BELLEVILLE ON. - January 8, 1968

On a bitter cold night in January 1968, the Belleville Fire Department responded to a general alarm fire on Front Street across from City Hall. 

The temperature was 15 degrees below 0 Fahrenheit and a strong wind was blowing out of the North, making fighting one of the largest fires to date in Belleville a miserable and treacherous affair.  City fire stations were augmented by every off duty Belleville firefighter as well as firefighters brought in under mutual aid from Trenton, Wellington, Pt. Anne and Sidney Township.

The fire started in a gas fired grill in the kitchen of the Tea Garden restaurant and spread quickly through 4 businesses including the New Central Barbershop, Tillbrooks Shoe Repair and Booth’s Radio and T.V store.  All four businesses were destroyed but aggressive firefighting by the city crews stopped the spread at the Queen’s hotel, a large 65 room building.

The family who owned and lived above the Tea Garden barely escaped with their lives on this night. As the father tried to re-enter their apartment to save the family dog, he was restrained by firefighters and the family credits this for saving their father’s life. Unfortunately the dog perished.

Two city firefighters were taken to Belleville General Hospital for treatment of smoke inhalation and frostbite before the conflagration was declared under control by Fire Chief Ted Poste.

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