Grønland firestation as it looked in 1880.   Foto: Brannmuseet

Grønland firestation as it looked  in1866.   Foto: Brannmuseet

Grønland Fire Station in Oslo.

After a major fire in Oslo in 1858, the City Council decided to establish a permanent fire brigade. Three fire stations were established: Central Fire Station, Sagene Fire Station and Grønland Fire Station. There were a total of thirty six men on duty, at any one time. Early on, Grønland Fire Station was located in other premises. Grønland Fire Station was the first of the stations to be draughted and built for the permanent fire brigade and has since gone through several alterations. The church, school and fire station were all drawn up by the architect Wilhelm von Hanno and were all built in the same style, using the same materials.

The combined police and fire station was built in 1865. The main building was originally two stories high, the third storey and tower being added on a few years later. One can still see evidence of the divide between the first and second floors.

1. In the stable, the stalls for the horses were located in the corner, under the hay and oats loft. Fodder for the horses was dropped down through a hole in the floor. To begin with the Fire Brigade hired the horses, but after a few years they bought their own. The fire horses did a very important job and they were strong, fit and clever animals that understood their duty. They were untethered whilst in the stable and when the alarm went off they automatically took up their places in front of the wagons, where their harnesses were lowered down and secured to them. This took approximately twenty seconds. Today firefighters use up to a minute to get their kit on and leave the station. This is known as the turn-out time.
2. In the early years, the wagons bearing the fire pumps were housed in the appliance room. They were always driven out through the main gate. There was also an appliance room in the side wing, towards the church, and traces of where the two doors hung can still be seen in the wall. The other door led into the wood and coal store.
3. The stall for sick/injured horses (the hospital stall) was located in the opposite corner. The appliance room door was replaced at a later date and access to the hospital stall was next to the outdoor toilets.
4. The other wing housed “the prison”. To begin with, this was the combined police and fire station. One of the earliest photographs we have of the building shows the sign “Brand og Politi vagt” – “Fire and Police Watch”. This wing has been used for, amongst other things, a prison, a smithy, a carpenter’s workshop and a gymnasium. Evidence of the prison cells can be seen above the “large” windows that were installed at a later date. In 1902 the police moved to new premises in Tøyenbekken.
5.  The appliance room facing towards Grønlandsleiret was built after 1910 and housed horses and larger wagons. One of these wagons was a steam engine weighing two tons and it was pulled by a team of two horses. This was the start of the mechanisation of the fire brigade. The drive towards mechanisation gathered pace after a fire in Grønland in 1919. After this fire, it was decided to switch to internal combustion engine driven vehicles. Driving these vehicles also presented challenges, not least because of the major crossroads at Grønlandsleiret.
6. In the main appliance room there is still a fireman’s pole coming down from the first floor. We are unsure as to when it was put up, but it is believed to be the oldest fireman’s pole still in existence in Norway.

Grønland Fire Station was in use as a fire station until 1978. After this it was used by the chimney sweep service and Fire Prevention Department. Today it houses the Fire Museum. The Fire Museum is run by volunteers, with support from Oslo City Council and Oslo Fire and Rescue Service.     

Eva / Chris / hev.2008

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                                                          Foto: Brannmuseet
Grønland firestation as it looks today.