Abandoned Sutton drive-in destroyed in fire; Grafton firefighters called to assist

Grafton firefighters were called to assist in a fire that destroyed the remains of the abandoned Sutton Motor-In Drive-In Sunday afternoon, part of a brush fire that swept through several acres along both sides along Route 146.

Grafton’s Car 1, Engine 3, Engine 5, Brush 1 and the department’s support unit  were called to the scene around 5 p.m. as part of a multi-town effort to knock out the fire, which shut down the southbound side of Route 146 as flames engulfed the screen and shot as high as 70 feet in the air, according to reports from the scene.

The drive-in has sat neglected, with its decaying stone entrance shrouded by overgrowth, since its shut down in 1996. The theater opened in 1947 and operated for nearly 50 years.

It was the second large fire the department had responded to this weekend. In Northbridge, Grafton responded to a fire Friday afternoon in an old Victorian building at 583 Linwood Avenue in Northbridge.

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