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Westport Matters:
A Short History of Westport's Butlers and Their
World-Famous Donut House
In 1955, Bill and
Jeannette Butler opened their donut business on Sanford Road in Westport. They
named it Butler’s Colonial Donut House. It soon became well-known for its
excellent products. The combination of hard work, great service, and an expanding
product line anchored this business as a long-term institution which drew
customers from far and wide. It eventually gained national recognition.
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Bill, a Westport native, lived in the Briggs Road area, attended Westport High
School, and loved playing sports. He recalls teaming with former Deputy Police
Chief Bill Pierce. Bill joined the Navy at age 17, in 1942, during WWII. He served
as an air gunner on aerial enemy submarine search missions over the Atlantic
Ocean. On one occasion, his plane was destroyed during an emergency landing in
very rough seas, forcing him and the rest of the crew to board a life raft from
which they were rescued 34 hours later. He served until 1946.
Jeannette (Jean as she prefers to be called) Desmarais, is also a Westport
native, of French Canadian descent. Her brother, Albert, is a veteran of WWII’s
Battle of the Bulge. Bill and Jean married in 1946.
After the War, Bill worked as a mechanic both for himself and for others. Jean
also worked to help with family finances. During these early years, they
purchased the land where the original Butler home and present Donut House now
stand from Mr. Morency of New Bedford. Morency now has a nearby street named
after him. The Butlers hired local builder Clint Lawton to build their home. The
lot size is 200 feet of frontage and 300 feet deep, one half of which was sold
to Clint Lawton.
During the early 50’s, with two young daughters, Jean felt the need to be with
her children. She wanted to start a business which would fulfill this wish, a
feeling shared by Bill. Making donuts came up in a conversation between Jean and
a friend. Her friend mentioned that Steve’s Donuts business, on Route 6 in Swansea,
was doing well. After this exhaustive market research, the Butlers decided
that’s what they would do.
In 1955, their friend Clint Lawton was hired to build the small startup shop.
The building permit was for a utility house with a value of $200.00. Bill was
home schooled in donut making by a representative of the Donut Company of
America, a seller of donut-making supplies and equipment. The teacher had
been a pastry chef for Vaughn Monroe’s then famous The Meadows and was
later instrumental in developing the Dunkin Donuts line.
Bill and Jean opened their three-days-per-week business as: Butler's Colonial
Donut House. They soon began to tie up Sanford Road traffic, especially on
Sunday mornings. They had to discontinue telephone orders, in order to prevent
delaying counter service. Churches and other functions began to place large
advance orders. Bill mixed the dough in eighty-pound batches in full view of
customers. Jean rolled the dough, using the same rolling pin over their twenty-five years of ownership. All donuts were cut individually; icings and frostings
were also applied individually. When jelly donuts were added, they were
also individually filled.
They hired local girls to help with the rush of customers. The girls kept busy
by stocking the counter and by assembling endless boxes needed to pack the
donuts by the dozen.
The Butlers added space in 1960. It was then that they introduced their cream-filled donut line, added oven facilities, and introduced muffins, pies, cakes, and
squares.
The Butlers kept the same type of operation until they sold it to Alex and Chris Kogler in
1980. During their 25-year tenure, the price of a dozen donuts had risen to $1.65
from a starting price of $0.55.
After retirement, Bill and Jean traveled to Bermuda, Puerto Rico, and Florida,
where they purchased a condo in St. Petersburg. They continued their Florida
stays until 2002. They took up golf and still enjoy playing at the Montaup
Country Club. Jean is in good health, and Bill is recuperating from a knee
replacement. One of their daughters lives in Warren, the other in Westport. They
have a grandson and granddaughter, as well as two great-grandsons.
These are fitting rewards for a couple whose hard work and self-accomplishments
contributed to the enjoyment of so many. We wish them well.
Claude Ledoux, Westport Matters, November, 2007 | | |
