The New Bedford Fire Museum is a local history museum at 51 Bedford Street in
New Bedford, Massachusetts
New Bedford (Massachusett language, Massachusett: ) is a city in Bristol County, Massachusetts, Bristol County, Massachusetts. It is located on the Acushnet River in what is known as the South Coast (Massachusetts), South Coast region. Up throug ...
, United States. It is located in the 1867 Fire Station No. 4, the city's oldest surviving fire station. The building was listed on the
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic v ...
in 1975.
The museum is open between July 4 and Labor Day. It houses a collection of firefighting equipment and memorabilia related to the history of firefighting in the city.
Architecture and building history
The New Bedford Fire Museum is located south of downtown New Bedford, at the northwest corner of South 6th and Bedford Streets. The former fire station it is located in is a two-story brick building, constructed in 1867 and enlarged in the 1880s. Its most prominent feature is the hose tower, which has bricked-over rounded-arch openings and a hip roof with a flared eave and corbelled brick cornice. The original portion of the station has two equipment bays, with paneled doors and granite frame. The enlargement, to the left of the main block, also has two bays on either side of a pedestrian door. The building was originally designed for horse-drawn fire equipment, its lower level including stable space, and the upper level used in part as a hay loft.
The station's first foreman was A.M. Howland Jr., who later served as mayor of New Bedford, and it was manned by a volunteer force. The station was named in honor of Cornelius Howland, one of the city's leading merchants. The addition originally housed the fire department repair shop. In 1913, the volunteer force was replaced by paid staff, and the hay lofts were converted into living space.
[
The station was one of the oldest continuously operating fire stations in the state when it was closed in 1979.]National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic v ...
as Fire Station No. 4. The museum was opened the following year.
Museum collection
The museum has a collection of old firefighting equipment and some old fire engines. Among them is the original 1867 Cornelius Howland hand pumper, which saw active service in this station until 1884. It also includes log books from the station's operations between 1867 and 1913.[ Visitors can try on old uniforms and slide down the pole.]docent
The title of docent is conferred by some European universities to denote a specific academic appointment within a set structure of academic ranks at or below the full professor rank, similar to a British readership, a French " ''maître de conf ...
s.
Rain damage to the station's roof
See also
*
References
External links
New Bedford Fire Museum
- New Bedford area guide
{{National Register of Historic Places in Massachusetts
Museums established in 1976
Buildings and structures in New Bedford, Massachusetts
History of Bristol County, Massachusetts
Museums in Bristol County, Massachusetts
Firefighting museums in Massachusetts
Tourist attractions in New Bedford, Massachusetts
National Register of Historic Places in New Bedford, Massachusetts
Historic district contributing properties in Massachusetts