Cherrydale Volunteer Fire House

Last updated
Cherrydale Volunteer Fire Department
CVFDlogo.jpg
Agency overview
Established1898
Employees50
StaffingVolunteer
EMS level BLS
Cherrydale Volunteer Fire House
Cherrydale Volunteer Fire House.jpg
The Cherrydale Volunteer Fire House in 2005
Location map District of Columbia street.png
Red pog.svg
USA Virginia location map.svg
Red pog.svg
Usa edcp location map.svg
Red pog.svg
Location3900 N. Lee Hwy., Arlington, Virginia
Coordinates 38°53′14″N77°6′26″W / 38.88722°N 77.10722°W / 38.88722; -77.10722
Arealess than one acre
Built1919
Architectural styleColonial Revival
NRHP reference No. 95000927 [1]
VLR No.000-0044
Significant dates
Added to NRHPJuly 28, 1995
Designated VLRApril 28, 1995 [2]
MottoOur Family Helping Your Family
Facilities and equipment
Stations 1
Engines 0
Trucks 2
Squads 0
Rescues 0
Ambulances 0

The Cherrydale Volunteer Fire House is home to the Cherrydale Volunteer Fire Department in the Cherrydale neighborhood of Arlington, Virginia. Constructed in 1919, it has been a focal point for community attention ever since. The building served as Arlington County Fire Station #3 until a new station opened nearby in July 2011.

Contents

Early history

The Cherrydale Volunteer Fire Department was organized in 1898 by a group of twelve men. It is the oldest volunteer fire department in Arlington County. Since its beginnings, the Cherrydale Volunteer Fire Department has remained active in the community, serving in many ways - from fighting fires and saving lives to sponsoring Christmas and Halloween parties, dances, parades, youth sports activities, and Bingo games. During the first few years after the CVFD was organized, the equipment (consisting of leather buckets, bells, and ladders) stayed out in the open. By 1906, a small shed (later referred to as "House #2") on what is now Taylor Street was erected to house the County's first mechanized equipment - a hand-drawn water and hose cart.

"Engine House #1," another small shed with a hose tower atop, was completed on the grounds of the old Cherrydale School in December 1912. It housed the first real fire engine in Arlington, a 60-gallon pumper engine which was purchased by the Cherrydale Volunteers in 1913. In 1914, "Engine House #3" was erected in the Maywood area. "Engine House #4" was completed a few months afterwards. These buildings housed additional firefighting apparatus owned by the Volunteers, including a ladder truck and chemical engine.

In 1915, after years of site searches, the Volunteers purchased a lot for $362 on Lee Highway for a new "Central Station House," the name given to the same station that serves Cherrydale today. The Volunteers used various methods to raise money to purchase the land and begin construction of the new station. One unique method was selling bricks. Prominent citizens were asked to contribute and a brick would be placed in their name. President and Mrs. Woodrow Wilson were among those who purchased bricks for the Cherrydale Station. In the late 1920s and early 1930s, the Volunteers sold the four original engine houses to help pay for the "Central Station House." [3]

On November 10, 1919, the cornerstone was placed with elaborate ceremony. The two most important speakers that day were the Honorable Ralph Walton Moore, State Senator, and Crandal Mackey, who is often called the "Father of the County Fire Department." The new station house was officially dedicated with an elaborate banquet in 1920. In 1923, the stone nameplate was added to the front of the building.

In a brief reminiscence, one Cherrydale resident remembers the station this way: "The Firehouse, as we called it, was just finished when I came to Cherrydale in 1919. A dignified red brick building -- thereafter, it was the center of a part of our lives. We loved listening to the stories told by the firemen -- listening for the telephone as he sat in his chair tilted against the wall near the open door in good weather. The activities there, the good times we had can never be surpassed."

The National Park Service listed the fire house on the National Register of Historic Places on July 28, 1995. [3] [4] The Arlington County Board designated the building to be a local historic district on July 28, 1995. [4]

Firehouse today

Repairs and modifications to the structure have been numerous over the years. The store, to the right of the apparatus bay, has been changed many times since it was rented to a grocer in the late 1920s. A major remodeling took place in 1928 when plumbing fixtures were added followed by the addition of dormers in the 1950s. In 1987, the entire first floor of the station was remodeled for more modern equipment and living arrangements. The upstairs community hall was restored to its original appearance in 1998.

