Cumberland's oldest firehouse is one step from becoming a history center
Cumberland's oldest firehouse is one step from becoming a history center.
Cumberland's oldest firehouse is one step from becoming a history center.
The Allegany County Historical Society is waiting on final approval from the Maryland Board of Public Works to start improvements at the historic Canada Hose House on Mechanic Street, WCBC reported. The General Assembly approved the state money in late spring.
Society President Dave Williams said the $355,000 state grant pushes the project past half a million dollars:
"In addition to the purchase price of the building which came to about $162,000, we now have managed to raise over $50,000 private, another $25,000 in incremental grants, and now this $355,000 grant to really finish the whole vision of the History Discovery Center."
The two-story brick firehouse at 400 N. Mechanic St. dates to 1845. It was built after a fire destroyed more than 70 buildings in the area, and it's listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The society bought it from the city in 2023 and plans a discovery center with space for the neighborhood on the first floor and an archaeology lab upstairs.
