Historic Cheyenne Fire Bell To Be Restored For Sept. 11 Ceremony
A group of city residents including Councilman Richard Johnson and members of the city's Historic Preservation Board has raised the money need to restore the Clark House Fire Bell, according to Johnson.
The goal is to have the restored bell reunited with the sign from the old J.T. Clark Hose House in time for a Sept. 11 ceremony honoring first responders. The sign is now located at Fire Station Number 2 at Walterscheid Blvd. and Fox Farm Road.
When that happens the bell will have a permanent home in south Cheyenne, where it began serving the community in the late 1800s. The bell was originally located at the J.T. Clark Company, which was founded in 1878 to fight fires south of the Union Pacific Railroad tracks. Most of the firefighters were UP employees.
The fire bell is believed to have been cast in 1892 and was housed at the fire station until 1935 when the railroad liquidated unused property at the site. The bell was then moved to Lincoln Park, at the time the nearest city-owned property to the old firehouse.
The bell eventually ended up being located at the old Johnson Junior High swimming pool. The bell will now be sandblasted and coated before being placed in its new home.
About $25,000 was raised for the bell renovation and relocation project. Of that total, $16,000 was given by private donors, Leadership Cheyenne gave $5, 000, Cheyenne City Council members representing Ward 1 raised $3,000 from a contingency fund and the Historic Preservation Board donated $1,000.