The recently restored Palmer Fire School boasts a unique gathering place for Charlotteans. The rubble stone structure was built in the late 1930’s during President Roosevelt’s Works Progress Administration in an effort to employ people in the midst of the great depression. Then Fire Chief Hendrix Palmer, which the building was named after, lobbied government officials to approve funding for construction of the facility to provide firefighters with the best training facility in the country at that time.

Many firefighters themselves aided in the construction of the building hauling materials from an old tannery on Burton Street and later excavating and finishing two-thirds of the basement. The grounds were also landscaped by firefighters which now boast breath taking magnolias, oaks, and pines. In thirty plus years the facility acted as a training academy it was also utilized as a social gathering place for dances and barbecues. How appropriate this unique structure be restored to it’s full potential and added to the National Historical Registry.