Fire Station No. 19 (Minneapolis, Minnesota)

Infobox_nrhp | name =Fire Station No. 19
nrhp_type =


caption =
location= Minneapolis, Minnesota
lat_degrees = 44
lat_minutes = 58
lat_seconds = 35
lat_direction = N
long_degrees = 93
long_minutes = 13
long_seconds = 35
long_direction = W
locmapin = Minnesota
area =
built =1893
architect= Minneapolis Building Inspections Office
architecture= No Style Listed
added = January 14, 1982
governing_body = Private
refnum=82002960cite web|url=http://www.nr.nps.gov/|title=National Register Information System|date=2008-04-15|work=National Register of Historic Places|publisher=National Park Service]

Fire Station No. 19 is a fire station in Minneapolis, Minnesota, United States just north of the University of Minnesota East Bank campus. The fire station is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. It was built in 1893 in an era when Minneapolis was growing rapidly. Rapid development was bringing prosperity to Minneapolis, but it was also starting to tax the city's infrastructure. Residents and businesses on the east bank of the Mississippi River were demanding better fire protection, especially after the fire that consumed the University of Minnesota Old Main building in 1892. Fire Station No. 19 was built in a simple utilitarian style, yet it contained some touches of ornamentation. It was built with a bell tower that was later removed. The fire station was one of the last to house horse-drawn equipment, as late as 1922.cite web|url=http://www.ci.minneapolis.mn.us/hpc/landmarks/University_Ave_SE_2001_Fire_Station_19.asp|title=Fire Station #19|publisher=Minneapolis Heritage Preservation Commission|accessdate=2008-05-20]

Besides its role as a firehouse, Fire Station No. 19 was also the birthplace of kittenball, a variant of softball. Louis Rober, a lieutenant at the fire station between 1896 and 1906, adapted the rules of baseball to create a game that would use less space, time, and equipment than a regular baseball game. He created the game so firefighters could get exercise while waiting for a fire alarm. Early teams included the "Kittens" of Engine Company 19, "Rats" of Engine Company 9, "Whales" of Engine Company 4, "Salisburys" from a mattress factory, "Pillsburys" from nearby flour mills, and the "Central Avenues". By 1906, more than 20 teams were playing in summer leagues. [cite web|url=http://www.extraalarm.org/ltrober.htm|title=Minneapolis F.D. Invents Game of Softball]

The building was acquired in 1977 by three architects from the firm Station 19 Architects, who turned the building into architectural offices on the second level and a restaurant on the first level.cite web|url=http://twincities.bizjournals.com/twincities/stories/1997/09/15/focus1.html|title=Adapting fire houses: Former stations rejuvenated with new uses|last=Ehrlich|first=Jennifer|publisher=Twin Cities Business Journal|date=1997-09-15]

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