fondly known at the time as “Nino’s.”  The deli, just ten stools large, was as much of a town fixture then as it is now.  Originally opened in 1933 by the DiPirro family, the deli was taken over in 1979 by the LeBrun family, which still stands at the helm and keeps Wellesley residents well fed today.

Photo of the Linden Street Delicatessen, c. 1963 by Ulrike Welsch, from the archives of the Wellesley Historical Society