Norfolk Then Fire Chief Martin O’Connor takes the first dig during ground-breaking ceremonies for a new firehouse on June 6, 1970. Also pictured are (from left): Peter Mulville (builder), Walter Allyn (Selectman), O’Connor, Robert Mead (Chairman of the Building Committee), and Russell Childs (architect). The need for larger quarters had become particularly pressing when the department’s new fire engine would not fit in the original firehouse in the Royal Arcanum building and had to be housed in a barn on Emerson Street. Fundraising was begun in 1969, and the cost of the new firehouse—$75,000— was raised by public subscription and an anonymous gift.

Ann Havemeyer