A fire department emblem featuring a Dalmatian dressed as a firefighter standing in front of the Alex Vega Key West Firehouse Museum logo.

Key West’s Coolest Museum

Forget the stuffy museums. Step inside one of Key West’s most unusual historic buildings and discover more than a century of island firefighting history.

Explore vintage fire engines, rare artifacts, incredible stories, and plenty of surprises in a museum that’s fun for firefighters, history buffs, families, and curious visitors of all ages.

“Hands down, the coolest museum in Key West!”

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PLAN YOUR VISIT

FREE ADMISSION
$5 suggested donation
Your donation helps keep the museum open.

FIND US
1024 Grinnell Street
Key West, Florida

MUSEUM HOURS
Wednesday – Saturday
10:00 AM – 2:00 PM
Last admission at 1:30 PM

GET DIRECTIONS

A TRUE KEY WEST
HIDDEN GEM

Tucked away in Old Town, the Alex Vega Key West Firehouse Museum is one of those places you’ll be glad you discovered.

Historic Firehouse • Rare Artifacts
Vintage Fire Engines • Complimentary Beverages

Come in, cool off, explore at your own pace, and discover a side of Key West most visitors never see.

INSIDE THE FIREHOUSE

There’s a lot more behind those big green doors than you might expect.

Two children dressed as firefighters wearing helmets, sitting on a fire truck with a large silver headlamp and a vintage steering wheel, smiling at the camera.

Climb behind the wheel of our classic 1929 American LaFrance fire engine.

Two men taking a selfie outdoors, standing in front of a large, rustic, metal bell hanging from a structure. The younger man on the left has dark hair and is wearing a black shirt, the older man on the right has white hair, a beard, and glasses, and is wearing a red jacket. The background shows trees and a blue sky.

Touch the bell that tolled for Ernest Hemingway in Key West!

Group of five friends wearing firefighter hats, smiling and raising cans of Pepsi, at a party in a brick-walled room.

Meet our volunteers, explore the collection, and discover the characters who made Key West firefighting history.

A woman wearing a black baseball cap with red text and a gray shirt is hugging a man with glasses and a gray beard. Both are smiling and appear happy.

You’ll love our volunteer staff of active and retired firefighters (and an arsonist)!

Young girl wearing a red fire department hat, pulling a cord on a fire alarm.

Come and make some noise!

Black and red baseball caps with humorous text, placed on top of white coffee mugs with matching phrases, against a brick wall background with framed pictures.

We sell cool Key West merch including Key West Fire Department shirts, patches and challenge coins!

Fireman dog wearing a red fire helmet with 'FIRE DEPT' written on it, sitting in front of a fire station with two fire trucks, promoting a game to spot Dalmatian dogs hiding in images related to the Key West Firehouse Museum.

We’re Key West’s Fun Museum!

  • Kids love climbing behind the wheel of our 1929 fire engine, trying on a real firefighter’s helmet, ringing the bells, and searching for the many Dalmatians hiding around the historic firehouse.

  • Adults love the unique exhibits and unusual Key West history.

  • Everybody loves the cold a/c and retired firefighters!

  • Stop in and see what all the fun is about!

Our Story

Captain Alex Vega standing outdoors next to a sign for the Alex Vega Key West Firehouse Museum, with a stone building and a wooden green door behind him.

Key West Firehouse Museum Founder, Captain Alex Vega

Since 1907, Old Firehouse # 3 was home to Key West’s Sunnysouth Engine Company and Tiger Hose Company No. 3.

Decommissioned in 1998, the building fell into disrepair. For many years, old firefighters who served here walked by shaking their heads, telling friends, “If these walls could talk you wouldn’t believe the stories.”

Today, those stories are alive, thanks to the tireless efforts of Florida Keys Fire Historian and retired Key West Fire Department Captain Alex Vega and dedicated members of our island community.

The Key West Firehouse Museum boasts an incredible collection of artifacts from an island where fires changed the course of history.

The Old Firehouse Experience

Photograph of firefighters with an American La France steamer hose cart in front of Fire Station No. 3 in Key West, Florida, circa 1908, with four men, a horse, and a brick fire station building.

  • Our 30-minute audio tour will guide you through the fascinating history of firefighting in Key West, as told through the station and its artifacts. Bring your smartphone and headphones, or use our MP3 players.

  • Historical artifacts & vintage fire gear.

  • The original bunk room.

  • The last remaining steamer coal pit in America.

  • Rare fire badges & antique call boxes.

  • The Wall of Chiefs.

  • 1906 cemetery fire bell.

  • Chief Bum Farto’s desk and uniform.

  • 9/11 memorials.

  • Photo ops behind the old jail cell door.

  • Key West Firehouse Museum shirts and challenge coins.

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