Fall River

Rob Lewis

• Publisher: Arcadia Publishing
• Year: 2003
• Print ISBN: 9780738512792
• eBook ISBN: 9781439612002
• Topic: History
• Subtopic: North American History
• Index: History

Through the 200-plus photographs and informative captions, this marvelous visual history by local author Rob Lewis seeks to remind residents of Fall River's glorious past. The city known today as Fall River, Massachusetts, considered until 1803 to be a part of Freetown and until 1862 to be partially contained within the boundaries of Rhode Island, came into its own as a great industrial city in the latter half of the nineteenth century. The massive power of the Quequechan River fueled several mills, and Fall River granite provided the basis for a developing stone-cutting business. Over the years, the city's numerous villages have been home to many hard-working and loyal residents. These residents historically have much to be proud of: in many ways Fall River led the region in the development of technology and public education. By the 1880s, the city was equipped with telephones, streetcars, and electrical service, and the B.M.C. Durfee High School-opened in 1886-was considered the finest in the nation.

Two

Fall River Institutions

Pictured here in 1885 is James Dennan O’Neil, managing editor of the Fall River Daily Globe. The Fall River Globe was a Democratic newspaper established in 1885. The paper was first located in a building in Old Court Square. In 1906 the business moved to new quarters on North Main Street. It was absorbed by the Fall River Herald News in February 1929. (Courtesy of Mary V. O’Neil.)

This is the Andrew Robeson house on Rock Street, home to the Fall River Historical Society. The house was originally built on Columbia Street in 1843, three-fourths in Massachusetts and one-fourth in Rhode Island. In 1870 it was moved piece by piece to its present location, and in 1936 it was given to the Fall River Historical Society, which maintains it as a museum of local history. The museum also houses a large collection of Lizzie Borden memorabilia. (Photograph by Rob Lewis.)

This photograph shows the delivery wagon for the Warren M. Farrell Milk Company. The plant was located at 143 Bigelow Street. In 1919 the company advertised pasteurized milk for babies, as well as a telephone connection. (Courtesy of Jim McKenna.)

In 1905 Doctor Philemon Truesdale founded the Truesdale Hospital on Highland Avenue and oversaw its operation until 1945. This building was erected in 1926. In 1980 the hospital merged with the Union Hospital to form Charlton Memorial Hospital. Today the building houses a senior residential community.

The Armory on the corner of Bank and Durfee Streets was completed in 1897 at a cost of $150,000 and served as an armory until the late 1950s, when the Dwelly Street facility opened. Today the old Armory houses community offices. (Collection of Rob Lewis.)

Pictured here is the Dwelly Street Armory shortly after it was dedicated on May 30, 1958. (Courtesy of Ed Depin.)

These men were part of the first battalion to occupy the Dwelly Street Armory. They are, from left to right: (first row) John Oliveira, Chris Oliveira, and Eddy Shea; (middle row) Ken Depin, Joe Cabral, and Ed Depin; (back row) Dave Burns and Nick Demarco. (Courtesy of Ed Depin.)

Saint Anne’s Hospital, on the corner of South Main and Middle Streets, was built in 1905–1906 and was dedicated on February 4, 1906. The hospital was paid for and staffed by the Dominican Sisters of Charity. When it opened, the hospital consisted of five wards—three female and two male—and could care for one hundred twenty-five patients. (Courtesy of the Dominican Sisters archive.)

This is a postcard view of Saint Anne’s modern laboratory in the early part of the 1900s. (Courtesy of the Dominican Sisters archive.)

The...

Table of contents

• Title Page
• Copyright Page
• Table of Contents
• Introduction
• One - Downtown
• Two - Fall River Institutions
• Three - The Waterfront
• Four - The Quequechan River
• Five - Places of Worship
• Six - Schools
• Seven - Neighborhoods and People
• Eight - Great Conflagrations
• Nine - The Fall River Line
• Acknowledgments