1896 - Whitefriars Fire Station - Carmelite Street, London, UK
N 51° 30.694 W 000° 06.410
30U E 700752 N 5710684
This 1896 dated building is located on the east side of Carmelite Street a short distance north of the River Thames in the City of London.
Waymark Code: WMNF0X
Location: London, United Kingdom
Date Posted: 03/03/2015
Views: 1
The building was erected as a fire station at the end of the 19th century and served that purpose until 1964. It is now used as offices. The cornerstone, located between left and centre vehicle doors, now windows, is inscribed:
This stone was laid by
William Urquhart Esq
Chairman
Fire Brigade Committee
London County Council
March 19th 1896
Built by the LCC Works Department
Henry Ward Esq, Chairman
The Thames Discovery website has some information about the building and its use during the Second World War:
Fire Stations for the River Service in the Blitz
What have no 9 Carmelite Street and no 2a Eastcheap got in common? Both these elegant 19th century buildings are close to the Thames and served as the City’s river fire stations during the Blitz, numbered R3Z and R3Y respectively. There were some eighteen such river stations along the length of the Thames during WWII, used to accommodate the crews on 24-hour standby to man the firefloats such as the Massey Shaw. The firefighters had to be ready to confront conflagrations in waterfront warehouses, riverside industries, power stations or gasworks, as well as vessels ablaze on the river.
The two City buildings still survive today (albeit as offices and an EAT café) but what of the pontoons and other facilities used by the crews and their fire floats? The contemporary London Fire Brigade pumphouse at Blackfriars (R3Z) is still there, and can be seen on the west side of Blackfriars Bridge. It was designed by the LCCs Chief Engineers Department and was completed in early 1940.
This historic survival (which is now incorporated into the new Millennium Pier pontoon) is being considered for listing by English Heritage. They have asked the Thames Discovery Programme if we have seen any other surviving evidence for the fire service, on the foreshore or the riverwall, on any of our perambulations? The base of the pontoon used by the R3Y Station may have been located underneath the walkway below Billingsgate/ Fresh Wharf, for example.
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