Unitarian Church Fire December 13, 1964

In many small towns similar to Harvard, there are memorable events, never to be forgotten. At a reunion, one might be asked, “Where were you when ?”. . . and then the stories flow.

In Harvard, one of those events was the Harvard Unitarian Church fire of 1964.

An inscription on the side of the church, recalls the history of the building:

 “Four previous church buildings have stood on this approximate site. The first meeting house was constructed in 1733 when the congregation first gathered. A new building was necessary in 1775 to  accommodate the congregation’s growth. The third building, constructed in 1840, was destroyed by fire on Sunday, February 7, 1875. The fourth building, constructed in 1875, was destroyed by fire on Sunday, December 13, 1964. The present building was dedicated on June 18, 1967.”

December 13, 1964 was a relatively mild day for December, temperatures in the 40s and 50s, with only a slight wind. The center churches had completed their Sunday services. The new Unitarian Church minister, Rev. Carl Bretz, had given his second sermon to his new congregation. The church was emptied by 1:15 p.m.

Many people reported that they were busy with usual Sunday activities around the center. Firemen gathered at the firehouse, shooting pool or watching a football game. Young men in their “‘muscle” cars, hung around the front of The General Store. The Brown family on Old Littleton Road hosted a Girl Scout barbecue. 

But the quiet was sharply interrupted  when an anonymous call was received by the police and fire dispatcher that there was a fire at the Unitarian Church on the town Common. The alarm was sounded at 2:48. Within 15 minutes the building was engulfed in flames. 

In that short time, 6 fire companies responded with more than 14 pieces of fire equipment and as many as 84 firefighters. Bill Mead, the local tree surgeon, brought his bucket truck so that the firefighters could attack the fire from above. Jack Burdick, the fire chief, sent volunteer firefighters  Dick Powderly, Bill Hazel, Ray Anderson and Al Nogler into the church to try to retrieve a Paul Revere pewter communion set, to no avail. Volunteers safely removed town records from the adjacent Town Hall, in case the fire should spread to that building. Tank trucks from dairies came with water. Townspeople responded in droves, taking photographs and assisting in any way possible.

Sadly, by 4 p.m. the church was declared a total loss.

The Old Sheffield church bell, brought from a forge in Sheffield, England in 1860 survived the fire and was hung in the new church.

There was a great deal of speculation regarding the source of the fire: candles not properly extinguished from the morning service, children in the basement area “playing” with matches. 

According to the official report from the State Fire Marshal, the fire was the result of a boiler malfunction.Drought conditions at the time made it difficult to pump water from nearby fire holes, and a lack of pressure in the town center water system made fighting the fire almost impossible.