As part of Wrentham’s 350th anniversary celebration, the committee planning this year’s events has asked residents to submit memories of significant people and places in the town’s history. Following is a submission the anniversary committee shared with Local Town Pages.

Split Ticket

Wrentham is a small town, but two opposing parties in the same building?

This photo was taken during the 1960 Presidential campaign which featured John Kennedy versus Richard Nixon. Apparently matters of this sort were handled on a gentlemanly basis by the two political parties at that time. 

The story behind this photo is that one party had rented space in the building while the other was having trouble locating a vacant office in the center of town. The other party, knowing the space was available next to them, provided they approved, decided that offering the office next to them was the proper thing to do. 

It can be reported that even though their offices were only one door away, neither party adopted a “Wrenthamgate” strategy to further their cause.

Though the photo is one of hundreds owned by the Historical Commission, it was brought to our attention by two former Wrentham residents, David and Betty Fuller. Writing from his home in Hawaii, Mr. Fuller enclosed a copy of a short article cut out of a February 1982 copy of  “Popular Photography” magazine and asked if the picture was of the building he thought it was. Though the photo is deceptive with the banners and signs hanging over the facade of the building, if you look carefully, you will note that it is the building which now houses the Wrentham Cooperative Bank.

Write-up source: 1982-1983 Wrentham Telephone Directory which was sponsored by the Wrentham Historical Society. (Digitized in 2023 by Grey Almeida, Wrentham 350 Anniversary Committee.)