The Bristol Fire Company, located at Wood and Market Streets, has been identified as one of the oldest continuously operating firehouses in the country and is closely linked to the history of Bristol Borough. The company was established in 1857 after two disastrous fires prompted the community to act, and later that year its two story engine house was completed. In 1867, several fires, most notably the one that destroyed Saint Mark Church along with several commercial establishments, prompted the Borough Council to help defray the company’s expenses. By 1872, the company had ninety-two members and began buying new equipment, including a steamer. In 1873, it bought a bell weighing 1,423 pounds that had formerly been at the Union Street Station in Philadelphia; the bell was first placed in a cupola, and in 1877 the present wooden bell tower was erected. In August 1875, permission was granted for the Burgess and Town Council to place a third story on the engine house for use as Council Chambers, and the third floor served that role from 1875 to 1921. In 1885, the bell tolled for the memorial service of President Ulysses S. Grant. In 1886, the company bought a pair of horses and erected a brick stable joined to the engine house. In 1910, it purchased an automobile hose wagon-chemical apparatus, the first automobile fire apparatus in Bristol. In 1971, the brick stable was replaced with an engine house large enough to hold a modern ladder and rescue truck.