The Cherrydale fire station was staffed solely by volunteers until 1940. As the area grew and call volumes increased, the County augmented the volunteer staffing by hiring a paid firefighter to help staff the station. Until 2011, the Cherrydale fire station was staffed by four Arlington County career firefighters as well as the volunteers. While the career firefighters moved to new Fire Station 3 on Old Dominion Drive, the volunteer company remains at the historic firehouse. The volunteers are trained to respond not only to fires, but also to emergency medical calls, hazardous materials incidents, and other rescue incidents.

The Cherrydale Volunteer Fire Department owns Light and Air 103, which provides lighting, breathing air replenishment services, salvage, and other services to the Arlington County Fire Department, as well as a pick-up truck operating as Utility 103. They also recently purchased a rescue truck, now operating as Support 103. Support 103 serves to replace Light and Air 103, as well as add more functionality to the department. Most of the volunteers are cross-trained as firefighters and emergency medical technicians. All have participated in hundreds of hours of training to meet state and national training standards.

See also

Related Research Articles

The Arlington County Fire Department (ACFD) provides fire, emergency medical, and allied public safety services for Arlington County and the City of Falls Church in Virginia, USA. It is highly regarded within the profession as an innovator and leader in enhancing the industry. Among its many firsts are the hiring of the first female career firefighter in the world in 1974 and partnering with the United States Public Health Service to develop America's first Metropolitan Medical Strike Team to respond to the consequences of a chemical, biological or radiological terrorist attack.

Cherrydale is a neighborhood in northern Arlington, Virginia. It is centered on the intersection known as the Five Points consisting of Quincy Street, Military Road, and Old Dominion Road being bisected by Lee Highway. Located in the community is Dorothy Hamm Middle School. One of the oldest nonresidential structures in the community is the Cherrydale Volunteer Fire House, built in 1919 to serve as the home of the Cherrydale Volunteer Fire Department. The department supplements the career staff who operate from the Arlington County Fire Department's Station 3, now located west of the Five Points intersection.

The San Diego Fire-Rescue Department (SDFD) is an all-risk, all-hazards fire department, providing fire protection and emergency medical services to the city of San Diego, California, United States. The San Diego Fire-Rescue Department is the second-largest municipal fire department in the state of California, after Los Angeles and responds to nearly 162,000 calls per year. The San Diego Fire-Rescue Department covers 343 square miles of service area including 17 miles of coastline, with responsibility extending 3 miles offshore.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">O. H. Booth Hose Company</span> United States historic place

The O.H. Booth Hose Company is a former firehouse along Main Street in Poughkeepsie, New York, United States. It was in use for roughly a century, from the late 1910s to the mid-2000s, when the city's police and fire departments consolidated their operations in a new building across the street. A local firefighters' group has proposed turning it into a local fire museum.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Engine House No. 11 (Detroit)</span> United States historic place

The Engine House No. 11 is a fire station located at 2737 Gratiot Avenue in Detroit, Michigan. It is the oldest remaining firehouse in the city of Detroit; it was designated a Michigan State Historic Site in 1975 and listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1978.

Fire Station No. 3, and variations such as Engine House No. 3, may refer to:

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Engine House No. 7 (Washington, D.C.)</span> Fire station in Washington DC, United States

Engine House No. 7 is one of the original Fire Station Houses established by the District of Columbia Fire Department in the late 19th century. Built in 1884, Engine House No. 7 was home to Engine Co. No. 7 before the segregation of the Department in 1940 when it then housed the historic first all-black fire squad, Engine Co. No. 4. After Engine Co. No. 4 moved to a new location in 1976, Engine House No. 7 was sold to private owners and turned into a major local art studio.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Loudoun County Combined Fire and Rescue System</span>

The Loudoun County Combined Fire-Rescue System (LC-CFRS) is made up of the career Loudoun County Fire and Rescue (LCFR) and 16 volunteer organizations. LC-CFRS has the responsibility of protecting the citizens and property of the towns, villages, and suburbs of Loudoun County, Virginia, United States, from fires and fire hazards, providing emergency medical services, and technical rescue response services, including Hazardous Materials mitigation, Mass Casualty Incident response services, environmental danger response services and more. The headquarters and training facilities of the department are in Leesburg, off Sycolin Road.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hook and Ladder No. 4</span> United States historic place

Hook and Ladder No. 4, originally Truck No. 4, is a firehouse located at Delaware Avenue in Albany, New York, United States. It is an elaborate brick structure in the Dutch Colonial Revival architectural style, designed by Albany architect Marcus T. Reynolds, and completed in 1912. In 2001 it was listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hose Station No. 1</span> United States historic place

The Hose Station No. 1 is a historic building located in downtown Davenport, Iowa, United States. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1983 and on the Davenport Register of Historic Properties in 1999. In 2019 it was included as a contributing property in the Davenport Motor Row and Industrial Historic District.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Central Fire Station (Davenport, Iowa)</span> United States historic place

