The collection of antique vehicles inside Hopkinsville’s old fire station did not sustain any damages when Friday’s thunderstorm blew exterior wall bricks and windows from the historic structure.
Everything on the first floor of the East Ninth Street building was untouched, said Alissa Keller, executive director of the Museums of Historic Hopkinsville-Christian County.
Maintained as the Woody Winfree Fire and Transportation Museum, the building houses three fire trucks, a 1901 Buick, a 1926 Model T Ford, a Mogul-brand wagon, two horse carriages and a railway express wagon.
“Bricks from the upper east wall and windows on the front, side, and in the tower blew in. The hole reveals the steel framing of the building — which is holding strong! We’re getting the building covered to keep it dry as we continue to assess,” Keller wrote in a Facebook post.
Keller told Hoptown Chronicle that a contractor will cover the exposed area Monday to ensure the building is protected from precipitation by Tuesday, when more severe weather is predicted.
The Local Development Corp. owns the two-story brick building with its iconic clock tower. LDC leases the property to the museum, which is responsible for the maintenance. Keller said both the building and collection are insured.
The fire station was constructed in 1924, and the 65-foot-tall clock tower was added in 1926.
The last large addition to the collection was a 1928 American LaFrance pumper truck. Members of the Hopkinsville Fire Department completed the restoration of the vehicle and brought it the old fire station in August 2019.
The building also houses Hopkinsville fire run reports for most of the 20th century. Keller said she moved those records to the main museum building ahead of Friday’s storm to protect them in the event of major damage or leaks.
Jennifer P. Brown is co-founder, publisher and editor of Hoptown Chronicle. You can reach her at editor@hoptownchronicle.org. Brown was a reporter and editor at the Kentucky New Era, where she worked for 30 years. She is a co-chair of the national advisory board to the Institute for Rural Journalism and Community Issues, governing board past president for the Kentucky Historical Society, and co-founder of the Kentucky Open Government Coalition. She serves on the Hopkinsville History Foundation's board.
