Firehouse Theater

Firehouse Theater at 450 E. Market Street is a prime example of a reuse of a historic structure. The Romanesque Revival 1905 Fire House Station #1 is constructed of red brick with sandstone details. The arched doorways with keystones were the doors for the horses and wagons to come and go. Later, the horses were replaced by motorized firetrucks. A carved stone plaque engraved "Fire Department" is mounted on the projecting square tower on the southwest corner of the building. The central fire station relocated to East Broadway Street in 1975. The building was converted to the Firehouse Theater in 1979 and became the home of Carnation City Players, Alliance's community theater group. It was named an Alliance Local Landmark in 2014.

The Alliance Fire Department was founded in 1893, by combining the volunteer companies of Babcock Hook and Ladder Company and Keystone Fire Company. In 1897, the combined, all-volunteer group became a paid professional fire company and the campaign began to build a centralized fire station.

The Romanesque Revival 1905 Fire House Station #1 is constructed of red brick with sandstone details. The arched doorways with keystones were the doors for the horses and wagons to come and go. Later, the horses were replaced by motorized firetrucks. A carved stone plaque engraved "Fire Department" is mounted on the projecting square tower on the southwest corner of the building.

The central fire station relocated to a new modern facility on East Broadway Street in 1975. The city converted the station into the Firehouse Theater in 1979, by adding a lobby between the firehouse and the City Hall building. A stage and auditorium with a lighting and sound booth converted the interior of the firehouse into a theater for use by the City and Carnation City Players, Alliance's community theater group. The lobby is decorated with photographs and artifacts of early firefighting and a complete set of photos of the city's fire chiefs line the walls in Held Lobby. The basement of the theater is used for dressing rooms and costume storage. Firehouse Theater at 450 E. Market Street is a prime example of a reuse of a historic structure.

Illustrated souvenir of the Alliance Fire and Police Departments ; with roster of city officials, and other matter of general and special interest to citizens at home and friends abroad, Alliance, Ohio, 1902.

National Register of Historic Places Registration Form. "Alliance East Main Street Historic District." 2017.