Dedication of Notre Dame Building is Celebrated After 70 Years

Twenty-five members of the Classes of 1950, 1951, 1952, and 1953 will return to Notre Dame, their Home on the Hill, at 10:30 a.m. on Monday, October 29, 2018 to celebrate the 70th anniversary of the dedication of the building which took place on Sunday, October 31, 1948. Notre Dame High opened its doors in September 1946 in Harugari Hall on 1082 Campbell Avenue which had been purchased by the Brothers of Holy Cross in May of that year. For the first two-and-a-half years Harugari Hall served as the school and the residence of the Brothers. The ND Class of 1953 was the first class to spend all four years in the current school building. The Reverend John Heller, pastor of St. Boniface Church, New Haven, was instrumental in assisting the Brothers of Holy Cross in securing the Campbell Avenue site from Mary A. Braun, widow of Leo Braun. Harugari Hall had been the site of a German choral society.

Bishop Henry J. O’Brien, Bishop of Hartford, presided at the dedication ceremony which was held on a stage set up outside the school’s main entrance. The dedicatory address was delivered by Rev. Cornelius J. Laskowski, a professor of English at the University of Notre Dame. Most of the Brothers who served on the first faculty came from Notre Dame University. Also in attendance was the Honorable William C. Celentano, Mayor of New Haven at the time.

The returning alumni will gather in the Saint Brother André Bessette, CSC, chapel for a prayer service at which their deceased classmates will be remembered. Notre Dame President Robert F. Curis will host them at a celebratory luncheon in the George ’58 and Maureen Collins Auditorium after the prayer service.