Fire House, 1891 | 1614 Avenue K – Hose Company No. 5 (PIDN 689523)
In 1841, Galveston took the first steps in creating a fire department by appointing wardens to five areas of the city to watch and warn citizens of fires. Two years later, the first volunteer firefighting company formed in the city. Over the next 40 years, the municipal government provided a limited number of street cisterns, hoses, engines, and an electric alarm system. In 1885, one month before the devastating fire, Galveston’s fire department officially formed. As water systems improved and expanded, so too did the fire department. In 1891, Hose Co. No. 5 organized at 1614 Avenue K.
The two-story, three-bay building, now clad in stucco, was designed by architect William H. Tyndall with Italianate stylistic influences. The building has a flat roof with a parapet. A garage door in the middle of the first floor is flanked by two single-door entries, one of which has been enclosed. Four double-hung windows occupy the three second-story bays. Despite exterior wall material and other minimal alterations, the building remains easily recognizable as a former fire station. In 1955, the city decommissioned Hose Co. No. 5, and the building is now a residence. Despite this change in use, the building is distinctive as a noteworthy local example of a municipal building with Victorian Italianate detailing.