Firehouse
Firehouse will open mid-2025
A Historic Gathering Place
Constructed in 1891, this brick edifice with a gabled, shingled roof, was built for Julius Deming Perkins (1830-1911), a seasonal resident and active member of the Village Improvement Society. Perkins was committed to Litchfield's civic betterment and supported the installation and maintenance of lampposts on the green, banners and new curtains for the opera house, and myriad other contributions to the town he held dear as a family summer retreat. Following the disastrous fires of 1886 and 1888, Perkins funded the construction of a 'modern' brick firehouse for the Litchfield Fire Company. He created a gentlemen's club, the Tweeds and Tees, on the second floor for the brigade to relax in, with a bowling lane in the basement and a tap room and billiards upstairs. The top floor was a hospital for injured firemen, and the whole building became a community hub, as it will soon be again.
Feed Me Generously And I Will Respond Warmly
Belden Firehouse, 1891
Modern For Its Time
The 1891 brick firehouse represented the most advanced and up-to-date firefighting capabilities when Julius Deming Perkins had it constructed. The tall tower extending from the firehouse in the image above (c.1940) was a hose tower, where the canvas firehose was hung to dry after each use. As the importation of rubber increased in the nineteenth century, canvas hoses became obsolete and eventually the ornate tower was removed from the building, leaving its exterior much the same as it remains today.
