City Hall Fire Bell

Paola's Volunteer Fire Company was formed after the Great Chicago Fire in 1871, like many others in the Midwest, and before telephones, sirens, or radios were available to notify firefighters, the town bought a 400-pound "nice toned" alarm bell for $150 in 1876. When a fire was reported, a general alarm was sounded first, then the bell rang the number of times corresponding to the district where the fire was burning, and firefighters rushed to that area in search of the fire. Paola, incorporated in 1855 by the First Kansas Territorial Legislature, is one of Kansas' oldest cities. The City Hall property at Peoria and Agate, originally used as a lockup and morgue, has been owned by the city since 1873. Washburn and Sons Architects designed the current City Hall, which cost $9,905 to build in 1909, and the bell was erected in the cupola. After many years of service, the fire bell was replaced first by a siren and then by a special telephone party line used by the switchboard operator to alert firefighters. The fire bell was restored on this site in 2004.

Paola, Kansas · United States