YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio – The city’s original fire bell will return to its rightful place in front of fire station No. 1, downtown.
The 184-year-old bell will be mounted in a small wooden structure that will be built in front of the station at Belmont Avenue and Martin Luther King Boulevard.
Keira Philips, a young Eagle Scout with Troop 55 in Youngstown, is the driving force behind the project, which has the full support of the fire department. The city’s design review committee approved the project Tuesday morning at its monthly meeting.
Annissa Neider, a Youngstown architect, designed the roofed structure, which will be built with treated wood pillars and other donated materials. At the committee’s request, a planter or other structure will be installed along the side of the structure so that it is not struck by cars in the small parking area in front of the station.
Keira told the committee that the 1,000-pound bell was originally at the Academy Building, downtown. The bell was cast by a Pittsburgh company, and was erected by the First Christian Church, which purchased the building, in 1841. The bell was used by the church and was also rung in the event of fire to summon horse and cart fire brigade members.
It was the city’s first fire bell, the scout said.
The church moved to a Wood Street location in 1872 and took the bell with it. It remained there until 1934, when it was moved to another structure at Wick and Spring streets. That location closed in 2003.
The bell was refurbished in the ensuing years by another Eagle Scout but remained out of use and in storage until Keira requested it for her project.
The scout said she wants to put the bell “in its rightful place to honor past and present firefighters and to preserve a piece of Youngstown history.”
The bell can still be run, but its clapper will be locked in place so that passersby cannot ring it.
The design review committee approved two other projects Tuesday morning.
They are:
- Avalon Downtown Pizzeria facade improvements: Facade improvements to Avalon Downtown Pizzeria, 15-17-19 W. Federal St. The restaurant and bar will remove the former Bella Amica storefront and window, and an automatic teller machine, at 19 W. Federal.
Two sets of double doors will then be installed, one for the restaurant and the other for the former Bella Amica space, which is currently vacant. The facade will then be refinished for uniformity.
A patio for outside dining will also be installed in front of 15 W. Federal St. It will be enclosed with temporary fencing that will be removed in the winter.
Improvements to the restaurant’s rear entrance, including removal of existing paint and repairing the mortar to retain the existing design, were also approved.
Avalon Downtown Pizzeria is owned by Massullo Properties of Canfield. Strollo Architects of Youngstown is handling the project design.
- Lucky’s Indian Grocery: An illuminated sign that states the name of the soon-to-open store at 718 Belmont Ave. will be erected across the front of the brick building. The illuminated sign will have 13-inch letters and be roughly 26 feet long. The sign was approved under the condition that an existing pole with a nonoperating sign from a previous business be removed so as not to interfere with city right of way.
Pictured at top: This rendering by architect Annissa Neider shows the structure that will be erected in front of the downtown fire station to house the historic bell.