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In the early morning hours of Feb. 13, 1942, a fire broke out in a two-story building on Bridge Street and quickly spread into the old Vallee Block on Main Street at Bridge Street. The photo on the left shows firefighters battling the fire on the Bridge Street side. Firefighters from Westbrook and surrounding

communities fought the fire for several hours in sub-zero temperatures. The upper two-and-a-half stories of the Vallee Block were destroyed in the fire. (The Vallee Block was built in 1849 and was known as the Warren Block until Charles Vallee, father of Rudy Vallee, purchased the Woodman Pharmacy in the building and changed the name to the Vallee Pharmacy). After the fire, the upper floors of both buildings were dismantled and the first floors renovated into retail space. The three buildings in the left of the photo received minor damage. Interestingly, the building on the left was occupied by the Salvation Army, which today occupies a building originally constructed by New England Telephone Co. at the same location. The photo on the right shows the same area today, with a tanning business on the corner of Main and Bridge streets, The Frog & Turtle Restaurant in the next building on Bridge Street and the Salvation Army in the building on the left.

Research and photos courtesy of Mike Sanphy