Investigators learned that the fire had begun in a void space in the ceiling, between the kitchen and an office, according to a joint statement from Reading Fire Chief Gregory J. Burns and State Fire Marshal Peter J. Ostroskey. The fire initially went undetected. But when it broke out of the void space, it traveled up the exterior of the building.

Firefighters were called to the club at 292 Grove St. shortly before 4 a.m. after a neighbor saw flames in the clubhouse, said Jennifer Mieth, a spokeswoman for the state fire marshal’s office.

A three-alarm fire sparked by faulty wiring raced through the decades-old clubhouse of the Meadow Brook Golf Club in Reading early Friday morning, causing $1.5 million in damage, officials said. No one was injured.


“Investigators suspect that the electrical fire disabled the fire alarm system," the statement said. "By the time a neighbor noticed the fire and reported it, the fire already had a strong hold on the building.”

Mieth said the building was unoccupied at the time of the fire.

“I want to thank our many mutual aid partners who assisted Reading firefighters in battling this blaze," Burns said. "In order to bring enough water, we had to connect to hydrants from some distance and lay long runs of hose. The use of Lynnfield’s tower ladder also helped us to get the fire under control.”

The clubhouse was more than 75 years old and contained the club’s function hall, bar, dining room, locker rooms, and offices, the Meadow Brook Board of Governors said in a statement on the club’s Facebook page Friday morning.

“We are grateful for the Reading Fire Department and first responders from Reading and surrounding towns who were able to work quickly to minimize the spread,” the board wrote in the statement. “A longstanding part of the community, the building held memories for many.”


Meadow Brook opened in 1898 and was one of the founding members of the Massachusetts Golf Association in 1903, according to Meadow Brook’s website.

No other damage was reported on the property as a result of the fire, the board said.

Grove Street and parts of Franklin Street were closed as firefighters battled the blaze, according to a tweet from the Town of Reading’s official Facebook account. Some residents had discolored water due to sediment in the pipes being stirred up by the massive amount of water crews were using to fight the fire, the town said.

Caroline Enos can be reached at caroline.enos@globe.com. Follow her on Twitter @CarolineEnos.