Raleigh Fire Museum

05/28/2026

Save the date for June 15, 2026, for the dedication and open house at new Raleigh Fire Department Fire Station 3 at 936 Rock Quarry Road, from 12:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m.

The event starts at noon with the dedication ceremony, followed by tours of the new station through 4:00 p.m. The public is invited. Light refreshments will be served.

The new facility also features a public art installation that tells about the fire department's history. Learn more in the city news release, below.

See also Legeros photos of the new station, https://legeros.smugmug.com/Fire-Photos/2026/Raleigh-Facility/Sta-3

Let’s Celebrate New Fire Station 3
Open House Scheduled for June 15

Published 5/27/2026

Raleigh Fire Station 3 has a new home – so let’s celebrate it! The Raleigh Fire Department will host an open house at the new station, at 936 Rock Quarry Road, on June 15 – and the public is invited. The event is scheduled from 12 noon until 4 p.m.

The event will begin with a dedication ceremony, followed by tours of the new station throughout the afternoon. There will be light refreshments for attendees.

The new 11,105-square-foot building opened on April 27. The old station, which is about 1.7 miles away on South East Street, closed on the same day.

Fire Station 3 provides services to residents in Southeast Raleigh. The new $11.5-million station houses a fire engine with a total of 12 firefighters.

Fire Station 3 has a rich history and a deep connection to the Victor Company. It was Raleigh’s first volunteer black fire company, serving the community for decades. The company operated in the building that became the original Fire Station 3.

Unique Art

The new station honors that history with an outdoor public art installation called The Victor. The art was created by Maxwell Emcays as a part of the City's Percent for Art Ordinance.

At the center of The Victor a firefighter emerges from a blaze carrying a rescued figure. The firefighter is not wearing a helmet. That represents the Victor Company firefighters, who didn’t have modern-day helmets and suits.

The art can enable the community to see themselves in service to their community. The central silhouette, formed by a vibrant red sunburst, symbolizes the transition from chaos to hope.

The installation serves as an immersive historical environment. A path of bronze plaques outlines Raleigh Fire Department history. Six benches are laser cut with words reflecting the department’s core values. Those are “Courage,” “Service,” “United,” “Protect,” “Sacrifice,” and “Honor.” By merging technical precision with local heritage, The Victor creates an open, reflective space honoring the legacy of those who paved the way for modern fire service.

Source: https://raleighnc.gov/news/lets-celebrate-new-fire-station-3

05/07/2026

It's that time of the month! This Saturday, May 9, 2026, is the second Saturday of the month and our fire museum will be open from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

We're located at 105 Keeter Center Drive, just south of downtown. Admission is free. Restrooms are available. Please park on the street.

05/06/2026

Death announcement. Retired Captain Basil Vassilion passed away on the morning of May 3, 2026, at his home in Athens, Greece, after battling cancer. He served the Raleigh Fire Department for 26 years, beginning his career on 4/6/81 and retiring 4/1/07. He's shown in portraits from 2002 and 1984.

05/03/2026

From our historian.

04/23/2026

Arrangements have been announced for Senior Firefighter Josh Lull, who died unexpectedly on Sunday, April 19. He was 30 years old.

A funeral service will be held on Monday, April 27, 2026, at 11:00 a.m. at Summit Church, Blue Ridge Campus, 3249 Blue Ridge Road, Raleigh. The family will receive visitors immediately following the service at the church.

Read his obituary at https://www.dignitymemorial.com/obituaries/raleigh-nc/joshua-lull-12852301

04/18/2026

Last Saturday we brought the Snorkel to our monthly museum opening. What's inside the bucket, you ask? Here are some close views showing the "business end" of the 1988 Pierce Arrow, which served the Raleigh Fire Department for decades. It's now owned by our organization and kept in storage along with two other older rigs that served RFD. Here's our earlier posting with a video of the truck arriving that day, https://www.facebook.com/share/v/19rpzKrLh5/

04/16/2026

From our historian...

Raleigh history hit. Speaking of tractor-drawn aerials (TDAs), here's the city’s original tiller in the early 1950s, in a pair of views from the News and Observer.

Left is Boaz “Bozo” Edwards in 1950 and ducking as Aerial Truck 1 was pulling out of Station 2 at Memorial Auditorium. Right is Dempsey Collins in 1956, in the last year of the truck’s frontline service.

By that time, the 1916 American LaFrance Type 16 tiller, with a 75-foot, two-section, spring-raised, hand-cranked wooden aerial ladder, was pulled by a 1939 American LaFrance 500 Series tractor. It was replaced by a 1958 American LaFrance 900 Series tiller with a 100-foot, hydraulically operated metal aerial ladder.

Observe how high the tiller position rode. That’s because the ground ladders beneath the thing were single-stacked. Later ladders had their ground ladders in stacks of two, side-by-side, which lowered the height of the rear driver.

The O.G. tiller was also quite long, because there were only two ladder sections on the aerial.

And why was "Truck 1" leaving Station 2 instead of Station 1? Because Station 1 in the early 1950s was located at Old Station 2 on South Salisbury Street. And it wasn't large enough to house the aerial ladder.

But once new Station 1 opened in 1953 on South Dawson Street, "Truck 1" was moved from Station 2 back to Station 1.

Also, for both Aerial Truck 1 and the cross-staffed Service Truck 1 to fit into Station 2 at Memorial Auditorium, Engine 2 was moved to Station 1. That was the beginning of two engines housed at Station 1.

And that practice continued to present day and even after Engine 2 was moved back to Station 2, and a second company was activated at Station 1, called Engine 9. And later Engine 10, Engine 15, and finally Engine 13.

Learn more about the old tillers at https://legeros.com/ralwake/raleigh/apparatus/aerials

Read about Station 2 at Memorial Auditorium at https://legeros.com/ralwake/raleigh/apparatus/aerials

04/11/2026

Lines are charged. Wheels are chocked. Doors are open. Visit the Raleigh fire museum today from 10 to 2 just south of downtown Raleigh at 105 Keeter Center Dr. at the fire training center. Admission is free. Please park on the street.

04/11/2026

Surprise Snorkel arrival for today’s second-Saturday monthly fire museum opening. One of our volunteers brought the 1988 Pierce Arrow from our storage site in Johnston County.

And it will soon be joined by an engine company from RFD, [coming to help at the museum today.]

The beloved truck served the Raleigh Fire Department for decades and even flowed water at the historic Metropolitan fire in 2017, operating as a reserve unit. Sorry, static display only.

Come on down to the fire training center at 105 Keeter Center Drive. Doors open at 10 AM, and we’re open until 2 PM. Admission is free.