The fire station at Skansen

Most people today seem to think that the fire station on the hill is a beautiful building. Looking up on the hillside from the Fish Market, it stands there white and pretty as the pride of the town. Back in 1903, however, many people felt that the architect had done a poor job. One critic of architecture insisted that “the building was designed in Madagascan renaissance, clearly influenced by Indochinese styles.” The critic further claimed that “most strangers believe it to be an ancient stave church; others think that it could be the Hanseatic Church – while most believe it to be a construction moved here from some exhibition where it may have served as a Camera Obscura or Magica.”

Inside the fire station there was room for one fire wagon, a stable room for one horse and a work room. On the first floor the fire chief had a flat, and the watchman sat in the tower, where he had a telegraph and a direct telephone line to the main fire station in town.

Skansen fire station was not in use during daytime. At night the station had a watchman awake in the tower and a fireman on duty while he slept, unless, of course there was a fire.

The station acquired its first fire engine in 1936. At this time the last horse, Olav, was retired. He was given a new position in the municipal waste disposal service. The fire station was closed down in 1969, and today Buekorpset – the Drummer Boys Battalion – keeps guard at Skansen.
The function of the idyllic pond by the station (66 meters above sea level) was to save the town in case of a major fire. Its purpose was to increase the water pressure when the normal level was no longer sufficient. The pond is no longer in use by the town or the fire department. Local youths, capable of jumping over the fences, enjoy the area in the summer.

Submitted comments:

Jan Erik Thon, asem@broadpark.no

Da vi var små på - 50 var det vanlig at vi gikk med middagsmat til far da han var på vakt i Skansetårnet. Dett så vi på som et høydepunkt i uken. Vi fikk sitte bak ratten på brannbilen ( en stigebil ) og vi ville være der så lenge at far måtte tilslutt jage oss hjem.
7.3.2005

John,

Er det noen som vet navnet på arkitekten som tegnet denne brannstasjonen?
1.4.2003

svein helge,

For mange år siden, da jeg var liten gutt på slutten av 50-tallet, ble jeg sendt med middagsmat til pappa som var på vakt på skansen brannstasjon. Det var en kjekt å komme dit. Denne gangen tok han meg med opp i tårnet som den gangen ikke var i bruk lenger som vakttårn. Men protokollene lå der ennå og jeg fikk se inntegnelsene fra 1916 da bybrannen ble oppdaget av vaktmannen i tårnet. Pappa var flink til å fortelle om "livet i brannvesenet " og det var kanskje ikke så rart at det var lett å skaffe seg følge fra kameratene mine når jeg hadde ærend til brannstasjonen
30.3.2003