Carmel Fire Station

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Historic building in California, U.S.

Carmel Fire Station

The Carmel Fire Station

Location| 6th Avenue, Carmel-by-the-Sea, California
Coordinates| 36°33′24″N 121°55′8″W﻿ / ﻿36.55667°N 121.91889°W﻿ / 36.55667; -121.91889
Built| 1936-1937
Built by| Michael J. Murphy
Built for| Carmel-by-the-Sea Fire Department
Current use| Fire station
Architect| Milton Latham
Architectural style(s)| Modern Civic and WPA style

Carmel Fire Station

Carmel Fire Station

The Carmel Fire Station, also known as Station No. 15, is a historic two-story fire station in downtown Carmel-by-the-Sea, California. The firehouse is an example of Modern Civic and WPA style architecture. The fire station qualified as an important building in the city's downtown historic district property survey and was registered with the California Register of Historical Resources on April 25, 2002. The Carmel fire station is still in operation.[1]

## History[edit]

Carmel Fire Station shows five engine bay doors

A volunteer Carmel fire department was established in 1908 by twenty citizens and led by Robert George Leidig (1879-1970). Leidig was one of the early founders of the Carmel Volunteer Fire Department. He became chief of the department in January 1925 and served as the village fire marshal and chief for 53 years.[1][2]

In 1916, when the city was incorporated, they became responsible for fire protection. In 1935, a bond was issued by the city to build a new firehouse. The bond was for $12,000 (equivalent to $266,680 in 2023), with a pledge from the Works Progress Administration (WPA) to add another $9,046 (equivalent to $201,032 in 2023) for the new building.[1]

In 1958, a radio system was installed, enabling direct communication between firefighters and the Carmel Police Department, along with the inclusion of "buzzer boxes" for internal communication within the department. Subsequent additions included a new ambulance and, in 1963, a 300 horsepower LaFrance engine. Another addition, a Crown Coach with an aerial platform (or snorkel), arrived in 1975.[2]

The Carmel Fire Station is a two-story Reinforced concrete Modern and WPA style architecture located on 6th Avenue, between San Carolos and Mission Streets, in Carmel-by-the-Sea, California. The firehouse was designed by local architect Milton Latham[3] and built by master builder Michael J. Murphy and WPA supervisor Bernard Rountree. Blacksmith Francis Whitaker completed the five engine bay doors and inside iron handrails. The front is covered with a Carmel stone Façade. The station was opened in June 1937. A bronze commemorative plaque appears near the entryway door.[1][4]

The Monterey Fire Department staffs the Carmel Fire Station. The department has six fire stations in the cities of Monterey, Pacific Grove, and Carmel-by-the-Sea. The Carmel Fire Station is station No. 15.[5]

## Historical status[edit]

The building qualified for inclusion in the city's Downtown Historic District Property Survey, and was registered with the California Register of Historical Resources on April 25, 2002. The building qualifies under California Register criterion 1, in history as the home of the Carmel-by-the-Sea Fire Department, and criterion 3 in architecture, as an example of civic architecture constructed with support of the WPA during the Great Depression in the 1930s.[1][2][6]

## See also[edit]

* Carmel-by-the-Sea, California

## References[edit]

1. ^ a b c d e Kent L. Seavey (April 25, 2002). "Department Of Parks And Recreation" (PDF). National Park Service. Retrieved June 6, 2022.
2. ^ a b c Hale, Sharron Lee (1980). A Tribute to Yesterday: The History of Carmel, Carmel Valley, Big Sur, Point Lobos, Carmelite Monastery, and Los Burros. Santa Cruz, California: Valley Publishers. p. 81\. ISBN 9780913548738. Retrieved 2022-06-06.
3. ^ Dramov, Alissandra (2019). Historic Buildings of Downtown Carmel-by-the-Sea. Carmel-by-the-Sea, California: Arcadia Publishing. p. 14\. ISBN 9781467103039. Retrieved 2022-06-06.
4. ^ Seavey, Kent (2007). Carmel, A History in Architecture. Carmel-by-the-Sea, California: Arcadia Publishing. p. 123\. ISBN 9780738547053. Retrieved 2022-06-06.
5. ^ The City of Monterey Fire Department
6. ^ Bernard Roundtree (1936-02-07). "An Open Letter To The Voters Of Carmel". Carmel Pine Cone. Carmel-by-the-Sea, California. p. 1. Retrieved 2022-06-06.

## External links[edit]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Carmel Fire Station.

* Downtown Conservation District Historic Property Survey
* City of Carmel, Police & Fire

* v
* t
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List of Historic Buildings in Carmel-by-the-Sea

Downtown buildings|

* Adam Fox Building
* Amelia Gates Building
* Bank of Carmel
* Blue Bird Tea Room
* Carmel City Hall
* Carmel Development Building
* Carmel Fire Station
* Carmel Weavers Studio
* Carmel-by-the-Sea World War I Memorial Arch
* Devendorf Park
* Garden Shop Addition
* Goold Building
* Harrison Memorial Library
* La Rambla Building
* La Ribera Hotel
* Lemos Building
* Mary Dummage Shop
* Monterey County Trust & Savings Building
* Pine Inn
* Reardon Building
* Sade's
* Schweninger Building
* Seven Arts Building
* Seven Arts Shop
* Sundial Lodge
* T.A. Oakes Building
* The Tuck Box
* Wilson Building

Other buildings|

* Abbie Jane Hunter House
* American Legion Post No. 512
* Butterfly House
* Carmel Art Association
* Carl Cherry Center for the Arts
* David Starr Jordan House
* First Murphy House
* Forest Theater
* Golden Bough Theater
* Grace MacGowan Cooke House
* La Playa Hotel
* Mission Ranch
* Mission San Carlos Borromeo de Carmelo
* Mrs. Clinton Walker House
* Murphy's Barn
* Normandy Inn
* Outlands in the Eighty Acres
* Richardson Log Cabin
* Sunset Center
* Tor House and Hawk Tower
* Vernon Kellogg House
* Whalers Cabin

Designer/architect|

* Blaine & Olsen
* Frederick Bigland
* Albert Cauldwell
* Albert B. Coats
* Hugh W. Comstock
* Dene Denny
* Albert L. Farr
* Amelia L. Gates
* Lee Gottfried
* Greene and Greene
* Henry Hill
* Robert R. Jones
* Chris Jorgensen
* Guy O. Koepp
* Pedro J. Lemos
* Bernard Maybeck
* Samuel J. Miller
* Jo Mora
* Thomas W. Morgan
* Michael J. Murphy
* Percy Parkes
* Robert Stanton
* Swartz & Ryland
* Hazel Watrous
* H. H. Winner & Co.
* Thomas Albert Work
* Frank Lloyd Wright
* William Wurster
* Frank Wynkoop

Builder/contractor|

* Ernest Bixler
* Hugh W. Comstock
* Delos Goldsmith
* Lee Gottfried
* Samuel J. Miller
* Michael J. Murphy
* Thomas A. Oakes
* Percy Parkes
* Fred Ruhl
* A. Carlyle Stoney

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