Fire Station No. 7

Fire Station No. 7. . History The original Fire Station No.7 stood on this site for almost 100 years. The property was platted initially as two residential lots in Virginia Heights. Built in 1922, it was one of eight stations erected between 1909 and 1929. The construction represented the prosperity of the expanding city and the development of the Greater Raleigh Court Neighborhood. The station was included within the Grandin Road Commercial Historic District, which is on the National Register of Historic Places., Architecture Architects Edward Frye and Frank Stone designed the 1922 station, which evoked the Colonial Revival and Craftsman styles. Fire Station No. 7 was scaled to blend into the residential neighborhood in response to public concerns that firehouses be compatible architecturally with neighboring houses. When the station opened, The Roanoke Times praised its modernity and compared it to a “beautiful residence.” The new building incorporates many features from the original building, including brick and cast concrete elements, brass fire poles, and locker doors., Service Fire Station No. 7 has always been important to the community – architecturally, as the gateway; protectively, as an active fire station; and civically, as part of community tradition. To better serve the growing community, a new station with updated accommodations and equipment replaced the original station on this site in 2021., With the extension of the streetcar in 1911, land companies developed lots south of the Roanoke River. In the 1920s, Virginia Heights, Raleigh Court, Wasena, and Norwich boomed as residential suburbs. Virginia Avenue (Memorial) and Grandin Road served as thoroughfares with Memorial Bridge connecting to downtown. Construction of Virginia Heights Elementary School (1922) and Raleigh Court Library (1931) followed the fire station., As the automobile eclipsed the streetcar in the 1940s, transportation patterns changed. Growth of the suburbs demanded more fire services and circa 1950, a second equipment bay was constructed. Fire stations often provided additional general services to the community. Until the 1960s, Fire Station No. 7 sold ice cream, candy, and bread., [Captions] , (Top) Davis photograph, ca. 1922, front elevation, upon completion (Virginia Room, Main Library, Roanoke, VA) , (Bottom, left to right) , . Photograph ca. 1922, south elevation, where the bay was added in the 1950s (Virginia Room, Main Library, Roanoke, VA) , . Photograph ca. 1922, looking northwest (Virginia Room, Main Library, Roanoke, VA) , . 1970s view of the 1922 fire station and 1950s bay addition. The station was equipped with a 1950 ladder track and a 1969 Oren engine fire truck (Historical Society of Western Virginia)