The
last of the Irish donut makers.
Sullivan’s
was a staple of downtown Hyannis for two decades in the times before
Dunkin’ Donuts resided on nearly every street corner on Cape Cod.
After successfully running three other doughnut shops in Brockton in
the 1950s and ’60s, John “Sully” Sullivan was making doughnuts
at a Dunkin’ Donuts in Stoughton, Massachusetts, in 1971, when he
was hired by James Despotopulos to work at his Sugar N’ Spice
doughnut shop in South Yarmouth. Despotopulos had opened his shop in
1969 after moving to Cape Cod from Stoughton.
Sully
was seen as the unofficial mayor of Brockton, rubbing elbows with the
likes of Cesar Romero and his close friend Rocky Marciano. Never the
less he moved his wife, Rosemarie, and their five children to the
mid-Cape area. There he hoped to settle into a quieter routine,
escaping the busier and sometimes dangerous streets of Brockton in
the early 1970s.
Not
too long after Sullivan left Sugar N’ Spice, he worked at a Dunkin’
Donuts on the corner of Forest Road and Route 28 in South Yarmouth
that still stands as of 2019. Doughnut making was a passion of
Sully’s; it also ran in the family. Sullivan’s father, also named
John Sullivan, had run a doughnut shop in Hampton Beach, New
Hampshire, before World War II. It was not long before Sullivan’s
Donut Shop lived again, this time on the corner of Bearse’s Way and
Route 28 in Hyannis. After purchasing equipment from a closing Jack In the Box fast food restaurant the new shop opened in late 1975 and gained
popularity from the get-go.
These
doughnuts were made the old-fashioned way in large vats of oil, with
bakers using sticks to flip the sweet lumps of dough and make sure
they were properly cooked on each side. These doughnuts were heavier
and more filling and satisfying. They came in all sorts of delicious
shapes and sizes. There were classic honey-dipped, chocolate frosted
and jelly-filled; there were crullers, coffee rolls and doughnut
holes. There were also delectable muffins and coffee, of course.
Though
it opened very early for people on their way to work, some could not
wait until sunrise for a fresh and hot doughnut. Sully would open his
back door before officially opening for the day and sell doughnuts to
customers. This practice has been made well-known thanks to Back Door
Donuts, located in Oak Bluffs on Martha’s Vineyard. This is part of
the Martha’s Vineyard Gourmet Café & Bakery, which opened in
2001.
 |
| The counter inside Sullivan’s Donut Shop |
However,
there was much more than just the run of the mill doughnut shop lying in those four walls. Sullivan’s was a meeting
place before there was Starbucks, and it was every bit a family-run
business. Sully’s wife, sons and daughters all worked hard to make
each and every customer feel welcome. In return, the customers made
Sullivan’s a destination. There were also times that the customers
were the staff. A handful of regulars knew how to open the shop, and
once the doors were unlocked, they would happily help with the setup,
pulling down stools and starting the coffee.
There
were several unique touches to Sullivan’s that made it more than
just coffee and doughnuts. For starters, there was a piano located in
the corner of the shop; no other Cape Cod doughnut shop could lay
claim to that. Said piano would be played daily by the house piano
player, Barnstable High School English teacher Ed Milk. It was also
played by legendary jazz pianist Dave McKenna. Considered to be one
of the finest pianists in the world during his career, McKenna, also
a neighbor of Sully’s, would often play music to the delight of
customers and to pay for his doughnuts.
After
moving to Cape Cod in 1966, McKenna played many shows at local bars
and nightclubs. Sully remarked that he would often go into work at
the doughnut shop at 1:00 a.m. This was around the time that most of
the local bars would close, and the musicians, including McKenna, who
had been playing would come knocking on the door looking for
something to eat. Legend has it that McKenna once ate eighteen hot
honey-dipped doughnuts in one sitting but stopped there; telling
Sully he “didn’t want to seem like a pig.”
Also
unique to Sullivan’s was the meticulous, hand-painted mural of the
mid-Cape area on the wall of the shop. It was common for customers to
walk over to the mural, coffee or doughnut in hand, and stare in
wonder at the painstaking detail put into this piece of art.
Sullivan’s
popularity stretched beyond the average joes who stopped in before
work. Legendary Boston Bruins announcer Fred Cusick enjoyed popping
in for a visit when he was around during the 1970s and ’80s.
Longtime
Kennedy chauffeur Tommy Roderick also frequented the donut shop,
picking up a box because “Jackie loved blueberry muffins.” So
popular was Sullivan’s that Barnstable Police remarked to Sully
that if they were ever looking for a suspect in Hyannis they would
simply stake out Sullivan’s and neighboring Christy’s, because
whomever they were looking for would end up there eventually.
Sullivan’s
thrived into the 1990s, when construction at the plaza where it
resided caused the shop to be closed for a while. It had been
featured on the corner of the plaza with glass windows facing the
traffic; now it had been pushed inside to a smaller location.
Unfortunately, business suffered, and Sullivan’s closed early in
1993.
 |
| Where Sullivan's Donuts once stood in Hyannis. |
Much
of the equipment used to make the doughnuts at Sullivan’s was
bought by the Hole In One Donut Shop. This company, run by four
sisters, continues to make doughnuts the old-fashioned way to this
day, even in a world filled with Dunkin’ Donuts and Krispy Kreme.
They are still going strong as of 2019, with locations in Eastham and
Orleans.
As
of this writing, a convenience store sits where Sullivan’s once
resided.
and became an important town in the 19th Century due to silver and iron industries. The Taunton River is the town’s only major waterway. Though beautiful it can also be dangerous, it was flooded after a series of large rainstorms recently. 
shop named Colonial Donut Shop. It has a look and feel of a gathering place for locals untouched by progress, with a grandfather who once owned a few doughnut shops, in Hyannis as well as Brockton, this was something that I appreciated.
. This process takes between ten and fifteen years to occur. There is so much more to see on the grounds of the courthouse including an incredible World War II memorial fountain to the right of the building. Luckily at this time of year the fountains were not turned on; it allowed a great view of the granite earth located in the center of four pillars. On the other side of the courthouse grounds is a moving Korean War memorial featuring two soldiers, one of whom has seemingly just passed away. It is hard not to be touched by both of these memorials.
has 126 campsites and four lakes. Though the gates to the main road were closed on this day it was still populated by many people jogging and walking with their kids and dogs. The Perry cranberry bogs, which are privately maintained, fit right in with the rest of the natural beauty. Lake Rico(right) is the closest, and largest, body of water to the main gate if visitors do not wish to travel far into the park’s grounds. This lake takes up nearly a quarter of the park’s grounds and has a separate parking area outside of the park as well. It will give you a taste of the beauty of Massasoit even if you do not travel any further inside.