Landmark Building
CALGARY FIREHALL #1
140 6th Avenue SE, Calgary
Built in 1911
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The impact of fire and fire-fighting on Calgary’s growth has been profound: it was a direct result of the devastating fire of 1886 that buildings began to be constructed of stone, earning Calgary the moniker “The Sandstone City”.
Firehall #1, despite its name, was not the first firehall in Calgary. The first, a wooden structure, was built in 1885. Fire chief James “Cappy” Smart led the call for a more appropriate hall, and this 1911 red brick building is the result. The ingenious diagonal corner sitting of this building was intended to allow fire trucks easy access to either 6th Avenue or 1st Street. Classical in styling, the building is replete with architectural detailing: a central pediment, a side tower with a bell and copper cupola, a cornice and entablature, string courses, a round window with four keystones, and radiating voussoirs surrounding the semi-circular arched fire truck doors.
The roots of the modern Calgary Fire Department lay in the 1885 formation of the Calgary Fire Brigade. All firefighting duties were handled by volunteers until the 1897 appointment of James Smart as the chief and first full-time paid employee of the Calgary Fire Department. A legend in his own time, Cappy Smart was credited by many in the North-West with being one of the two forces – the other being the arrival of the CPR – that transformed Calgary into a modern city. A Scottish immigrant, James Smart arrived in Calgary in 1885. He worked for a time at James Walker’s sawmill, and then apprenticed as a mortician. Fire Chief for some 35 years, Cappy Smart was famed for his constant efforts to upgrade both fire-fighting equipment and practices in the city. In recognition for this, he was elected president of numerous fire-fighting associations, among them the Pacific Coast Fire Chiefs, the International Fire Chiefs, and the Dominion Association of Fire Chiefs.
The Landmark Buildings and Places Database draws on the series of walking and/or driving tour booklets produced by Alberta Culture (now Alberta Culture and Community Spirit). The Heritage Community Foundation gratefully acknowledges the support of the Ministry through permission to reprint these materials online. Extracted from Calgary: Stephen Avenue and Area Historical Walking Tour. Alberta Culture, n.d., with permission from Alberta Culture and Community Spirit. Visit the Alberta Culture and Community Spirit for more information.