When Engine 11 was organized on January 1, 1884, as “Steam Fire Engine Company No. 11,” hay was selling for $11.80 per ton, oats at 31¢ a bushel, and a horse could be fed for $73.35 per year. Detroit's population at the time was slightly over 75,000; the east boundary of the city was Mt. Elliott Avenue, and to the west, 24th Street. Detroit's oldest fire station was built on the old Bloody Run Creek in 1883 on the northwest corner of Gratiot and Grandy Avenue, and went into service with a crew of 10 men, including the night watchman. Their engine was a third-class Silsby, equipped with a 700 gpm rotary pump and drawn by two horses. The engine was attended by a four-wheeled hose carriage along with 1,000 feet of hose, also drawn by horses. Horsepower served the company for 32 years until a new Seagrave pumper arrived in 1916.
The old station house, built at a cost of $13,600 including the lot, is the only existing fire department quarters in the city that served the same company for more than ninety years, and it can boast of having had a tower watchman on duty nightly to spot neighborhood fires. The watchman was discontinued in 1896 with the expansion of the fire alarm system. When Standard Time was introduced in 1885, the hour of the day would be struck on the tower bell. However, the 11 o'clock bell was not struck on Sundays, as it would interfere with church bells on the Sabbath. Use of the tower bell was discontinued prior to World War I. The 65-foot tower was reduced in height during World War II in order to mount a Chrysler air-raid siren. The tower continued to be used to dry hose until the time the company was deactivated.
The old hayloft and other nostalgic evidence of the horse still exist in the old station house. In 1972, Firefighter Robert deCaussin of Engine 11 had an idea that someday, when the fire department no longer needed the station, it could be preserved as a historical landmark and turned into a museum. Bob deCaussin was the fourth generation of deCaussins to have manned a post at Engine 11 during a span of 89 years — Robert, his father, grandfather and great-grandfather before him. No other city can match this record.
Subsequent to obtaining approval of the Fire Commissioner’s Office and department officials, the department historian undertook the task of submitting a formal application to the Michigan Historical Commission to have Engine 11’s station placed on the National Register of Historic Places as a fire department museum. The application was submitted on December 13, 1974, and after an inspection by Commission officials, the station house was placed on the State Register of Historical Sites on June 17, 1975.
Engine 11 was placed out of service on January 20, 1975, as a regular fire company after 91 years of continuous service due to budgetary problems, and the telegraph instruments were removed from the station. However, the E.M.S. ambulance unit remained in service to provide emergency medical care. In May 1976, the keys to the station were turned over to The Box 42 Associates, a very active fire-buffs’ organization who volunteered to clean up and make repairs to the old quarters. Numerous Saturdays were spent washing walls and woodwork, cleaning the floors, patching plaster, and painting. (1964 was the last time the building had been painted by the city.)
On Oct.6 , 1980, the building opened as the Detroit Fire Department Historical Museum, showcasing historic firefighting equipment including a 1908 Ahrens horse-drawn, steam-powered pumper. When the museum ultimately closed remains unclear, probably in the early 1990s.
After standing vacant for years, Phoenix of Detroit officially purchased Historic Engine House No. 11 in 2002 to restore and preserve this important piece of Detroit’s firefighting heritage. Today, Engine 11 serves as the organization’s home office, meeting space, and training center, and is also available for members to rent for private events. Recognized as an architectural and historical landmark, the building is listed on the local, state, and national historic preservation registers.