Our Lady of the Blessed Sacrament Parish welcomed visitors to its former rectory, the Atwater Mansion on Union Street in Westfield, on July 20 and 21. The home is scheduled to be demolished to make way for a new police station.
Reminder Publishing photo by Amy Porter
WESTFIELD — About 350 people visited the Atwater Mansion on July 20-21 to take a look at Westfield history, and to say goodbye.
Our Lady of the Blessed Sacrament Church hosted open houses both days at the 6 Union St. property, which formerly served as the parish’s rectory. The city of Westfield has an agreement with the Catholic Diocese of Springfield to purchase the property, which it plans to raze and use as the site of a new police station.
The three-story house, built in 1896, was once owned by the Atwater family, descendants of colonists who came over on the Mayflower. The diocese bought the house in 1911 and used it as a residence for the priests at Blessed Sacrament.
“We were very happy to welcome so many people who said they passed by the house for so many years and wanted to see inside. It was a very positive experience for everyone,” said the Rev. Dan Pacholec, pastor of Blessed Sacrament.
He said among them was one woman whose grandmother worked as a housekeeper in the rectory in the late 1920s and early ’30s. “She had heard a lot about the house and wanted to see it,” he said.
Immediately upon entering the house, visitors were impressed by the leaded glass around the doorways and windows, the decorative molding, marble fireplaces and the show-stopper, a unique suspended staircase with hand-turned spindles and no visible support structure in the wall.
Kathleen Palmer, chair of the Historical Commission, said she remembers as a young girl in the church choir being invited to the rectory for Christmas, and how beautiful it was. She said she was surprised at how good it still looks.
“I expected more damage. It was closed for a long time,” she said.
The former Blessed Sacrament Church on Union Street was demolished in the early 2000s to make way for roadways connecting North Elm Street to the second Greater River Bridge over the Westfield River. The city purchased the church building itself, but did not need the rectory or parking lot. The Blessed Sacrament congregation moved to a new church on Holyoke Road, and used the old rectory only for occasional meetings.
Palmer said a lot of people at the open house were mentioning that the city should save some of the house’s features, such as the marble fireplaces, before the building is taken down. She said most of the members of the Historical Commission visited the open house, and they will make some recommendations as to what the city can salvage.
“Whatever we can, and whatever we can suggest,” she said. “It’s a beautiful building. We’d love to save them all, but sometimes we just can’t. It’s not practical.”
She said the house is not on any national historical registry, but it is on Westfield’s list of historical buildings.
