Cold Spring Harbor Fire District Hook and Ladder Company Building
Also known as: Teal Building
Why it's listed
Built around 1880 as a harness shop, this small wood-framed building on Main Street at Elm Place in Cold Spring Harbor was adapted in 1896 to house the hook and ladder truck of the newly formed fire district. It has clapboard siding, fish-scale shingles in the pediment, paired wooden engine bay doors and a beaded-board interior. After a serious fire on Easter Sunday 1896 exposed the lack of equipment, residents met in the building to plan fire protection. In September and November 1896 the county Board of Supervisors set up the district, measuring its boundary one mile from this structure. It was in active use as a firehouse only until 1906, when a larger firehouse opened across Main Street. In 1930 it was rotated and moved to the rear of the parcel. Today it shelters an 1852 hand pumper and department storage. It is notable as one of few surviving single-bay, wood-frame firehouses in Suffolk County.
Significance in brief: The building represents the formation of the Cold Spring Harbor Fire District, created in 1896 under state enabling legislation that gave local fire districts taxing powers. It also survives as one of few single-bay, wood-frame firehouses in Suffolk County. Community meetings that led to the district's creation were held in it.
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 03001147, listed November 15, 2003. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-sonnet-5-5, prompt v1.0-2026-10-29, confidence high).
Key facts
| Address | Main St. at Elm Place, Cold Spring Harbor |
|---|---|
| County | Suffolk County |
| Listed | November 15, 2003 |
| Reference number | 03001147 |
| Resource type | Building |
| Period of significance | 1896 - 1906 |
| Architect / builder | Unknown |
| Architectural style | No style |
| Criteria |
|
| Areas of significance | Architecture, Community Planning and Development |
| Level of significance | Local |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | Currently vacant/not in use as a firehouse; used to store a hand-pumper fire apparatus purchased in 1852 and for miscellaneous fire department storage. It was moved and rotated in 1930. |
| Acreage | 0.9 |
| Coordinates | 40.86952, -73.46048 (NPS GIS) |
What listing means for this property
For an income-producing building, listing (individually or as a contributing building in a district) is the gateway to the 20% federal rehabilitation tax credit on qualified rehabilitation costs, often stackable with state credits. Work claiming the credit must follow the Secretary of the Interior's Standards and be approved in advance.
Listing does not restrict a private owner acting without federal money or permits; where federal funding or licensing is involved, Section 106 review applies.
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 03001147.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikipedia article (used for cross-checking only; text not reproduced here)
- Wikidata Q5142357
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.