Freetown bridge to bear name of former highway surveyor

For years, current Highway Surveyor Charles J. Macomber called former highway surveyor Joseph Simmons Jr. not just a town official, but an institution.

It was a fitting tribute Saturday morning to dedicate the North Main Street Route 24 overpass to Simmons, who died in 2005 after serving at the post for more than 41 years.

Relatives of Simmons, the Board of Selectmen, state Sen. Joan Menard and state Reps. David Sullivan, John Quinn and Stephen Canessa honored Simmons at a ceremony during which he was remembered as someone who put others, especially the town, before himself.

"I'm overwhelmed. I know my brother would be overwhelmed by this adulation. He wasn't a man who accepted praise easily. He just loved this town and the people in it," said Simmons' sister, Irene Simmons Bilodeau.

His widow, Elizabeth E. Simmons, has always lauded the idea of naming a highway overpass after Simmons, who spent so much time caring for town roads.

"It's very nice of everyone to come," she said.

"He enjoyed helping people," said Simmons' sister-in-law, Dorothea L. Gordon, who told a story of how Simmons once plowed out the driveway of an Assonet Bay Shores nurse who had to make it to work. "He went out of his way to make sure she could get out."

Selectmen Chairman Lawrence Ashley recalled how when he was a kid he used to wonder how bridges received names. He said he would often ponder what different people had done to obtain the honors of having a bridge named after them.

Ashley said it is very appropriate for Simmons to have the Route 24 overpass named after him.

Selectwoman Jean C. Fox said she will always remember the Sunday morning at 8:30 a.m. when Simmons rang her Jeffrey Lane doorbell with a peculiar proposition.

He recommended that her driveway receive a black top. Fox said she was at first taken aback by the proposition, but she finally went along with it and now acknowledges that "(Joe) was right. It lasted 20 years."

State Rep. David Sullivan, D-Fall River, noted that Simmons was more than just a great leader.

"It's not just the leadership. There's a lot of passion and love for Joe," he said. "Joe will never be forgotten - I can tell you that."

Kenneth Rezendes, owner of the town business K.R. Rezendes, recalled how Simmons was frugal, yet was always willing to help people in need.

"No matter who it was - if they needed something they could call Joe," he said. "We all miss Joe - and we hope and pray there's better things that can happen in the area."

According to Historical Commission Chairwoman Mary E. Rezendes-Brown, the overpass is on land once owned by the Simmons family, and the 65 North Main St. property where they conducted the ceremony is still owned by the Simmons family.

The land is adjacent to farmland, which belongs to the family and is still in use, which also is a tribute to Simmons.

Macomber unveiled the "Joseph F. Simmons Jr. Memorial Bridge" sign. Macomber, who approached the state Legislature about the bridge naming over two years ago, said he was glad to finally see the day come.