From page 18 of the Nashua Telegraph, Saturday, May 28, 1994.
The photo is of the James E. Coffey post home circa 1940.
"A very nice wedding gift." Such is Roland Caron's description of the impressive brick building on Court Street, the home of James E. Coffey Post of the American Legion for more than 50 years.
"I'm going to tell you a story of a Nashua family," Caron, the post historian, informed fellow members of the post at a recent 75th anniversary gathering. "To grow and prosper, a family needs a home," he continued with his metaphor.
With a second world war brewing , the city, as an expression of gratitude to its servicemen and women, leased the four-story building to the James E. Coffey Post for 30 years. There was an option to renew for an additional 10 years.
Since 1890, the graceful structure with the large arched windows had been the Nashua Police Station. In 1939 the station was incorporated into the new City Hall and the Court Street building was offered to the Legion. The post had a number of previous headquarters but it had outgrown them all, from The Telegraph Building at 60 Main St. to the third floor over Brockelman's Market, where the NFS Savings Bank is today.
The new lease was signed on Feb 1, 1940, and the aldermen even voted to buy and install a new heating system for $2,500. Caron was commander in 1964 when the city began talks to sell the building to the post. The deal was closed in 1965 for the grand sum of $5.
From the start, the home has been the scene of many happy times for the Coffey Post. There were dinners, dances, receptions after the parades and even a wedding or two.
The post became famous for its ethnic parties, with foods and entertainment celebrating the Greek, Irish and French heritage. The festivities took place in the banquet hall on the third-floor, once the site of the court. To adapt it to a less austere purposes the 40-foot ceiling was lowered 20 feet.
The fourth-floor, formerly the judges' chambers, housed the oak lockers for band uniforms and instruments. When the band became attached to the Hudson Legion, the space was used for general storage.
What had previously been the prison area in the basement was transformed into a lounge dubbed "The Dugout", a gathering spot for returning GIs after World War II.
"It was so popular we had to have a policeman at the door because there were just so many people allowed inside," recalls Caron.
Twenty years ago the lounge was move to the main floor to make room for a dance floor...with a nudge from visiting legionnaires.
Gary Johnson, the lounge manager, recalls the time the British stormed the steps of the building leading from the basement to the main floor.
"The Royal British Legion came here after a parade and they wanted to party," he remembers. "They decided to move the piano upstairs, so with three on each side they walked halfway up the stairs and pushed it through the wall."
After that it stayed upstairs and last year the piano was moved to the music department of Nashua High School.
This year, there is a historic addition to the lounge, It is a wall of pictures saluting the post's commander during its 75-year history.
https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=SJpKAAAAIBAJ&sjid=hJQMAAAAIBAJ&pg=...
