Ok well, let’s start with a question
Can you name how many women-owned a Sayville business for 40 years between 1945 and 1985?
My guess -none.
I’d be wrong. There was at least one. There were very few men or women who run their businesses for over 40 years.
This business owner is known of or known by -every Sayville High School graduate from 1940 to 1985. She had an unbelievable career as a Sayville business owner.
She was born in 1922, she and her twin brother grew up on Macon St in Sayville.
The family grew to 5 daughters and two sons.
Her name —-
Frances May Munsell,
a 1940 Sayville High School graduate.
Having grown up in a family of seven brothers and sisters, I can appreciate the challenges her parent must have faced.
Her dad Amos was a successful carpenter and had a thriving business for about 40 years in Sayville. He built homes and buildings in Sayville and all over Long Island.
Amos and his children -were a part of a large historic American family.
This family can trace their heritage back eight generations to Thomas Munsell, Sr. in Connecticut.
Thomas Sr. arrived in America in 1680, with his dad Charles from England. The family in England were military sea captains in the royal military. They were a successful noble family in British history, many educated at Oxford dating back generations to the 1500s. His ancestors would spread across America looking for the American dream. Jacob, his grandson, came to Long Island in about 1750.
Frances was a part of that American dream. She attended Sayville schools and graduated from Sayville High in 1940. After graduating from high school, she began her restaurant career. Her first job was as a server at Beers Confectionary Shop.
In,1946 Beers’ primary competition was a store called Pricilla’s Sweet Shop. A well-known area chef ran it Mr. James Sempepos. It seems Mr. Sempepos was ready to move on from the candy store and sold the store to Frances Munsell age 24.
So began a history of restaurant ownership that saw her survive the competition of Beers, the Whistlestop, Grieves, Thornhills, and many others. So how did this young Sayville High grad do it?
Some, very few, regarded her as a tyrant, others saw her as a community-minded businesswoman who never forgot her roots. She knew her community and her customers.
She supported many local causes from high school art programs to little league home run ice cream sundaes. She played a role in the Kiwanis club, community sports teams, the Girl Scouts, most Sayville High School sports teams, and many other community organizations.
Her business allowed for a safe place for young children and young adults to gather. Whether to pick up candy on the way to movies or to go celebrate a football win, Frans was the place. It was truly a community spot to celebrate Community successes and disappointments.
So yes, she was a “tough old bird”. But she set the rules and operated her business with an iron hand and yes with a soft touch.
There are few I know who can claim 40 years of successfully running a small-town restaurant. Many came and went -Frans was Frans until she chose to leave. There certainly is a void for those young people growing up today in Sayville.
So, Fran, many miss you and your safe place. A place kids could fill up a bag of penny candy for 25 cent or enjoy a Cherry-coke and fries, maybe put a quarter in the jukebox and do the shimmy shake, or maybe you were an old-timer who stopped by for breakfast, maybe you gathered there to celebrate a high school football victory. Whatever your memory, most have good ones -with Frances Sweet Shop.
Like everything in life, there’re reasons certain things don’t exist anymore. Running a community restaurant let alone a kid’s sweet shop successfully requires a rational mind and taking a determined path. If Fran ran her Sweet Shop today, she’d be destroyed in the modern-day environment of social media, nasty tweets, and posts. Oh well, the world keeps moving along.
Many remember you, Fran —
Thanks for the memories!!
Frances May Munsell 1922-2005
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