Engine Company No. 20 (Tenleytown Firehouse)
As its first major public structure, Engine Company No. 20 ushered in a new era of development for Tenleytown.
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Engine Company No. 20 was the first major public structure built in Tenleytown in 1900. At the time, Tenleytown was at the edge of Washington, DC's development. Soon after, the nearby residential subdivisions of Armsleigh Park (1892) and American University Park (1897) expanded. The firehouse signaled the absorption of the former crossroads settlement into a growing neighborhood and the eventual development of the community.
Designed by architect Leon Dessez (1858-1918), Engine Company No. 20 is Italianate Revival in style. The façade has glazed buff brick with overhanging scrolled eaves, a terra cotta tile roof, and an expressed hose tower. With the addition of a one-story annex by Snowden Ashford (1866-1927), Engine Company No. 20 became the second motorized station in the city in 1913.
DC Inventory: February 7, 2002
