The Firefighters of Bellows Falls, Part 3

(This is the final post in a three-part series honoring the firefighters of Rockingham and Bellows Falls. You can read the first post in the series here and the second post in the series here.)

One of our goals in researching and publishing these posts on the historical bridges and buildings of Bellows Falls is to connect directly with the citizens of Bellows Falls, many of whom remember the structures and events that we've been covering.

After posting Part 2 in our three-part series on the firefighters of Bellows Falls, we received the following note from Cathy Bergmann—Bellows Falls native, community organizer, and President of the Bellows Falls Historical Society—with her recollection of the Vermont Farm Machine Company fire:

I'd like to share a small story of a giant event. It was 1952 and I was 5 years old.  My dad and I had left the Chimes Cafe, our family restaurant, and walked out the back door onto Canal Street. I remember my dad saying, "I smell smoke!" Then he looked across the canal and said, "Oh my God!"  He grabbed me, ran upstairs to the phone in the kitchen, and called in the largest factory fire in the history of Bellows Falls.

December 29, 1981: The Deadly Star Hotel Fire

The most tragic of the fires to strike Bellows Falls was the 1981 Star Hotel fire, which claimed the lives of two young volunteer firefighters, Terry Brown and Dana Fuller, on the evening of December 29, 1981. Pictured below, Brown was 21 and Fuller 25. The two entered the Star Hotel and were subsequently overcome by smoke when the staircase became impassable and their oxygen tanks ran out.

A 19th Century Building Downtown

Built in the 1860s, the Star Hotel building served as a residential hotel with commercial storefronts and was located on Bridge Street, just off the Square. In the undated first photo below, it is pictured on the right. The Island House can be seen in the upper left.

This second photo shows the July 1916 opening day of the C. C. Allen & Company 5 & 10 Store in the building's storefront.

As reported in the December 30, 1981, issue of The Brattleboro Reformer, seen below, the smoke from the fire was so thick that smoke alarms were set off across the street. In total, 10 nearby fire departments responded. Firefighters from Springfield and Walpole found Brown and Fuller in the collapsed building.

Positive Outcomes from a Devastating Fire

As a result of the Star Hotel fire, Vermont’s fire codes and regulations were enhanced with updated safety protocols, and additional training has continued to keep departments accountable and firefighters safe. One of the new safety measures was an additional tag on a firefighter's gear so fire departments would know who was called to a fire and each firefighter's location.

In 2021, a fortieth anniversary ceremony honored the two fallen firefighters with the dedication of the Brown and Fuller Memorial Park, seen below on Bridge Street at the location of the former Star Hotel.

At the dedication, Captain Larry Clark read the Fireman’s Prayer, written in 1958 by Alvin William ‘Smokey’ Linn. Among the lines of the prayer are these:

I want to fill my calling, and give the best in me,

To guard my every neighbor and protect their property.

And if according to your will I should lose my life,

Please bless with your protecting hand my children and my wife.

Captain Clark dedicated more than 58 years to fire service, focusing on education, firefighter safety, and wellness for those affected by tragedy. He went on to become a State of Vermont Instructor and Hazardous Materials educator. Like others who were on duty that night, Clark said that the Star Hotel fire had a tremendous effect on him.

In 2021, Falls Area Community Television (FACT TV) producers Mike and Sue Smith, Marty Gallagher, and Alex Stradling used never-before-seen photographs and interviews with firefighters and community members to create a documentary intended for fundraising for the Memorial Park. You can watch their compelling documentary, Called to Duty, here.

Each December, Bellows Falls and area firefighters pay tribute to Brown and Fuller, who would have been 64 and 68 this year. December 2026 will mark 45 years since the Star Hotel Fire, and we will continue to remember the sacrifice these two young men made and to share their story.

Questions?

You can email us at any time with questions about the Depot Street Bridge replacement project at developmentassist@rockbf.org.  You can also send us information on the history of the area, which we'll be happy to share with the community through this blog.