Exploring the Firehouses of the Greenwich Village Historic District

Village Preservation recently released a revamped and updated version of our Greenwich Village Historic District Virtual Maps. Originally created in 2019 to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Greenwich Village Historic District, the map includes Then & Now Photographs of the entire district, and a number of thematic tours of sites around the neighborhood. Today, we will take a look at one of these tours, focused on Firehouses.

The firehouse tour includes buildings that currently, or previously served as firehouses, while also giving a bit of history on firefighting in New York City. All of the buildings date to the 19th century, with some predating the municipally organized and run New York City Fire Department (FDNY), which was founded in 1865 as the Metropolitan Fire Department (MFD).

Columbia Hook and Ladder Co., 102 Charles Street

The Columbia Hook and Ladder Company is a pre-FDNY volunteer fire department that occupied this firehouse at 102 Charles Street. The building was originally constructed in 1854, as a home for accountant Samuel D. Chase. The city purchased the home the following year, converting it to the Hook and Ladder Company. When the city switched to its paid, unified system in 1865, the Fire Department took over the building. Unusually, the Department moved out of the building in the 1960s when a flea infestation from some stray cats became unmanageable. Now, the building is home to a street-level storefront with residences above.

Empire Hose Company No. 40, 70 Barrow Street

One of the oldest firehouses in New York, this structure was built in 1852, predating the organized New York City Fire Department. Pre-MFD fire departments were operated by volunteers who formed groups and petitioned the city to build them a firehouse and provide them with the materials. Most firehouse members were blue-collar workers, volunteering any extra time they had. At 70 Barrow Street, a volunteer group called Empire Hose Company No. 40 had around 30 members until it was disbanded after the act of 1865. The original firehouse doorway has been partially bricked over, but its classic look is still legible.

Engine Company 18, 132 West 10th Street

This firehouse was designed by Napoleon Lebrun, who in 1879 was made the lead architect for the New York City Fire Department.  Lebrun designed a total of 42 firehouses and other fire department structures throughout the city, mostly in Manhattan. Engine Company 18 was built in 1892 when the city’s population was rapidly increasing, calling for the construction of new firehouses. This company on West 10th Street responded to the Triangle Shirtwaist Fire of 1911, to the World Trade Center attacks on September 11, 2001 and is still in service today.

Jefferson Market Fire Lookout, 421 Sixth Avenue

Most well-known for its history as a courthouse and library, the Jefferson Market the clock tower at 425 Sixth Avenue also served as a fire watchtower in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Constructed in 1877, at 172 feet tall, the tower was one of the tallest structures in the city, making it an ideal lookout. The watchmen would ring the bells in the tower to alert volunteer firefighters. The tower was operated until 1945 when the building became a police academy. It became the library we know today in 1967.  

Perry Hose Company, 48 Horatio Street

The volunteer-based Perry Hose Company fought off fires in the time before the creation of the Metropolitan Fire Department. The company’s name honors Commodore Matthew C. Perry, who commanded several ships in the Mexican-American War and the War of 1812, and whose remains were,  for a while at least, interred in the graveyard of St. Mark’s in the Bowery Church . The present building dates to 1856, replacing the Company’s original firehouse which had been located on the site. The firehouse’s services did not continue after the 1865 act, but the colonial character and distinct firetruck archway were preserved in the building’s conversion to a private residence. 

This is one of many tours in the Greenwich Village Historic District Virtual Map and Tours. Take the opportunity to delve deeper into our neighborhood through the updated interactive map website here.