Downtown Albany fire demolishes house built in 1885

ALBANY – A Sunday-afternoon fire destroyed a house that had stood in Albany for 140 years.

The blaze at the multi-story house at 410 N. Jackson St., located at the intersection of North Jackson and Roosevelt Avenue, was reported at around noon on Sunday.

Albany firefighters battled the fire in shifts due to the August heat, Albany Fire Chief Cedric Scott said.

“We just had to make sure to rotate firefighters in and out to make sure people could stay cool,” he said.

The source of the fire is under investigation. Since it has been vacant for several decades at least, an electrical fire could not have caused the blaze.

“We certainly have had our share of fires downtown,” Scott said. “We look at vacant structures that are burned. You start to really place an emphasis on investigating to determine what happened.”

The house was reportedly built in 1885, and a nearby structure on the same property was built in the 1930s. 

The structure was a total loss, the chief said.

“It’s just unfortunate to continue to lose these older houses that are representative and have been a fixture in our community,” he said.