Proposed St. Clare’s Church

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• OK - I couldn't find any info on the old church or any photos of the old school. The new school opened in 1970, along with DeSantis on Marion St.

  Here's a fire insurance map of the old school, which faced Bruce. There is a vacant lot in the map at Janette and Wahketa, I wonder if that's where the church was...

  This is the vacant lot in the map today:

  
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• OK...I have to get in on this conversation! I received an email this morning (must be from you, John)regarding the original St. Clare School on Bruce Avenue. I can lead you to a large photograph of the school. My parents were students there, as were all my brothers and sisters, including myself from 1957 to 1965. I don't remember the building burning down but I have been living in Ottawa since 1979. I am aware that the "old" building is no longer facing Bruce Avenue and that the school was rebuilt to face Janette.

  St. Clare Church...I was married there in 1972. I made my first communion there as well as my confirmation. I recall the students from the school walking to the church (during Lent)in single file with one of the nuns leading or bringing up the rear! The school and church were never on the same property as far as I know. I remember when the alter in the church was remodeled. The green marble was shipped from Italy and it was quite the talk of the parish.

• Old St. Clare Church update:

  My 90 year old mother tells me that the original St. Clare Church was indeed next to the old school, loacted on the southwest parcel of land. She was a little girl when the church burned down so possibly the late 1920's since the architectural plans for the new church are dated 1930...

  She recalls the foundation of the old church remaining in the playground of the school. I think the 'boys' playground was on the southwest side of the school (where the original church had stood) and the 'girls' playground on the northwest side of the school.

  One of my most vivid school memories is being in grade 7 when President John Kennedy was shot. The classroom was at the back of the school, located in the centre. My late father used to tell us a story about being in grade 8 (1930?) and engaging in a snowball fight in front of the school. The principal at the time opened one of the windows on the ground floor to scold them just as my Dad threw a snowball which ended up square on the nun's chest! LOL!

• I went to st.clare school from 1971 to 1974. i just remember the teachers saying it was a new school.how new i dont remember i was just 6/9 yrs.if any one has pic from that time i would love to see them. i remember my first teacher was mrs mclauglin (something like that)

• Let's get the record straight folks if you don't mind. I attended St. Clare School and Church from 1964-1970. The original St. Clare school was demolished in the summer/fall of 1970 I believe; it was not... I repeat was destroyed by fire. It was demolished because they were building a new school which is the current building facing Janette Ave. The area where the orignal school was located was the area where they built the gymnasium for the school around 1971-72. I am desperately looking for photos of the original St. Clare School. Does any one know where I'd be able to find them?

• Sorry for the typo.. The school was not destroyed by fire in 1970. Any one know where I might be able to find pictures of the original school?

• I agree with Joe, St Clare School did not burn down. My parents lived a few doors down on Janette and I too went to school there. I dont know what the reason was to replace the building, but as others have said, it was quite an imposing 3 story building compared to what is there now. High ceilings, huge windows very similar in design to other Catholic schools build in the same era. I remember going to De La Salle School on Fridays for "Manual Training' as it was called then, basically shop or woodworking (while the girls went there at the same time Friday for 'Home Economics." I remember that De La Salle looked very much like St. Clare's in building design.
  My guess is that in the 1970s with high prices for heating etc. that it would have cost a lot of money to heat and was maybe rebuilt to something more energy efficient. It was some 45 to 50 years old but I am sure still had plenty of life to it. I wiah I had some pictures to offer but I can't seem to find any.

• One other observation, in connection with St Clare's Church on Tecumseh Road, I was a choir boy there in the late 50s/early 60s and we were told at the time, that the pipe organ in that church (which I am assuming is still in the church today, given the high cost to replace them) was bought by the Church in the 1930s from one of the downtown Theatres, either the Palace or the Capitol theatre. It was the organ used in the era of silent movies etc. and was no longer needed in the 30s when movies had sound.

• Brian, yup - it's a theatre organ. I was always told that is why the Wurlitzer there had an unusual complement of stops compared to typical church organs. The Detroit historical organ society used to take care of it. I hope it's still being maintained. So many churches mothball their broken organs and buy a Clavinova or something like that.

• I attended St. Clare from 1971 - 1978. My brother Steve started in 1968, at the old building. He remembers clearly, watching the new building being constructed, while the old building was still in use on the opposite side of the property. He remembers walking across in a ceremony to the new school as it was officially consecrated and opened. The old building did not burn - the new one did. I remember Sister Mary meeting us at the door with soot-covered windows, when I was in grade 2 or 3. You could see the burned ceiling tiles in the area around the staff room (mid-way along the west side of the building). As for the age of the original - my mother was born in 1937, and began attending the school in 1942. That's as far back as I can peg it's age.