Woodland Street Firehouse
Why it's listed
Woodland Street Firehouse, at 36 Woodland Street in Worcester, is a two-storey brick fire station completed in 1886 to designs by Fuller & Delano. Its rectangular plan includes a square tower at the southwest corner that rises about four stories to a belfry framed by paired arches and capped by a high hip roof. The east facade sits on a base of rock-faced granite and centers on an arched entry with its original doors, topped by tripartite windows and a gable with sandstone coping and a finial. A slate-covered hip roof encloses the main block. The building is regarded as one of the finest of Worcester's Victorian firehouses, valued for its unaltered condition and for a design that blends Queen Anne and Romanesque Revival styles. It closely resembles the Cambridge Street Firehouse, also designed by Fuller & Delano in 1886. It was built to serve a residential neighborhood that grew dramatically in the 1880s and 1890s as large lots and estates were subdivided for suburban development. It remains a fire station owned by the city.
Significance in brief: The form calls it one of the finest of Worcester's Victorian firehouses, because it is unaltered and its original design is of high quality, combining Queen Anne and Romanesque Revival elements. It is nearly identical to the Cambridge Street Firehouse, also by Fuller & Delano in 1886. It was built to serve a residential area that grew quickly in the 1880s and 1890s as large estates were subdivided.
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 80000630, listed March 5, 1980. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-sonnet-5-5, prompt v1.0-2026-10-29, confidence medium).
Key facts
| Address | 36 Woodland St., Worcester |
|---|---|
| County | Worcester County |
| Listed | March 5, 1980 |
| Reference number | 80000630 |
| Resource type | Building |
| Architect / builder | Fuller & Delano |
| Architectural style | Queen Anne and Romanesque Revival |
| Areas of significance | Community Planning and Development, Architecture |
| Level of significance | State, Local |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | Present use is fire station; the building is described as unaltered and not moved. |
| Acreage | 0.1 |
| Coordinates | 42.25725, -71.81747 (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 80000630.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikipedia article (used for cross-checking only; text not reproduced here)
- Wikidata Q8032886
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.