Built 1899 NRHP Reference # 89000568 Added to NRHP 22 June 1989 | MPS Southbridge MRA Opened 1899 | |
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Location 29 Pine St., Southbridge, Massachusetts Address Southbridge, MA 01550, USA Architectural style Colonial Revival architecture Similar Wellfleet Drive‑In Theater, Notre Dame Catholic, Southbridge Town Hall | ||
The Academie Brochu is a historic school at 29 Pine Street in Southbridge, Massachusetts. Built in 1899, it is one of the city's most imposing Colonial Revival buildings, and a significant element of the development of its Franco-American community. The building was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on June 22, 1989.
Description and history
The Academie Brochu is located on the east side of Pine Street, south of its junction with Hamilton Street in central Southbridge. It is a three story brick structure, set on a raised stone foundation, with a hip roof. Its red brick walls are contrasted by limestone and yellow brick trim, and a metal cornice and frieze below the roofline. The academy was constructed in 1899 by Chickering & O'Connell of Springfield in a Colonial Revival style to serve the growing French Canadian population of Southbridge.
The academy was named for Msgr. George Elzear Brochu, pastor of the Notre Dame Church, who gave personal funds to the effort. The academy served as the parish school for Notre Dame Parish. The school had been established in 1881, and was by the late 1890s in need of proper quarters. The academy building has six classrooms on each of the first two floors, and a chapel on the third floor that is large enough to hold the entire school population. The Colonial Revival styling is at odds with the more traditional French styling of the neighboring church, but it is still one of the most imposing buildings in the town.