Discussion has begun on a new first responders’ facility. It would house the Police, Fire and Emergency Medical Services departments, all at one site.
The police station has been on Jesup Road since the early 1950s. Before that it shared space with government officials, in Town Hall.
That’s the handsome brick building on Post Road East we know today as Don Memo.
The lockup was downstairs, in the basement — where Walrus Alley is now.
The original town hall — and police station.
Before moving to Post Road East at Crescent Road, the main fire station was on Church Street.
Former Fire Department headquarters, on Church Lane. The original YMCA (now Anthropologie) is on the left.
You can still see its bones in the current tenant, Emmy Squared: Those were the 3 fire engine bays.
(Photo/Poppy Harrington, for Inklings)
Our EMS has shared space with the Police Department since its founding, over 40 years ago.
Long before that, the ambulance was operated by a private service. It was parked in a garage at the crest of the Post Road East hill — approximately where the Morgan Stanley office building is now.
You know — right across from fire headquarters.
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I love all the memories. I do remember the private ambulance service on “the crest of the Post Road East Hill” and applied for our marriage license in the original Town Hall. I can remember walking by the side of the building to get to the Fine Arts movie theater. Of course, the current Town Hall will always be Bedford Elementary to me. How could my generation ever forget walking up the YMCA steps in our formal attire to attend Miss Comer’s Ball Room Dancing class or to take Red Cross lifesaving classes in the pool? Time marches on…..
The ole YMCA was the hub of the town with dances on Friday night, hoops, ping pong, pool and swimming after school (BJHS) when you could walk downtown to a ton of fun. Plus, a movie across the street and then a fight at the old courthouse (now police station) following the flick on Saturdays. Ms. Comers, bless her heart, was a former Rockette and you learned manners and etiquette. The white gloves for both sexes was a tad much but that was the grand ole lady. The Wonder Years, long past. Sadly.
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The ambulance was run by Audley who had a gas station on the Post Road just up from First National in Compo Center. His daughter was a nurse and if she wasn’t otherwise working, she would ride with patients in the back of the ambulance. A far cry from today’s EMT service.
I paid my first and only parking ticket at the old Town Hall basement PD to an officer who I later grew to like and respect as one of the very best I had the pleasure of serving with over the course of a 27 year career with Westport PD. That man was the late Lieutenant James (Jimmy) Driscoll. The ambulance was garaged at Audley’s corner and driven by Art Audley, another Westport Native who answered calls for many years. If he was paid, it was a pittance at best. He had 2 daughters, Dottie and Edna. Dottie was the nurse but Edna also rode on many calls when Dottie was working at Norwalk hospital. I don’t think either of them were ever paid. Dottie became the wife of Officer Richard (Woody) Wood an outstanding and well-liked career Westport Police Officer. Art was the uncle of Retired Fire Chief Harry Audley and Retired police Captain, Edwin Audley. Ed and I were high school buddies.We were the first two Certified EMT’s on the Westport PD and took the training course at Norwalk hospital together. After Uncle Art passed, Ed took over the ambulance duties during off-duty hours. Ed was also deeply involved in the Westport VEMS and in the addition to WPD that was build for that organization. Ed now lives in Florida.
The ambulance in those days was indeed a very far cry from todays WVEMS. When I joined the department in 1959, we received maybe 10 or 20 hours of basic first aid training as part of our four week course in the basement of WPD. Many years passed before there was EMT training. The only reason that Ed and I were the first two was because our names started with “A”. That said, I and other WPD members answered every call and utilized that basic first aid training on hundreds of occasions and utilized that training to the best of our abilities.
The more training, the better. I am happy to report that my Grand-daughter who also was a Westport VEMS member in her teens, is now an ER Doc in the Boston area. Life goes on.
Patty Driscoll was in my class. By the “ole Town Hall” you mean the structure next to the old movie theater. I finished elementary school at the present Town Hall, which was Bedford Elementary, class of 1960. Us kids knew all the police back then for they often moonlighted umpiring Little League games. Frank Bowles was also a good friend and super football player. I think he ended up with the FBI? His Papa was a detective, involved directly in the Old Hill murder-kidnapping.