Pleasant Street Firehouse
Why it's listed
Begun in 1873 and finished in 1874, this brick fire station at 408 Pleasant Street is the oldest firehouse still in use in Worcester. The City of Worcester bought the lot in 1873 and built it as one of three stations started that year, possibly prompted by the great fires in Chicago and Boston. Of the other two, the John Street building has been demolished and the Lamartine Street building was heavily altered and now serves as a police station. The design looks old-fashioned for its date. A pedimented facade, originally with two arched entries, a slightly projecting side pavilion with a pediment and circular light, and an open cupola that once held a fire alarm bell all recall early nineteenth-century public buildings. Window lintels and recessed wall panels with corbelled cornices match the 1870s. Granite trim accents the brick. City records name no architect, and the doors were altered in the mid-twentieth century.
Significance in brief: It is the oldest fire station still in use in Worcester and one of three firehouses begun in 1873. Its pedimented facade, side pavilion and open cupola recall earlier Federal and Greek Revival public buildings, which looks dated beside the Victorian Gothic and Second Empire buildings then going up in the city. Its window lintels and recessed, corbelled wall panels fit the 1870s.
Machine-generated summary. This summary was generated by a language model from the official nomination document and has not been reviewed line by line by an editor. It may contain errors. Check the source document before relying on any detail. Source: nomination document (PDF) · National Archives catalog entry. NRHP reference 80000597, listed March 5, 1980. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-sonnet-5-5, prompt v1.0-2026-10-29, confidence medium).
Key facts
| Address | 408 Pleasant St., Worcester |
|---|---|
| County | Worcester County |
| Listed | March 5, 1980 |
| Reference number | 80000597 |
| Resource type | Building |
| Architectural style | Victorian |
| Areas of significance | Architecture |
| Level of significance | State, Local |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | Still in use as a fire station; owned by the City of Worcester. Doors were altered in the mid-20th century. |
| Acreage | 0.1 |
| Coordinates | 42.26341, -71.81581 (NPS GIS) |
What listing means for this property
For a publicly owned building or structure, listing mainly matters when federal funds, permits or licences are involved: projects then go through Section 106 review so effects on the property are considered. Listing also strengthens applications for preservation grants and, for leased income-producing uses, can enable the federal rehabilitation tax credit.
General information, not legal or tax advice. Rules change; confirm with your State Historic Preservation Office or a qualified adviser.
Sources and further reading
- National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places database (snapshot May 2026), reference 80000597.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikipedia article (used for cross-checking only; text not reproduced here)
- Wikidata Q7203971
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.