The Central Fire Station is located in downtown Davenport, Iowa, United States and serves as the headquarters of the Davenport Fire Department, as well as the downtown fire station. Built from 1901 to 1902, the original building is the oldest active fire station west of the Mississippi River. It was individually listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1982. In 2020 it was included as a contributing property in the Davenport Downtown Commercial Historic District.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hose Station No. 7</span> United States historic place

The Hose Station No. 7 is located along a busy thoroughfare in a light industrial area of the west end of Davenport, Iowa, United States. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1983.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Baltimore City Fire Department</span> Fire department in the United States

The Baltimore City Fire Department (BCFD) provides fire protection and emergency medical services to the city of Baltimore, Maryland, United States. Founded in 1797 and established in 1859, the Baltimore City Fire Department covers an area of 81 square miles (210 km2) of land and 11 square miles (28 km2) of water, with a resident population of over 640,000 and a daytime population of over 1,000,000. The BCFD responds to approximately 235,000 emergency calls annually. There are two International Association of Fire Fighters (IAFF) locals; IAFF 734 for firefighters and IAFF 964 for officers.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">City of Knoxville Fire Department</span>

The Knoxville Fire Department is an ISO Class 2 department that provides fire protection and emergency medical services for the city of Knoxville, Tennessee. The department is responsible for 104 square miles (270 km2) with over 180,000 residents.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hose Station No. 4</span> United States historic place

Hose Station No. 4 is located in the Village of East Davenport in Davenport, Iowa, United States. It is a contributing property of the Davenport Village Historic District that has been listed on the National Register of Historic Places since 1980. The fire station was individually listed on the Davenport Register of Historic Properties in 1993. It is one of two old fire stations on the east side of the city that are still in existence. The other one is Hose Station No. 3. The building sits adjacent to Lindsay Park and now houses the International Fire Museum.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Briarcliff Manor Fire Department</span> Village volunteer fire department

The Briarcliff Manor Fire Department (BMFD) provides fire protection and emergency medical services to the village of Briarcliff Manor, New York and its hamlet Scarborough. The volunteer fire department also serves unincorporated areas of Ossining and Mount Pleasant. The fire department has three fire companies, two stations, and four fire engines; it also maintains other vehicles, including a heavy rescue vehicle. The Briarcliff Manor Fire Department Ambulance Corps provides emergency medical transport with two ambulances. The fire department is headquartered at the Briarcliff Manor Village Hall, with its other station in Scarborough, on Scarborough Road.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Red Oak Firehouse and City Jail</span> United States historic place

The Red Oak Firehouse and City Jail is a historic building located in Red Oak, Iowa, United States. The Red Oak Fire Company was formed in 1876 and a shed was built to house its equipment. The present Late Victorian style brick structure was built by the city in five stages. A two-story firehouse, which housed the hand-drawn fire carts and other firefighting equipment, was completed in January 1898. The two-story City Jail was architecturally integrated into the original structure in 1901. It was operated by the city marshal to house those who broke municipal ordinances, and to provide a bed and a meal to those who were homeless. Another two-story addition was completed in 1907. It was a stable to house the horses that pulled the new firefighting equipment, which was housed in another addition that was built at the same time on the south side of the structure.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Central Ohio Fire Museum</span> Fire museum in Columbus, Ohio

The Central Ohio Fire Museum is a firefighting museum in Downtown Columbus, Ohio. The museum is housed in the former Engine House No. 16 of the Columbus Fire Department, built in 1908. It was listed on the Columbus Register of Historic Properties in 1983 and the National Register of Historic Places in 1995.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Engine House No. 10 (Columbus, Ohio)</span> Former fire station in Columbus, Ohio

Engine House No. 10 is a Columbus Division of Fire station in the Franklinton neighborhood of Columbus, Ohio. The original firehouse was built in 1897, while its neighboring replacement, also known as Station 10, was completed in 2008.

References

  1. "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places . National Park Service. July 9, 2010.
  2. "Virginia Landmarks Register". Virginia Department of Historic Resources. Archived from the original on September 21, 2013. Retrieved May 12, 2013.
  3. 1 2 Trieschmann, Laura V.; Harris Hughes, Laura (Traceries) (December 1994). "National Register of Historic Places Inventory/Nomination: Cherrydale Fire Department" (PDF). and Accompanying photo
  4. 1 2 "Cherrydale Volunteer Fire House". Projects and Planning. Arlington County, Virginia government. Archived from the original on 2016-05-21. Retrieved 2018-03-08.