Historical information

The Sebastopol Fire Brigade was establised in 1868.

The first fire station in Sebastopol was housed in a shed at the Red Jacket Mine in 1868, where an alarm bell was hung. With the decline in mining and Sebastopol’s population, the need for a fire brigade diminished and the brigade went into recess in 1875. Sebastopol was then serviced by a ‘satellite’ unit from the Ballarat City Fire Brigade. In 1891, with financial support from the Sebastopol Borough Council, the Sebastopol Fire Brigade re-formed. It had hand-drawn hose reels and hydrants in sheds at the north and south ends of Albert St. A shed to be used as a Fire Station was built beside the Town Hall in 1886. In 1929 the Fire Station was physically moved across Albert Street to its current site. It was expanded by the addition of a meeting room/hall and workroom and in the 1990s had the ‘Engine Room’ added to the north side. The first motorised appliance was a 1916 Maxwell hose carriage issued in 1934.

Physical description

Colour photograph of the Sebastopol Fire Brigade.