Oakland Fire Department - A Bit of History

In the beginning

There was a temporary station at the corner of Moraga and Hampton (now La Salle). Local builder Cos Williams, a local builder, donated the use of the land.

An average day

Report at 9 am – They would report for duty at the station and 13th and Hopkins (now MacArthur) and drive the hook and ladder to Montclair. They did all their cooking on an outdoor camp stove

Off at 7 pm – At the end, they would pile onto the truck again and drive down the hill.

Lieutenant F.H. Waldron was the commanding officer.

L.W. Parks – driver
E.E. Terrell – driver
F.W. Cochran – hoseman
C.A Stone

They fought two fires on their first day.

Engine Company No. 24

In June 1926, $11,000 was appropriated for a new firehouse in Montclair. The city purchased the land from the school department in December 1926 for $4,500. The final construction cost was $18,900.

**Original Blueprints – Eldred E. Edwards 1927**

Construction of the new firehouse got underway in early 1927. Fire Commissioner Colburn officially accepted the firehouse in August of 1927.

The land that the firehouse is on was once the Hays Canyon School.

Eldred E. Edwards of the Oakland Public Works Department drew up plans.

The style of architecture is primarily Old English. The construction method was unique among firehouses at that time, being pre-cast of cement molded on the ground. All the plumbing fixtures, water pipes, and electrical wires conduits were cast in cement.

**Storybook-style firehouse** in the Montclair district of Oakland, California. 1928 ohrphoto. Fire dept.006.

The roof consisted of 100 curved slabs of concrete set in grooved beams and held in place with slotted bolts.

Doubled copper strips run along the ridges, forming decorative motifs at the gable peaks. These decorations simulate fire, which follows along the peaked roofline and leaps into flames and gable corners. The copper has been painted white.

**Work was done in 1934 as part of the WPA. Oakland Tribune 1934**

**A firetruck for fighting hills fires on view in the foreground. 1934, ohrphoto.districts.031.**

Fire Captain Killed in the Line of Duty

Fire Captain Joseph F. Pimentel was killed, and three firemen were injured when their fire truck skidded out of control at the corner of Taurus and Broadway Terrace. Pimentel was pinned against a tree.

The fire truck was headed to a small blaze at the home of Otto R. Johnson at 6356 Crown Avenue.

January 22, 1942

The injured firefighters were Patrick S. Doyle, John Baratini, and Ray O. Wells.

Oakland’s Best-Decorated Firehouse

In 1951 Engine Company No. 24 was awarded the first prize of $500.00 for being Oakland’s best-decorated firehouse. The Oakland Tribune also awarded the firehouse a perpetual trophy installed in the house.

The firehouse was an old church scene, with a “Surrey with a Fringe on Top” arriving. Animated choir boys, accompanied by an old pump organ, are shown singing Christmas carols.

**Christmas Chapel with Choir** –**1951**

In 1952 they erected an old-time country store with a pot-bellied stove, family photographs, and animated figures. Inside, a clerk shows a blushing customer, a lady, a pair of “long john” underwear. Nearby is a blacksmith shop. There was a large holly wreath on the front of the firehouse.

In 1953 the firehouse was decorated as a church with a choir loft and organ. A special merit award was given to the house by the S.F. Examiner.

Montclair Fires and Such

**Montclarion 1957 on the 30th Anniversary**

Teddy of Engine No. 24

Earthquake Hazard – 1960s

The Hayward Fault runs right down the middle of Moraga Avenue in front of the firehouse.

Because of that, the firehouse was determined to be an earthquake hazard and could not be repaired. The city hired Anderson, Simonds, Dusel, and Campini to provide architectural services for a new firehouse.

Oakland Tribune 1962

The city was prepared to tear down the Montclair firehouse and build a new one for $165,000. After an outside firm determined it was indeed unsafe to that day’s standards.

City Delays Replacing Firehouse

In October of 1962, Oakland’s City Council held up the money to build a new firehouse and wondered if the money could be used to “repair” it instead.

The firehouse is called ” the country club of the city” and “if it is unsafe so’s my house.”
Councilmember 1962

There was a dispute over the city manager’s report that the firehouse was damaged enough during a recent earthquake (??)to make it a hazard to its occupants. One architect said it could be repaired at little expense with some structural steel.

