Landmark old building in downtown Modesto suffers extensive damage in fire

A fire Tuesday morning did such extensive damage to a historic building downtown that it most likely cannot be salvaged, a Modesto Fire Department official said.

The fire at the former Franklin and Downs Funeral Homes building at 12th and G streets was reported at about 6:45 a.m. Witnesses said they observed an explosion that blew the roof off the building, also known as Colonial Chapel. The roof ended up on the front lawn.

“A couple of minutes in, we had a roof collapse as you can see on the very front of the building. The majority of the roof slid off and fortunately missed all of our firefighters,” said Capt. Joe Spani. “We don’t have any injuries.”

Responding fire crews found the structure fully involved with flames, which took about an hour to knock down.

Because of the historic architecture of the building, which includes a full basement and attic, an overhaul and extinguishing of the property was expected to take hours.

Th Colonial Chapel, also known as the Perley Mansion, was built in 1895 by George Perley Stone, a local banker; the home was his primary residence for over 30 years.

McHenry Museum and Historical Society Executive Director David Seymour arrived at the scene of the fire. He said Stone sold the home around 1920-21 to a funeral home. George Sovern, who was the county coroner, operated it as Sovern Funeral Home and lived in the house behind it, Seymour said.

Upon his death, Sovern’s widow sold the home to Lew Franklin Sr. and Saxon Downs around 1945 and it became Franklin and Downs Funeral Home, Seymour said. (The F&D website says the firm was founded in 1946.) “In 1948, the turret of the original house was removed and they built this colonial facade’” Seymour said. “It operated as Franklin and Downs Funeral Home until 2016.”

The home was most recently purchased by the Stanislaus County Office of Education. Attempts to restore and preserve the home were ongoing.

The cause and origin of the blaze are under investigation.

This story was originally published July 16, 2024 at 8:21 AM.