Red Lodge Fire Hall - Red Lodge, MT
Posted by: Groundspeak Premium Member T0SHEA
N 45° 11.214 W 109° 14.757
12T E 637795 N 5005209
Though the present city hall was built in 1939, with the aid of WPA funds, parts of the building contain materials from the 1898 fire hall/city hall.
Waymark Code: WMWCP2
Location: Montana, United States
Date Posted: 08/14/2017
Published By:Groundspeak Premium Member André de Montbard
Views: 2
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With the aid of WPA funding, the city of Red Lodge rebuilt their city hall in 1939, the finished building containing the city hall, fire hall, police station and jail. Some of the material from the original building were reused in the construction of the building. A two storey wood framed building with cut stone facing the lower floor walls, the building today houses only city hall, the fire and police departments having been relocated.
City Hall - Red Lodge, MT Montana’s Big Timber Pioneer newspaper reported in December 1938:
“Rapidly nearing completion as a WPA project is the uniquely-designed $26,000 city hall at Red Lodge…

This WPA project has provided jobs for an average of 28 workers since it was started in July. With $23,082 having been expended to date, thc job is now in its final stage, only interior finishing remaining before it can be taken over by the city to house all city departments including the jail. Total cost to Red Lodge for the building will be less than $10,000, officials say. Features of the unusual construction is the use of native stone and timber, quarried and logged locally by WPA crews. Much of the building’s attractiveness is achieved by use , of more than 4,600 cubic feet of broken-face granite and smooth cobblestone used to form the first floor, garage and jail walls. Peeled logs lend rusticity to the main porch, and contrast to the creme-colored stucco exterior of the second floor.”
From the Living New Deal
RED LODGE CITY HALL AND FIRE STATION

"A hook and ladder outfit stored at a central point" and a loosely organized volunteer company served as Red Lodge's defense against fire in 1897. A disastrous fire in 1900, which killed one man and destroyed four brick business blocks, highlighted the need for more comprehensive protection. By 1901, Red Lodge boasted a wooden fire hall, a reorganized volunteer fire department, a municipal water system, two hose carts, one hook-and-ladder truck, and two thousand feet of well-maintained hose. Attached to the fire station was a small city hall. By 1939, the structure had become dilapidated, and the city needed more office space. The city applied to the Works Progress Administration for money to replace the old building. A federal Depression-era jobs program, the WPA funded hundreds of projects in Montana including this one, constructed in part from material salvaged from the original structure. The 1939 building housed the city hall, fire and police departments, and jail. The design features stone, wood, and concrete, which creates a textured façade, and stepped parapets, which visually unite the one- and two-story sections.

From the NRHP plaque at the building
Current Use: Cith Hall

Year Originally Built: 1898, again in 1939

Is it open to the public?: Yes

Location: Red Lodge, MT

Year Retired: Not listed
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You must actually visit the building to post a log. Post your own, current photo of the converted firehouse as proof of your visit. It can't be the exact same photo that is on the waymark page.
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Recent Visits/Logs:
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iluvfire visited Red Lodge Fire Hall - Red Lodge, MT 06/11/2023 iluvfire visited it