By Harrison Power
The Modesto Fire Department in 2025 celebrates a historic 150 years of service to Modesto, a legacy rooted in early volunteer efforts which modernized over time with the introduction of new firefighting methods and equipment. One early piece of Modesto Fire history that can still be visited today is the Modesto Fire Bell. In use from 1887 to 1926, the bronze fire bell was used to signal the alarm of fires big and small in Modesto, and even at times was used to mark the evening curfew. As a surviving relic from Modesto’s pioneer years representing the honorable service of Modesto’s early fire fighters, City Council designated Modesto’s old Fire Bell as City Landmark #15 in 1992.
Modesto’s Fire Bell was purchased by the Modesto City Trustees and arrived in the city on May 7, 1887. With preparations made, the bell was later mounted at its original home: atop the north end of the Modesto Water Works. To celebrate the hanging of the new fire bell, Modesto Hose Company No. 1 hosted a barbecue in the upstairs hall of the Water Works building on May 25, 1887, with local dignitaries, the Modesto Hook and Ladder Company No. 1, and the Oakdale fire department in attendance. One of the first major fires signaled by the new Fire Bell was at the two-story Stanislaus Hotel in September 1887, located at the corner of I and 8th Streets. In 1895, the bell was moved to the front of the Water Works building.
Later in 1904, city leaders provided for the fire bell to be housed in a 50-foot tower at a city-owned lot at 715 10th Street, where it was moved to and resided until the second Fire Station 1 was built in its place. Upon the completion of the new station in January 1910, the fire bell was housed in a 65-foot tower at the rear of the building which was also used for drying out the fire hose. While the fire bell was used to call up volunteer firefighters, an automatic Gamewell fire alarm system was installed in 1911, which connected 21 call boxes to Fire Station 1, notifying firefighters of the location of fires as they were reported. With this adoption of more modern fire alarm signaling, the old bell eventually no longer needed to be rung rendering it obsolete. The Fire Bell after its years of service was officially retired by the Modesto Fire Department in 1926, being removed from its tower and placed in storage in the city yard.
Mrs. Eliza Maze, chair of the Modesto Garden Club at the time, sponsored efforts through the organization to save the bell and use it in a public monument to commemorate Modesto’s early volunteer firefighters. Relocated to Graceada Park in an Arbor Day ceremony on March 7, 1928, the bell memorial was unveiled by Mrs. Maze to much fanfare and public celebration where Mayor Sol P. Elias spoke, Fire Chief George Wallace read the roster of old volunteer firemen, and George Stoddard gave remarks as a former volunteer firefighter. In 1959, the fire bell was relocated from the area near Needham Avenue to the children’s playground at Graceada Park as children regularly played on the bell memorial and this avoided any traffic-based safety concerns.
The City Council in 1991 allowed for the relocation of the Fire Bell to the grounds of Fire Station 2 on Second Street with support from the Modesto Firefighters Union and E. Clampus Vitus, where the bell was mounted on a pedestal akin to the Frank Rossi-designed pedestal from 1928. After the demolition of the old landmark Fire Station 2 in 2010, the bell was moved to its current home on the grounds of the newer Fire Station 2 at 420 Chicago Avenue, where it can still be visited today to honor the work and commitment of Modesto fire fighters over the last 150 years.
