Remembering the fire that destroyed Fall River’s Notre Dame Church

Those of us of a certain age remember whether in person or on tv, the destruction of Fall River’s beloved Notre Dame Church.

On May 11, 1982, a blowtorch during a restoration project accidentally started the blaze on Eastern Avenue that quickly spread throughout the structure and beyond.

As the Fall River Firefighter Union described it in past years, “the fire department responded quickly but their efforts were hampered by strong winds, intense heat from the fire and low water pressure in the hydrants. The fire, fanned by the high wind, spread to nearby buildings and soon engulfed homes and businesses on the next two streets. When the fire finally came under control, many buildings were gone. The church was a total loss. The empty granite shell a ruin.”

Hundreds of people were displaced and over two dozen homes were damaged or completely destroyed.

A stained-glass window was one of the few remnants left from the blaze and was part of the rebuild of the next Notre Dame Church which would later become St. Bernadette which closed in 2018.

The destruction of the church in 1982 wasn’t the first tragedy that occurred as the first Notre Dame church built in 1874 was destroyed by a fire in 1893.

Despite the rebuilding, Notre Dame Church was never the same after that tragic day in 1982 leaving residents with memories of what used to be.

What are your memories of Notre Dame?