Former St. Martin of Tours Rectory Demolished on April 19th

MILLINOCKET - Off and on throughout the week a handful of people came. They stood dejectedly on the sidewalk, or sat in their cars, looked at the scene, acted as if they were attending the wake of a dear friend, shook their heads and then muttered words to the effect "... how sad it is". What prompted these emotions was the demolition of St. Martin's Rectory building at 18 Colby St., Millinocket.

The demolition began on April 19th as an excavator began its destructive work and by the end of the week there were barely signs a three-story house had once stood there. Winter water damage to the house―so severe it would have been more expensive to repair the building than the house was worth―is what brought about the decision to demolish the structure. Also razed was a small structure to the rear of the rectory that was once home to at least one pastor, a janitor's family and later housed St. Martin's Thrift Store.

On Feb. 16 a sharp-eyed church employee spotted frozen water on the foundation and siding of the house and sensed something was wrong. Further investigation showed there were cracks in the domestic water pipes. The result was massive damage to the interior of the building. The rectory was unoccupied at the time because in 2009, in a cost-saving move done in concert with attempts to sell excess real estate, Rev. Joël Cyr, pastor of the worship sites of St. Martin of Tours, St. Peters and St. Benedict, moved to East Millinocket to live in an apartment above the parish center. The house at 18 Colby St. had served as a home to pastors and curates for nearly three-quarters of a century. The site where the house once stood is being turned into an additional parking area to accommodate parishioners' vehicles.

Special service held

A special service, lead by Rev. Cyr, was held on April 17 after the 4 p.m. Mass to mark the end of the life of that building. Shown at that time was a photograph of the building taken in the 1980's. Rev. Cyr reminded parishioners attending the service that the church is not made up of the brick and mortar of its construction, but the living people who are its parishioners. 

Mementoes made from the rectory's flooring

Although the structure is now gone, the memory of St. Martin's Rectory will live on in a tangible way, not just in people's minds. Hardwood flooring salvaged from the building has been crafted into a memento that has been laser engraved with a striking sketch of the building. These souvenirs are being sold by the local Knights of Columbus Council through the church gift store. These mementos are available with a donation of $10 per piece to the church roof replacement fund.  The idea for the souvenirs came from Jude Ippolitti, director of the church's music ministry. The idea was turned into reality through the efforts of Frank LaMontagne who drew the sketch, Frank Howard who cut the flooring into the appropriate size, Richard Berry who cleaned the wood and Paul Gagnon who laser engraved the mementos with the image of the rectory.

The building's earliest history

Although the souvenir contains the year 1933 as the date the house was first used as a rectory, most historical accounts suggest the building became a rectory in 1938 when Rev. Joseph D. Quinn, pastor of St. Martin's, decided to turn the original rectory into a convent for a group of sisters of the Our Lady of the Holy Rosary Order of Rimouski, Quebec. The sisters were brought to Millinocket to teach at the parochial school being founded and built by Rev. Quinn. These historical accounts say St. Martin's purchased the building on Colby St. in 1938 from John Corrigan, one of the three brothers who came from New Hampshire to found the Millinocket Foundry. The house was turned then into a rectory for Rev. Quinn. John and his brothers Thomas and Edward were said to have been very active in the church at the time. John reportedly purchased the Victorian style house from E. J. Warren, one of the town's earliest druggists.  Bonnie Brilliant of Millinocket, granddaughter of John Corrigan, said recently she has little direct memory of the home when it was owned by John, although her father Raymond grew up there. One story she does recall her father telling often was about a fire that caused significant damage to the house. According to the story her father told, Ralph Corrigan, who had been away at college, came home one day and noticed the fire in the fireplace was out of hand and spread the alarm. According to that story some of occupants of the home had to escape from the fire through the upstairs windows. Brilliant remembers her father saying that the damage was later repaired.