List of historic Toronto fire stations

Historic Toronto Fire Stations are primarily in the downtown core and with the former Toronto Fire Department.

Fire stations built from the late 1800s and up to 1950s varied in style. Fire halls after 1950 tended to be utilitarian in design. The latest fire stations are modern, but they often lack the character of older fire stations in the city.

A list of designs of historic fire stations in the city

Amsterdam

* Station 227
** Built: 1905 as Toronto Fire Department (TFD) 17
** Location: 1904 Queen Street East
** Main structure: Three-story main structure with a clock tower and a single vehicle bay.
** Additional structures: A tower is on the side of this structure and an additional bay which was added later.

* Station 226
** Built: 1910 as TFD 22
** Location: 87 Main Street
** Main Structure: A two-story main structure.
** Additional Structure: Two-story Victorian bay window structure.

* Station 311
** Balmoral Fire Hall National Historic Site
** Built: 1911 as TFD 24
** Location: 20 Balmoral Avenue
** Main Structure: A three-story main structure with two bays
** Nickname: "311: Knights of Balmoral"

Located just off Yonge Street, south of St. Clair Avenue, Balmoral Fire Hall was built in an era when horses pulled hose wagons through its double doors. Still visible along the east wall is a second-storey projecting beam and doorway where hay was hoisted into a loft for feed. In the rear, a tower capable of drying 50-foot hoses still stands. The building was designated a National Historic Site in 1990, for its rare adoption of the Queen Anne style. The status entitles it to a handsome federal plaque, but, as of 2007, none has been erected. At the moment, the station is home to an aerial unit, but that is scheduled to leave, despite numerous high-rises in the area.

A national historic site

* Station 343
** Built: 1916 as TFD 25
** Location: 65 Hendrick Avenue
** Main Structure: A three-story main structure with two bays.

* Station 344
** Built: 1910 as TFD 23
** Location: 240 Howland Avenue
** Main Structure: A three-story main structure with two bays, similar to Station 226.
** Additional Structure: Two-story Victorian bay window structure.

Colonial revival

* Station 423
** Built: 1959 as TFD 20
** Location: 358 Keele Street
** Nickname: West Toronto - The Junction

* Station 325
** Built: 1954 as TFD 7
** Location: 475 Dundas Street East
** Main Structure: A long two-story main structure with three bays.
** Nickname: Fort Apache

Residential

* Station 342
** Built: 1912 as TFD 27
** Location: 106 Ascot Avenue
** Main Structure: A two-story station with one small bay.
** Nickname: Mid-Town Mob

* Station 424
** Built: 1929 as TFD 31
** Location: 462 Runnymede Road
** Main Structure: Two-story building which looks like a house-conversion with two bays.

* Station 425
** Built: 1930 as TFD 16
** Location: 83 DeForest Road
** Main Structure: Like Station 424, it looks like a house conversion. The single-story building has two bays.

* Station 435
** Built: 1930 as Etobicoke Fire Department Station 9
** Location: 130 Eighth Street
** Main Structure: This two-story station was built in three stages with the four bays being the newer portion of the building.
** Nickname: R435: The Lone Wolf

Tudor

* Station 131
** Built: 1931
** Location: 3135 Yonge Street
** Main Structure: A two-story building with 2 bays

* Station 134
** Built: 1932 as TFD 28
** Location: 16 Montgomery Avenue
** Main Structure: A two-story building which looks like the houses beside it.

* Station 346
** Built: 1912 - as TFD 32
** Location: CNE grounds near the Dufferin Gates and operational during the Canadian National Exhibition in August and September
** Main Structure: The two-story structure has two bays and a five-story clock tower.
** Additional Structures: It is also home to Toronto EMS and Toronto Police Service stations.
** Designed by: G.W. Gouinlock

Clock tower

* Station 312
** Built: 1878 as TFD 10
** Location: 34 Yorkville Avenue
** Main Structure: It is one of the city's oldest active fire halls. Formerly Hose No. 8, the two-story structure has a five-story clock tower with three bays (additional bay added later). It has a coat of arms from the old Yorkville Town Hall. It was restored in 1974.

* Station 315
** Built: 1878 as TFD 8
** Location: 132 Bellevue Avenue
** Main Structure: Like Station 312, this is one of the city's oldest stations. It is a two-story structure with an eight-story clock tower. It has three bays, one from the original building. The current tower is a replica of the original tower and built in 1972.

Other

* Station 114
** Built: 1989 and 1942 as North York Fire Department Station 1
** Location: 12 Canterbury Place / Yonge Street and Empress Avenue
** Main Structure: It is the second building to bear the name Ivan M. Nelson Fire Station. The first was North York Fire Station 1 at Yonge and Empress Avenue. It is now the site of Empress Walk. The 1942 fire hall is gone, but the hose tower and archway entrance remain. The colonial revival was built in 1942 by Murray Brown on the site of a former municipal building. An additional bay was added in 1952. The station was torn down in 1989, but the hose tower was preserved and the stone entrance incorporated with the rear exit at the mall.

* Station 135
** Built: 1932 as Forest Hill Fire Department Station 1 (Forest Hill was annexed into Toronto in 1967)
** Location: 641 Eglinton Avenue West
** Main Structure: This semi-detached structure has two bays.

* Station 314
** Built: 1926 as TFD 3
** Location: 12 Grosvenor Street
** Main Structure: The station is also called "Pumper 314: Running the Strip" and dates back to 1874. It has two bays.

Art Deco

* Station 324
** Built: 1934 as TFD 12
** Location: 840 Gerrard Street East
** Main Structure: The station is very symmetrical with 3 bays.

Retired fire stations

* Hose Number 6
** Built: 1847, rebuilt 1872
** Location: Queen Street West, east of Spadina Avenue:
** Main Structure: Like stations 315 and 312, it had a clock tower, but it has since been demolished.

* Fire Hall Number 3
** Built: 1872
** Location: Yonge Street, north of College Street
** Main Structure: Like Hose Number 6, this station also had a clock tower. The tower remains, but the main structure has since been demolished, being replaced in this instance by a retail building.

tation Logos

A few stations across the city have special logos defining the communities they serve:

* Station 114 - Uptown Yonge Street Express (1942)
* Station 121 - Hogg's Hollow
* Station 212 - The Zoo Crew
* Station 214 - Highland Creekers
* Station 232 - Crazy Eights
* Station 235 - Parkway Prowlers
* Station 243 - Men Of Ten
* Station 311 - Knights of Balmoral (1911)
* Station 313 - Bloor Street (1874)
* Station 314 - Running the Strip (1871)
* Station 322 - East York Fire
* Station 323 - Greektown Fire
* Station 325 - Cabbagetown Fire
* Station 332 - The Show Must Go On 1841
* Station 333 - Market District
* Station 342 - Mid Town Mob (1915)
* Station 423 - West Toronto - The Junction
* Station 426 - Pride of Parkdale

References

* [http://www.emporis.com/en/wm/bu/?id=234519 House No 8.]