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Fire Hall No. 2
Calgary
Other Names:
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Fire Station No. 2, Police Substation No. 2
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Statement of Significance
Description of Historic Place
Fire Hall No. 2 is located at 1807 Macleod Trail SE across from the Calgary Stampede and Exhibition grounds. The building was designed in the Edwardian Classical style as a combined fire hall and police station, with the fire hall in the north half of the building and the police in the south half. The hall is a large two-storey, brick building with stone detailing, a hip roof and distinctive hose tower on the northwest corner, and three arched entrances on the east façade for fire apparatus.
Heritage Value
Fire Hall No.2 is significant as the only surviving example of a combined fire hall and police station dating from Calgary’s economic boom before World War One. The explosive growth the city experienced created a pressing need for civic infrastructure, including fire halls and police stations. The existing No. 2 Fire Hall, located on 12 AV SW, was no longer adequate as the department made a transition to motorized equipment, while the police wanted several substations. Combining fire halls and police stations was an economic solution and Fire Hall No. 2 was the first of three substantial examples built in 1912-1913, The others were Fire Hall No. 8 at 20 ST SE and Fire Hall No. 7 on 16 AV NW, both demolished in the 1970s.
Fire Hall No. 2 is important as a well-preserved example of Edwardian Classical architecture in Calgary. Commonly used for public buildings, Edwardian Classical was more restrained than other classical revival styles but still lent itself to visually impressive buildings. The leading Calgary architectural firm of Lang and Major designed Fire Hall No. 2 and were also responsible for Hall No.1 (extant), the department headquarters, and Hall No. 8. The Lang and Major fire halls featured extensive architectural decoration. Hall No. 2 has a pleasing design with an asymmetrical façade that clearly delineated the two functions. The building features decorative brick work and extensive use of sandstone, for example around the arched vehicle bay entrances, for a prominent cornice and for window keystones.
The fire hall has symbolic importance as an expression of civic pride. Three previous fire halls built in 1909 were small and utilitarian structures. No. 2 Hall in contrast, was intended to be impressive as well as functional. Civic boosters of the era used public buildings to extoll the progress of their city and as example of the amenities, in order to attract new investment and immigration. This was especially true in western Canadian cities, which eagerly promoted development. Like Calgary’s sandstone city hall and public schools from the same period, the Lang and Major designed fire halls symbolized Calgary’s prosperity.
Fire Hall No. 2 is also a landmark due to its location along a major thoroughfare and across from the Exhibition grounds. The police force wanted a substation close to the grounds to provide a nearby police presence and lock-up during the annual exhibition. The location chosen was also strategic for the fire department as 2 ST East, now Macleod Trail, was a primary traffic route. While the location was chosen for pragmatic reasons, as a public building of distinguished appearance across from an important tourist attraction, Fire Hall No. 2 is a significant landmark.
The hall is unique for serving as quarters for a number of service and community organizations while still an active fire hall. The police station closed in September of 1916 due to war-time reductions to the police force. For the duration of the war the police station portion was the local headquarters and laboratory of the Canadian Army Dental Corps. In 1923 the city rented the space to the newly organized Royal Canadian Naval Volunteer Reserve’s Calgary unit. The St. John’s Ambulance Brigade, as it was then known, occupied the station from 1944 until 1975. The Victoria Park Pioneers Association then leased the space as a seniors drop-in centre, and rented the entire building when the new Fire Station 2, located at 1010 10 AV SW, opened in 1976.
Subsequently, the fire department reclaimed the building in 1980 first as the headquarters for Disaster Services and as an ambulance training centre, then as the headquarters for the newly formed Emergency Medical Services, with the building receiving a $1 million renovation in 1986. EMS moved its headquarters in 2005 but continues to use the fire hall as a paramedic station. Presently Calgary Bylaw Services occupies the police station, echoing the original uses of the hall.
Character-Defining Elements
Character-defining elements include, but are not limited to:
- Two-storey building with long rectangular plan and an asymmetrical main façade delineating the two original functions of the building;
- Pressed brick construction on concrete basement; shingled hip form roof; metal block modillion cornice (replaced in kind); sandstone belt course;
- Brick hose tower on the northwest corner with arched window opening and false crenellations;
- Segmental arched main floor windows openings; square-cut second floor windows on east and north facades, square cut windows on other facades, all with sandstone sills;
- The police station section of the façade features a central bay with two brick piers containing a recessed arched main entrance porch, topped with a parapet bearing the legend "No 2 Police Station";
- The recessed fire hall façade with three large arched openings for the vehicle bays and stone plaque with legend "Fire Station No 2";
- Decorative balustrade on the northeastern corner;
- Sandstone decorative casings cladding the large arched openings; window keystones; and
- Sandstone cornerstone plaque on north corner of east façade.
Location
| Street Address: |
1807 MacLeod Trail SE |
| Community: |
Calgary |
| Boundaries: |
Lots 5 to 8 and a Portion of Lot 9, Block 3, Plan 4211U |
| Contributing Resources: |
Building: 1
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ATS Legal Description:
PBL Legal Description (Cadastral Reference):
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Plan |
Block |
Lot |
Parcel |
4211U
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3
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5-9
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Latitude/Longitude:
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Latitude |
Longitude |
CDT |
Datum Type |
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51.036781 |
-114.059179 |
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NAD 83 |
UTM Reference:
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Northing |
Easting |
Zone |
CDT |
Datum Type |
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Recognition
| Recognition Authority: |
Local Governments (AB) |
| Designation Status: |
Municipal Historic Resource |
| Date of Designation: |
2016/01/11 |
Historical Information
| Built: |
1912 to 1912 |
| Period of Significance: |
1906 to 1913 |
| Theme(s): |
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| Historic Function(s): |
Government : Fire Station
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| Current Function(s): |
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| Architect: |
Lang and Major
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| Builder: |
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| Context: |
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Additional Information
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