The Old Fire House

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"Before 1946, the first alarm system was to call Jack Buckley’s service station and tell them where the alarm was." -- Dick Radtke

1946

Redmond's first Fire Department was all volunteers, and when they move into a two-stall garage on the east side of 164th Avenue NE, they had 15 Charter Members:

Ben Kuppenbender, Clarence Fullard, John "Jack" Buckley, Lewis Green, Charley Reil, Daryl Martin, Woodrow Reed, Andrew Forcier, Ralph Forcier, Albert Irish, Albert Rosenthal, Edward Rosenthal, Ward Martin, Clarence Barker, Claude Dutton.

In the late 1940s, the District gathered volunteers and began construction on a new fire station.

1950

When the building was completed in 1950, Redmond had just five hundred and seventy three residents. Seventy five of those residents had volunteered labor and/or materials to build the combination volunteer fire station, city hall, and jail.

The building also housed the office of Fredrick A. Reil. At this time he was the city clerk, the justice of the peace, the municipal judge, the water superintendent, the city's notary public, and the town's only full-time employee. There was a lot happening in that space!

"In those days, City Council meetings in the volunteer fire station were sometimes punctuated by the shouts of rowdy jail inmates locked up in the same building."
Seattle Times April 15, 1990

Redmond Derby Days, 1955

1966

In the following years, Redmond experienced significant growth, which necessitated expanded city management and municipal services.

By 1966, the town 4,691 residents by 1966 -- quite a jump from 573!

March 1, 1967

1969

In 1969, the City Council authorized a full-time fire department, and allocated $94,000 in funds for a chief and four firefighters to be staffed in 1970.

January 31, 1968

1971

A new city hall was dedicated in February of 1971. Prior to this various city departments and services occupied temporary leased space around town as community needs had grown. This new city hall building offered permanent space for city departments to operate "under one roof".

1985

In the early 80s the fire department vacated the building. At this point the city operates several fire stations, the number of staff has been increased, and the service area has been expanded.

At the end of 1985 the YMCA moved into the building.

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