Where:260 N. Fourth Street, Columbus, Ohio 43215-2511
Cost: $6 adults, $4 kids, free parking at museum with inexpensive pay lot next door.
The Central Ohio Fire Museum is one of those places we've heard of, driven past, and even meant to visit for a good long while and never got around to it. Well, now that we've finally been there we have this to say: HOLY CRAP HOW DID WE NOT GO HERE SOONER?
On the kind of day where you don't really want to be outside and you don't really want to be in the house either, we ventured downtown to visit one of Columbus' best kept secrets. This one is definitely the kind of museum with enough fun stuff to keep the kids amused and enough cool history stuff to entertain mom and dad. A good outing for all involved, really. The museum doubles as an education center focusing on elementary and pre-school aged children to teach them fire safety complete with a practice room where the kids get to practice checking the door for heat and escaping a fire, complete with (harmless) smoke.
From here, I think I'll let the pictures speak for themselves:
The brochure available at the front desk.
The inside of the replica doors. The firehouse was used until the early 1980s, so it had mechanical garage doors before the restoration. The photos are the station as it looked in the 1950s, and then the restoration to its original 1908 appearance.
Original fire call boxes from the days of the telegraph before telephones were commonplace. These used to be every 3 blocks or so around the city.
Display on the history of fire extinguishers, including quite a few fun flops.
Looking into the basement from the bell tower, where the hoses were hung to dry after a run. It still smells like drying hoses in this room. I really don't think they'll ever get that smell out.
One of our favorite treasures: Jim from the old COSI's Street of Yesteryear! So glad to see he has a new home and a great purpose.
For the kids of all ages, a truck to play in! Our very own Tim models the donated cab that has been converted into a delightfully noisy toy.
To play a firefighter, you have to look the part! The museum caters to those of us who like to dress up while we play make-believe.
To see the myriad of other pictures we took of the museum, please click here to see our Picasa album.
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