Fire Towers

Categories / City Services/Fire Safety
Categories / Architecture/Architectural Monuments/Public Buildings and Edifices
FIRE TOWERS ('kalancha') are a trivial name for watchtowers, from which special watchmen watched for the inception of fires, beginnings of floods, etc. In St. Petersburg, fire towers appeared at the beginning of the 18th century; since the beginning of the 19 century, they were built at station-houses (police stations) and were a part of fire prevention system. Signals were given with flags and balloons (known as the fire telegraph). In the 1920s-30s, fire towers were built at fire stations (fire towers on 116 Moskovsky Avenue, 56 Zagorodny Avenue, etc. are preserved). Since the mid-1930s, because of the increase in the height of buildings and the development of the fire notification system, the construction of fire towers ceased.

References: Рудницкий В. С. Пожарное дело в С.-Петербурге: Ист. очерк. СПб., 1903; Свиньин П. П. Достопамятности Санкт-Петербурга и его окрестностей. СПб., 1997. С. 203-213.

Y. N. Kruzhnov. Moskovsky Ave/Saint Petersburg, city, house 116
Zagorodny Avenue/Saint Petersburg, city, house 56
Рудницкий В. С. Пожарное дело в С.-Петербурге: Ист. очерк. СПб., 1903
Свиньин П. П. Достопамятности Санкт-Петербурга и его окрестностей. СПб., 1997