A tower behind the Chamber of Commerce building in Erie’s Old Town has been disassembled and removed from the spot where it sat for decades. The tower’s historic siren, which was once used to alert the Erie community to danger, will be preserved.
With “no historical value,” the tower has been scrapped, but the siren will find a new home at the request of the Erie Historic Preservation Advisory Board, according to a town announcement.
The siren tower stands behind the old Erie Town Hall building, now home to the Chamber of Commerce. The tower was removed Monday and the siren will be preserved. (Courtesy photo / town of Erie)
The chamber’s building at 235 Wells St. was the original home of Erie’s Town Hall, where the town’s fire truck parked, according to the announcement. The tower has been standing since the mid-1900s, when Erie installed a World War II surplus air raid siren to alert volunteers to respond to active fires and other emergencies.
The siren was installed at the top of the “30-foot tower that looked like an oil rig,” Lew Holloway, an author with the Erie Historical Society, wrote in 2024.
About the siren, Holloway added that “the idea was that with the loud siren sounding, everyone in town could hear the blast. Those on call would rush to the town hall to serve and protect.”
“The town had the brilliant idea of using different impulses (sounds) for emergencies. I only remember two, but long, continual sounds were fires. Three short impulses were to get the local police officer to call the telephone office,” he said.
Ahead of alleyway improvements, crews removed the tower Monday. More details about the siren’s relocation will be provided once the preservation plan is finalized.