Work / The Chelsea Record
Chelsea history, as it appeared in print.
From 1977 to 1989, Arnie Jarmak photographed Chelsea from inside the life of its community newspaper. These pages preserve not only the images but the captions, headlines, dates, and surrounding newsprint through which local readers first met them.
The collection distinguishes original newspaper artifacts from later “From the Photo Archives” panels that return to people and events in the Record’s history. Neither is presented as an original photographic print. Most carry a visible Jarmak credit; where a credit or publication date is absent, the page says so plainly.
The publisher who said yes
Andrew P. Quigley gave the photographs room to exist.
The Chelsea Record chapter began with an act of trust. Andrew P. Quigley, the Chelsea Record's owner and publisher, hired Arnie without newspaper experience and gave him uncommon freedom to decide which images belonged in the paper.
Quigley's faith was practical: a place to live, a paycheck arriving week after week, room to learn the newspaper from its darkroom and press outward, and real pleasure in the photographs. Arnie remembers him as the man who made the Chelsea years possible. Without Andrew's support, he says, none of what followed would have happened.
The newspaper and the Beacon Café
Work, friendship, and Chelsea life were closely intertwined.
Arnie recalls that he and Chelsea Record reporter Joshua Resnek also owned the Beacon Café. He describes the bar as a high point in their Chelsea years—and as the place where a difficult descent began.
Retrospective archive panels
Opening the Chelsea Naval Hospital Residences
An early-1980s ceremony for the first residences in the historic hospital building brings Mayor Joel Pressman and U.S. Senator Edward M. Kennedy together in the foreground, with State Senator Francis Doris standing behind them.
Retrospective Chelsea Record archive panel supplied by Arnie Jarmak; photograph credited to Jarmak.
Chelsea Fire Department Leadership at a Blaze
At the scene of a late-1970s blaze, Captain James Hanlon, Deputy Chief Bill Coyne, and Chief Herbert Fothergill stand against a building consumed by smoke.
Retrospective Chelsea Record archive panel supplied by Arnie Jarmak; photograph credited to Jarmak.
The Chelsea Record Five-Mile Road Race
Two photographs return to the 1978 road race at Chelsea Stadium: Record staff register runners with typewriters, while publisher Andrew P. Quigley stands with Moses and Sarah Resnek among the crowd.
Retrospective Chelsea Record archive panel supplied by Arnie Jarmak; photographs credited to Jarmak.
Edward M. Smigielski and the Smigielski Brothers
A musical life and a political one share the page: Edward M. Smigielski performs with his band above, then stands between his brothers Richie and Teddy below.
Retrospective Chelsea Record archive panel supplied by Arnie Jarmak; photographs credited to Jarmak.
Chelsea High School Graduation
At the old Chelsea Stadium in 1986 or 1987, School Committee chairman Andrew P. Quigley hands a graduate her diploma as the procession continues across the grass.
Retrospective Chelsea Record archive panel supplied by Arnie Jarmak; photograph credited to Jarmak.
Tim Magner and Joe Zakrzewski
Two familiar Chelsea figures meet at a car window in the 1980s: Tim Magner, longtime superintendent of custodians for the schools, and Joe Zakrzewski of the state unemployment office on Broadway.
Retrospective Chelsea Record archive panel supplied by Arnie Jarmak; photograph credited to Jarmak.
Opening Night at the Fire Barn Restaurant
The Fire Barn on Everett Avenue gathers Ken Lava, Mayor Joel Pressman, owner Kenny Miller, Anne Marie Brown, and Duke Bradley for its opening night in the late 1970s or early 1980s.
Retrospective Chelsea Record archive panel supplied by Arnie Jarmak; photograph credited to Jarmak.
Streets and waterfront
Wooden Back Porches
The printed caption records the wooden back porches once common behind Chelsea's apartment houses and their rapid disappearance.
The Chelsea Record, December 21, 1977, page 5; photo credited to Jarmak.
Broadway Crowded with Cars
A winter view down Broadway, made from the roof of the yellow block opposite Atlantic Bank's main Chelsea office, with Broadway Glen in the distance.
Chelsea Record clipping; photograph identified in print as a Jarmak image.
A Year After the Great Storm
Joshua A. Resnek's remembrance of the Blizzard of 1978 was paired with Jarmak's photograph of a police cruiser moving through Cary Square during the storm.
The Chelsea Record, February 7, 1979; article by Joshua A. Resnek, photo credited to Jarmak.
Tanker Passing Under the Tobin Bridge
A tanker moves beneath the Tobin Bridge in a photograph published by the Chelsea Record on May 31, 1979.
The Chelsea Record, May 31, 1979; photo credited to Jarmak.
Sugar Freighter Docked in Charlestown
A sugar freighter at the Charlestown waterfront, published by the Chelsea Record on September 17, 1979.
The Chelsea Record, September 17, 1979; photo credited to Jarmak.
Community and civic life
Earl M. Austin
A printed portrait of Earl M. Austin. The clipping identifies him as a Distinguished Service Cross recipient; its publication date and photographer credit are not visible in the supplied scan.
Chelsea Record clipping supplied by Arnie Jarmak; publication date and photographer credit are not visible.
Newly Installed PAV Women
The printed caption identifies the newly installed Polish American Veterans women and records their offices within the organization.
Chelsea Record clipping; photo credited to Jarmak.
Russian Orthodox Church
A newspaper-presented architectural photograph of a Russian Orthodox church, dated April 16, 1979.
Newspaper clipping dated April 16, 1979; photo credited to Jarmak.
Newsroom and politics
Josh Resnek at a Presidential Press Conference
Chelsea Record reporter Joshua Resnek asks a question at a presidential press conference in Cranston, Rhode Island, while Jimmy Carter looks on from the lectern.
Chelsea Record clipping; photo credited to Jarmak.
Historical public-safety reporting
This clipping contains an allegation, a reference to fatal violence, and language from 1978 newspaper reporting. It does not establish any later legal outcome.
Public-Safety Reporting, January 1978
A historical clipping concerning a fatal fire and a person described at the time as a suspect. Its language is contemporaneous reporting, not a statement about any later legal outcome.
The Chelsea Record, January 4, 1978; photo credited to Jarmak.