“two independent consultants said the building is unsafe and should be replaced.“
Oakland City Manager 1962

I can only assume that Oakland had money problems. They would no longer build a new firehouse. Instead, the council approved $22,000 for structural reinforcements, waterproofing, and more habitable.

Contract Awarded

In January 1964, a contract was awarded to M.W. Garing for $13,975 to repair the firehouse.

Loma Prieta – 1989

The firehouse was damaged in the 1989 Loma Prieta quake. The house was decommissioned in 1991.

Oakland City Landmark #34

On March 18, 1980, the old fire station was designated as Oakland City Landmark #34

Address: 6226 Moraga Avenue, Oakland, California

Firehouse Today

Fire Station was decommissioned around 1993 due to concerns that a facility for first responders should not be located on an active earthquake fault,” a city report stated.

In 2018 City officials announced they were seeking development or purchase proposals for two parcels on Moraga Road. One is a vacant property totaling 24,000 square feet, and the other totals 16,000 square feet and contains the Montclair Fire Station, also known as Firehouse No. 24.

More Info:

Firehouse For Sale – Loopnet
Montclair Firehouse – City of Oakland
Rumors abound about old Montclair Firehouse – Town Crier
Montclair Firehouse – Oakland Local Wiki
Hobbit Habitats – Sam Whiting – S.F. Gate March 06, 2005
Hill Fire House Asked – Oakland Tribune June 09, 1926
Firefighters Get to Camp – Oakland Tribune July 16, 1926
To Buy School Land – Oakland Tribune December 08, 1926
Crash Kills Fire Captain Pg 1 – Oakland Tribune January 22, 1946
Crash Kills Fire Captain Pg 2 – Oakland Tribune January 22, 1946
2 Firehouses Spruce Up for Yule Contest – Oakland Tribune December 14, 1951
Rebuilding the Firehouse – Oakland Tribune May 19, 1962
New Firehouse – Oakland Tribune May 23, 1962
Architect Authorized – Oakland Tribune October 03, 1962
City Delays Replacing Firehouse – Oakland Tribune October 26, 1962
Structural Reinforcements – Oakland Tribune September 06, 1963
Bids for Work on Firehouse – Oakland Tribune December 27, 1963

You can view the set of blueprints here:

Montclair Firehouse Blueprints – Dropbox

The End

Royal Edward Towns (February 10, 1899–July 23, 1990) was one of the first African American firefighters in Oakland. He was born in Oakland in 1899.

He joined the OFD in 1927 and was assigned to Engine Company No. 22, a segregated firehouse in West Oakland. The station is located at 3320 Magnolia Street. He helped train many other black applicants to pass the test and was a scoutmaster for a Boy Scout troop that included Sam Golden, who became the first African American fire chief in Oakland.

Royal Towns was the 11th black Oakland fireman hired in 1927. They didn’t employ the 12th for another 15 years.

Royal E. Towns (center) and his colleagues with Engine Company No. 22
of the racially segregated Oakland Fire Department. (1943)

**Royal E. Towns and his colleagues with Engine Company No. 22 of the racially segregated Oakland Fire Department. (1943)**

In 1971 there were only 35 black firefighters.

Towns became the first to be promoted in the OFD. He became a chief operator in 1941 and retired as a lieutenant in 1962.

**Royal Towns on the left with Oakland firefighters standing in front of fire engine no. 22 – Circa 1943**

Royal Towns was instrumental in helping desegregate the fire department. He helped train many other black applicants to pass the fire department test.

Personal Life

Royal Towns was born in Oakland on February 10, 1899, to William Towns and Elizabeth Towns.

Towns married Lucille Dennis on May 26, 1920. Together they had three children. The family lived in various locations within Oakland.

Royal E. Towns died July 23, 1990, and is buried in Mountain View Cemetery

More Photos

The photos are courtesy of the Royal E. Towns papers, MS 26, African American Museum and Library at Oakland, Oakland Public Library. Oakland, California. Photos at Calisphere

A Bit of History

Oakland Unfolded

Tag Archives: Oakland Fire Department

A Storybook Firehouse

In the beginning