A New Fire Station--1958

For fifty five years, Irvington firemen operated out of Station Number 25 located at 5432 East Washington Street. The building had been designed for a time when horses pulled the fire wagons and not for motorized firetrucks. In need of a modern facility, the city sold the station to East Side Chevrolet located next door and built a modern structure at 17 South Sheridan Avenue. The dealership quickly tore down the historic chalet because they needed space for their booming auto sales. By November 7, 1958, Irvington firemen took up residence in their new structure. The second fire station has actually served the community longer than the first as it has been in operation for fifty seven years.

Members of Fire Station #25 gathered for one of the last photos taken at 5432 East Washington Street c1958. Note that Vogel's Furniture, an Irvington institution, used to operate in the former Odd Fellows Building next door. Both structures in this photo have been razed. (Photo: Indianapolis Public Library System Digital Photo Collection)

The Indianapolis Times published this photo of fireman Bob McDonnell on moving day in 1958 as the Irvington Fire Station relocated from 5432 East Washington Street to 17 South Sheridan Avenue. Mr. McDonnell worked for the Indianapolis City Fire Department for several decades. (Photo: Terry Wilgus)

Dignitaries gathered for a dedication ceremony in November of 1958 at the site of the new Irvington Fire Station at 17 South Sheridan Avenue. In the distance, you can see the large homes on East Washington Street. (Photo: Indianapolis Public Library, Digital Photo Collection)

The second fire station to serve Irvington has now been in operation longer than the first. It is located at 17 South Sheridan Avenue. (Photo; Bill Gulde, 2015)  

Irvington Fire House--Station #25

One of the chief reasons for Irvington's annexation to the city of Indianapolis in 1902 was to obtain police and fire protection. Two disastrous school fires and numerous house blazes demonstrated to many folks in the community that Irvington needed city services. In 1903, the community hired architect John Stem to design a beautiful fire station to fit into the "classic" suburb. Mr. Stem was likely recommended by Hilton U. Brown, the publisher of the Indianapolis News, as the architect had designed Brown's large stone mansion at the southwest corner of East Washington Street and Emerson Avenue. (demolished) Stem's design was unlike any other fire station in the city. By 1903, the National Road or East Washington Street had emerged as the main commercial corridor for Irvington so the town planners placed the fire station at 5432 East Washington Street.

The Irvington Fire Station c1905 at 5432 East Washington Street

Stem opted for a European-styled structure with the first floor exterior sheathed in stone and the upper gables clad with wood shake. Since the first fire engines were powered by horses, the station had a stall on the first floor and a hayloft on the second floor. In the early years of the station, firemen, worked 24-hour shifts for six days of the week on a rotating basis and slept on the second floor. They were allowed to eat meals at home, but most dined at the station. Later, their schedules were modified to a more reasonable time frame.

If neighbors needed to report a fire, then they could run to a nearby fire alarm box scattered throughout the neighborhood. In 1910, there were fire alarm boxes located at several intersections including: Downey and Julian; University and Ohmer; 200 block of South Audubon Road; Beechwood and Burgess; Layman and Lowell; Washington and Ritter; Washington and Arlington; and Washington and Bosart. Many residents already had a telephone by 1910 so they merely had to pick up the receiver and call the station.

On February 8, 1929, Fire Station #25 obtained its first motorized vehicles. The horses, who had been lovingly tended to, were sent away to a nearby farm. The station hosted a Dalmatian and "Spot" became a beloved animal in the neighborhood.

Life for the firefighters was fairly routine. Oral histories conducted by the Irvington branch of the Indianapolis Public Library and now found online revealed that fireman had tasks to do each day. Substitutes or the newer recruits were assigned the worst jobs like stoking the coal furnace in the winter or cleaning out the disgusting spittoons. On Mondays, the men stretched out the hoses to dry and clean them. On Tuesdays, the men conducted inspections of nearby schools and institutions. On Wednesdays, the station was cleaned and the floors scrubbed. On Thursdays and Fridays, they cleaned every inch of the firetrucks and did maintenance work. They had some free time where they could play cards, read, or listen to a ballgame on the radio. Each man was given a task for dinner and the subsequent clean up. They also had assigned beds and each man a monthly night watch.

The Irvington Fire Station (#25) c1929 at 5432 East Washington Street

Over the years, dozens of men served their time in the beautiful but aging chalet of a fire station. Bob McDonnell, a veteran of World War II and an employee for the city fire department since 1938, started working at #25 in the early 1950s. Mr. McDonnell reported that by the mid-twentieth century, the station was in such poor shape that the firemen did not jump into the trucks until they were out on the concrete pad because they worried about the sagging floors.

Bob McDonell worked for Station #25 for many years. In 1958, he helped in the from the old station at 5432 East Washington to the new site at 17 South Sheridan Avenue. 

In November of 1958, the city of Indianapolis vacated the unusual fire station for a modern structure located at 17 South Sheridan Avenue. Sadly, the community had no rules in place to protect such structures so it was torn down very quickly as a nearby car dealership needed space for a parking lot. One can only imagine the reuse of this building in 2015 as a restaurant, a coffee shop, a bookstore, or as a boutique.

To learn more about the station and to see additional photographs click on the link below. Much of the information for this post came from an oral history interview with Errol Evans and from Terry Wilgus, the daughter of Bob McDonnell. Ms. Wilgus also provided the wonderful images.

http://www.digitalindy.org/cdm/compoundobject/collection/ioh/id/1483/rec/28

Wonderful Frederick Polley Sketch Shows Doomed East Washington Street Block in 1933

When Irvington artist and illustrator, Frederick Polley (371 South Emerson Avenue), sketched this scene eighty years ago, he probably never envisioned that in time every structure in this drawing would be demolished.  Clearly, the most unique structure on the north side of the 5400 block of East Washington Street was the Irvington Fire House. Notice the the wood shake on the second story and the steep gable.   Carr's Hall, the long building in the center of the print, belonged to Dr. Silas Carr, a local dentist and entrepreneur.  The structured served as an auto showroom on the first floor with offices and meeting spaces on the second story. The building was designed by Marrett L. Carr, the brother to Silas.  Many local artists also displayed their exhibitions in the structure.  Mr. Polley sketched numerous people in front of the building. Perhaps they were there to attend a gallery opening.   Mr. Polley added the very modern touch of an airplane flying overhead.

In the decades following the creation of this print, Irvingtonians and others tore down each one of these buildings, including Carr's Hall as recently as 1999.  I often view the period of time between 1970 and 2000 as the "time of troubles" for the neighborhood.  As people continued to flee for the suburbs, the commercial area along Washington Street struggled. In the early 1990s, citizens allowed the destruction of several buildings for the erection of a Walgreens Drug Store complete with a large parking lot along the street.  In the early millennia, the community added another suburban building housing a grocery store and a dental office.  Developers in both cases added unsympathetic structures that paid no heed to the architectural fabric of the neighborhood.

Mr. Polley's drawing ultimately found its way into the Carr-Hildreth collections. Both families generously supported local artists including Mr. Polley.  I am very grateful to Laura Hildreth, the granddaughter of Dr. Silas Carr, for this loaning me this print.  She also managed to save one of the parapets from Carr's Hall after it was leveled.