Post date: Mar 14, 2014 3:43:23 PM
Inspired by this tweet by the City of Montreal firefighting department, SHPEHS member Karly Bridgman prepared this short history of Fire Station 41, located at 7405 Champagneur.
Designed by J.-L.-D. Lafrenière to reflect both Beaux-Arts and Art Deco styles, when Station 41 opened in 1924 it only had horse-drawn carriages to serve the people of Park Extension. Between 1925 and 1933, the fire station was rarely used, and people believed that the motorised vehicles at the Laurier fire station would accommodate people quicker than the horse-drawn carriages. As a result, the fire station was closed down in 1933. Between 1933 and 1939 the fire station was used as a protestant church, as a garage for police vehicles, and later as a paint shop for the fire department. Floods became frequent and made it impractical for the fire trucks of the Laurier fire station to drive. Due to these circumstances as well as pressure from municipal councillor Zénon Lesage, Fire Station 41 was reopened in 1939. Although the station was reopened, they were only in possession of one truck therefore the main fire station remained on Laurier. Many community groups in Park Extension wanted to convert the building for cultural purposes. In 2004, renovations were finally made to the station. Fire Station 41 remains standing today in 2014 with two firetrucks (pump truck #241, since 1992, and ladder truck #441, since 2004), having proudly served Park Extension for 74 years.
Station 41 badges:
Extraits du rapport du service du Patrimoine :
« La caserne no 41 a conservé la majorité de ses caractéristiques architecturales extérieures. La valeur artistique de l’édifice repose sur les caractéristiques de son architecture extérieure d’influence Beaux-Arts et sur la qualité de sa composition fonctionnelle. Malgré des transformations à la tour à boyaux, la volumétrie d’origine a été conservée dans son ensemble. Le traitement de la modeste façade affiche l’influence du style Beaux-Arts par ses deux registres, la symétrie de sa double entrée marquée par une corniche en cuivre soutenue par des consoles et l’utilisation des chaînages d’angle en pierre. Cependant, la caserne affiche l’influence Art déco qui se répandra par la suite dans les casernes des années 1930 par l’ornementation géométrique créée par la pose de la brique au niveau de l’entablement. » [...]
« Le cadre environnant de la caserne no 41 a été conservé dans son intégralité. L’édifice se démarque par ses formes, des édifices environnants de type résidentiel ou commercial. La caserne no 41 s’intègre parfaitement à la volumétrie des résidences et commerces environnants, tout en se démarquant de ces dernières par son style architectural. La caserne no 41 se situe en tête d’îlot et est depuis 1932 flanquée par l’ancien poste de police no 41. »
Park Extension's Fire Station 41 circa 1940. The fireman on the right is Ross Scrimgeour's father.
Photo courtesy Ross Scrimgeour.
Photo of Janet McConnell and friends on bicycles in 1943, with the tall Station 41 fire tower in the background on Ogilvy Street. It has not been restored to its full glory yet.
Photo courtesy of Janet McConnell.
013 Autopompe Thibault Custom 1974, Thibault 1050 - 500. Posted by Mario Pompetti in Park Extension Memories.
Sources:
http://patrimoine.ville.montreal.qc.ca/
http://www.haya.qc.ca/fire/stations/41-champagneur.php
http://www.coderouge.com/index.php?lang=fr&div=3&sct=10&cas=41
http://www.arrondissement.com/tout-get-document/s3-arts-culture/u1281?tFormat=print
http://px-news.com/papers/Px12-01.pdf
http://www.firebuff-montreal.com/spim.htm
http://rampemontreal.ca/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/circuit_texte.pdf