OLD FIREHOUSE HEADQUARTERS

Brooklyn, NY

This 19th century building was used as a fire station until the 1970s, after which it was converted into residential apartments. The building has been described as one of New York's most striking architectural compositions. It was designed by architect Frank Freeman, who frequently designed structures in this Richardsonian Romanesque style. The firehouse features a 126 foot-tall watchtower, which at the time was used from which to survey the surrounding town for fires. The facade includes red Jonesboro granite, red Lake Superior sandstone and buff-brick with terracotta trim. The red-tiled pyramidal roofs are edged with copper.

The finesse and detail of this building stands in stark contrast to the plain 1950’s boxes surrounding it, or for that matter the bulk of what is being presented in modern architecture. The 1890’s were not only a prolific period of building in the United States, but were also an apex of design quality, where building actually contained complex compositions and sensitive detail. The firehouse is a delicate statement of asymmetry that works and vertical balance, integrating two building masses into one carefully blended design. Studying this genre of building through sketching makes the effort worthwhile.