Fire Station No. 23
Located at 225 East 5th Street in downtown Los Angeles, this historic building was constructed in 1910. The building has an unusually narrow structure, only 26 feet (7.9 m) wide but 167 feet (51 m) deep stretching the entire distance from Fifth to Winston Streets. Its interior construction consists of many ornate and fine material imported from abroad, leading to its description in the Angel City Times as “the Taj Mahal of firehouses.”
As an operating fire station, it was headquarters of the LAFD until 1920. The building thereafter served as the residence of every fire chief from its construction until 1928. It remained an active firehouse from until 1950. When it opened, it was manned by fifteen firefighters and ten horses. The original equipment included a horse wagon, chief's buggy, and a pumper that used a vertical tube boiler.
Fire Station No. 23 was closed in November 1950 as the Los Angeles Fire Department began replacing older stations with newer stations with modern facilities. The building was purchased in 1951 by Moore & Moore Properties of Pasadena, a commercial real estate venture which also owns several other historic downtown properties.
Role in Fire Magic Wars
During the infamous Fire Magic Wars, the firefighters of Station 23 were well-known for heroically combating several downtown conflagrations and facing down maddened fire sorcerers. A chemist who worked for the department developed a special fire retardant liquid which could be fired from repurposed flamethrowers. The liquid was reported to have temporary but deleterious effects on the abilities of fire magicians to cast spells. It was also said to have a particularly unpleasant odor that could not be washed away. This resulted in the Station 23 brigade arousing enmity among fire mages who were sometimes doused in the fluid.
Though rumors and legend have placed several magicians among the firefighters of Station 23, it is not known whether the firefighters themselves ever resorted to magic during this time. The exact recipe for the special fire retardant and the identity of the chemist who developed it are unknown.
Floor Plans
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