High on the columns of Boston's historic Faneuil Hall you can still read the Dole & Bailey name - a reminder of Cyrus Dole - a homesteader from Acton Massachusetts, and Frank Bailey - a farmer from West Burke Vermont, who formed a partnership at the Boston Farmers' Market inside historic Faneuil Hall. Livestock was driven from the Northern and Western New England states into Boston, and slaughtered/dressed in Brighton; then distributed by horse and wagon or train. Dole & Bailey also featured fancy maple syrup, fine creamery butter and artisan farmhouse cheeses as well as locally-grown poultry, eggs, and fresh-caught seafood from the Boston Pier. As members of the Boston Fruit and Produce Exchange they had access to the freshest fruits and vegetables the market had to offer.
Mr. Bailey's nephew, Clyde Smith, was the second generation to take over the reins, and through his church family in Watertown MA he began to develop the talents of the young Bud Matheson whose parents were immigrants from Prince Edward Island. It was under Mr. Smith's tutelage that Bud became third generation Dole & Bailey and a Master Butcher. Shortly after this training Bud would trade his meat-cutter's apron for a suit, to cultivate and grow new and existing partnerships with chefs, farmers, fishermen, and suppliers of quality ingredients throughout all of New England, across the country, and around the globe. The growth of this business meant moving into and outgrowing three facilities within three years. Now in its 155th year, the Dole & Bailey Food Hub is owned by Nancy Matheson-Burns and located in Woburn, MA, where the fifth and sixth generation purveying teams are being trained up. The Legacy continues!