Preservation of the
Lake Street Firehouse Bell
The night of the disaster the first alarm was sounded at the Ashtabula Volunteer Fire Station No. 2, Lake Erie Company, located on Lake Street near West 32nd Street. The bell is now located in front of Ashtabula Fire Station No. 1 on Main Avenue in downtown Ashtabula. Mrs. Lena Schlacter donated the bell to the city of Ashtabula in 1975, after having the bell in her possession for 25 years. She believed the bell belonged to the city of Ashtabula as a part of its heritage regarding December 29, 1876. The bell was given to her by her uncle John C. Poole, a plumbing inspector for Ashtabula from 1943 to 1945. Mr. Poole purchased the bell from the city for $35 when the old fire house was torn down. He kept the bell for several years on his farm near Amboy and gave it to his niece shortly after his wife died.