Historic Name

Firefighters' Museum

Address

428 Chestnut Street

Municipality

City of Erie

Tax Parcel

17040014020000

Historic District

Classification

Class 1 (Definitions of Classes)

State Key Number

97257

Historic Function

Government - fire station

Style

Italianate

Built

1873

Architect

Builder

Barn Type on property

Last Entry Update

7/24/2016

Erie’s first fire company, the Active Fire Company, was established in 1826, more than two decades after Erie was established as a borough. As the population in the small town grew and buildings were erected in close proximity to one another, fires were bound to happen. The Active Fire Company originally used buckets of water to extinguish fires, eventually purchasing a small fire engine. By the 1870s, there were a handful of fire stations operating in the City of Erie, one being the Eagle Hose Company.

Built in 1873, the original structure at this site was known as the Eagle Hose Company. At this time, hand-pulled apparatuses that were drawn by horses were used to extinguish fires in the city. The earliest form of a fire engine in Erie, the apparatus was a four-wheel cart connected to a hand-pumped hose. The original two-story structure housed a garage for the fire cart and a dormitory for the crew. A horse barn was located next to this building. Hooking up horses to the carts was timely, making it difficult to reach fires quickly. Removing the firefighting apparatus from the station was complicated as well. These issues prompted the construction of a new fire station in 1903. Fully operating by 1904, the new station was named Engine Company #4. This structure’s entrance and alarm room is where the stables once stood. The new station faced east, instead of south, which made the apparatus easier to move out of the fire station. The stables were removed in 1912 when the fire station became partially motorized. The station discontinued its use of horse power in 1921, relying solely on automobiles. Over the next four decades, Engine Company #4 served the City of Erie.

In the 1960s, Erie began downsizing its fire departments, and closed Engine Company #4 in 1969. The station was renovated into a museum, which opened May 8, 1976. The museum displays over one thousand artifacts, featuring fire engines, firefighting tools, and an apparatus from the nineteenth century. The museum also tells the stories of the firefighters who once worked at Engine Company #4. The Firefighter’s Historical Museum is open to the public every weekend, offering interpretation of Erie’s firefighting history.

Sources: Whitman, Benjamin. Nelson’s Biographical Dictionary and Historical Reference Book of Erie County, Pennsylvania. Erie, PA: S.B. Nelson, 1896.

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Photo courtesy, Erie County Assessment Office