And the West is History: Durango City Hall and Fire Department – 1885

This very early picture shows the first City Hall and Fire Station at 656 H Street in downtown Durango. Today, the site on 10th Street is the parking lot behind the current City Hall. Built soon after Durango’s founding in 1881, this was a substantial municipal building for its time and also included a public library. It was not to be used for long, however, as it was completely lost in the great downtown fire of 1889. The fire was so fast-moving and severe that a brand new horse-drawn Silsby fire engine was destroyed when it could not be removed before the building became engulfed in flames. Notice the adjacent structures built to the uphill side and the ladder used to access street level. – Ed Horvat for Animas Museum, edhorvat@animasmuseum.org (Catalog Number: 13.01.45 from the La Plata County Historical Society Photo Collections)