End of an Era

For most of the twentieth century, the main place of community congregation for most small towns and cities were the local churches. The local churches provided a community center for the immigrant communities of North Adams who had migrated to the area because of the industrial jobs. These churches provided ways for immigrants to engage with people who had similar experiences to them. St. Francis of Assisi was the French-Canadian church. It had a parochial school that taught both French and English and an associated order of nuns. 

When St. Francis of Assisi Church was demolished in 2016, it was as if the final chapter of an era had been closed. As North Adams becomes more of an artistic based community, highly segmented immigrant communities are fading and the people are starting to congregate in centers like MASS MoCA. When the Church required repairs in 2007, many of the parishioners started going to St. Elizabeth of Hungary Church, which is conveniently located directly across from MASS MoCA.