Savannah's Cathedral of St. John the Baptist Suffered a Horrific Blaze in 1898

This week, the world was saddened to learn of a massive fire that erupted at the Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris, France.

Sadly, Savannah, Georgia's famed Cathedral of St. John the Baptist has dealt with the devastation of a major blaze, too, having suffered a fire in 1898, as local news station WSAV-TV recently reported.

"Thank goodness there were no people in the church,” said Marsha McBride, Cathedral of St. John the Baptist Docent, in the television segment of the 19th century inferno. “The walls collapsed. The pillars collapsed, and everything was destroyed in the church except the main altar, under which the fire had started, and one window in the front chapel.”

For some Savannah residents, learning of the Notre Dame Cathedral fire has brought a sense of kinship between the Hostess City and the City of Lights. "As I watched the coverage yesterday from Paris, I thought a lot about the fire of 1898 here in Savannah, and just that resilience of human spirit that says 'this is not the end. We are not finished. We will rebuild this again. This place will rise from the ashes," said Patricia Meagher of the Georgia Historical Society in the clip.

Watch the full segment below.

WATCH: This Local Man Wrote A Love Song To Savannah, Georgia

If you would like to help rebuild Notre Dame Cathedral, you can make a donation to support the Cathedral of Notre Dame through The Basilica of the National Shrine is a National Sanctuary of Prayer here.

The recent Notre Dame fire has also inspired many to give money to three historically black churches in Louisiana that burned down suspiciously in the past month. Visit the GoFundMe page to make a donation or learn more here.

We'll be keeping both of these churches in our thoughts this Easter weekend.