Wayne

DO YOU REMEMBER
THAT WHEN WE GOT SUPPLIES WE WOULD GET ONE BOX OF PENS THAT WOULD BE GONE IN ONE OR TWO DAYS. WE ALSO GOT THREE OR FOUR BOXES OF RED PENCILS THAT WOULD BE AROUND FOR YEARS. EVERY SUPPLY DRAWER / LOCKER ALWAYS HAD RED PENCILS AND NO PENS

DO YOU REMEMBER
AT LADDER 12 YOU COULD SMELL THE HORSE URINE IMPREGNATED IN THE APPARATUS FLOOR WHEN IT GOT WET

DO YOU REMEMBER
HOW SOME ENGINE HOUSE'S HAD A GUY THAT CUT HAIR ON THE SIDE. THEY HAD THAT HIGH CHAIR THAT THEY USED OR THEY ACTUALLY HAD A BARBER CHAIR FROM A BURNED OUT BARBER SHOP. RIGS WOULD BE PARKED OUTSIDE WAITING IN LINE TO HAVE THEIR CUT. IT WAS BEFORE ALL THE FANCY HAIRSTYLES, JUST A BASIC HAIRCUT.

DO YOU KNOW

THAT DETROIT FIRE DEPARTMENTS FREQUENCIES ARE

BASE STATION 154.310
MOBIL 153.950
WALKIE TALKIE 154.400

DO YOU KNOW

THAT MOST FIRE APPARATUSES DON'T CARRY A SPARE TIRE.

DO YOU REMEMBER

A FAMOUS FIRE STORY THAT HAS BEEN GOING AROUND FOR GENERATIONS NOW.

FROM A CHIEF TO FIREMEN ON A ROOF

"HOW MANY GUYS UP ON THE ROOF"

FROM THE GUYS ON THE ROOF

"SEVEN"

FROM THE CHIEF

"HALF OF YOU GUYS GET DOWN FROM THERE"

DO YOU KNOW

THAT SOME EARLY CHIEFS CARS HAD RADIOS BUT THEY BROADCAST ON THE POLICE DEPARTMENTS BAND.

DO YOU KNOW

THAT IN THE LATE 1870s SOME DEPARTMENTS HAD A FILTER TYPE MASK THAT CONSISTED OF A BAG OF WATER AND

TWO SPONGE FILTERS THAT WERE KEPT WET BY SQUEEZING THE BAG OF WATER.

AIR WAS DRAWN THROUGH THE WET SPONGE FILTERS

DO YOU KNOW

ABOUT WHAT YEAR AND WHAT COMPANY FIRST CAME OUT WITH THE COLOR "LIME GREEN"

ALSO CALLED "LIME YELLOW"

1970s BY WARD LAFRANCE

DO YOU KNOW

WHAT ELIMINATED THE NEED FOR THE BELL ON THE RIGS

THE AIR HORN

IT WAS LOUDER AND PROBABLY CHEAPER TO BUY.

DO YOU KNOW

THAT WHEN THE "GREAT CHICAGO FIRE OF 1871"

OCCURRED, THEY SENT OUT A CALL FOR HELP.

"DETROIT FIRE DEPARTMENT" RESPONDED BY LOADING

"ENGINE 3"
&
"ENGINE 6"

ONTO A FREIGHT TRAIN AND SENDING THEM TO CHICAGO FOR TEN DAYS

DO YOU KNOW

WHAT THE DETROIT FIRE DEPARTMENTS BAND

PLAYED ON APRIL 10, 1922 FOR THE HORSES LAST RUN IN DETROIT.

"AULD LANG SYNE"

MAKE SOMEONE SMILE TODAY
WAYNE

FROM A WEB SITE

Once a Fire Horse, Always a Fire Horse
by H. A. Herman

    When I was growing up on a farm near Hannibal, Missouri, our family sold and delivered milk. The business grew steadily, since our milk had a cream line extending at least one-third the length of the bottle. Customers loved this rich milk then; I never heard cholesterol mentioned in those days.

    We began our deliveries early in the morning because few people had iceboxes to keep milk fresh for very long.

    One day, my father bought "Old Frank." He wasn't our first horse to pull the milk wagon, but he was the best. We purchased him shortly before World War I from the Hannibal Fire Department.

    Why we called him "Old Frank" I've never known, but it was likely because the horse-drawn fire-fighting rigs in those days required young horses with speed, strength, stamina and intelligence, and Frank had apparently gotten too old for that job.

    He was 9 years old when we got him. He had a teammate, "Fox," who was purchased for the milk wagon operated by our friendly competitor, Bross and Bier Dairy. Both were Percherons, and both had been through the training school for "fire horses."

    The fire station housed the fire wagon, the horses and all the fire-fighting equipment.   The firemen slept in a loft above the horses and equipment.

    When a fire alarm sounded, the firemen hastily donned their outfits and slid down a pole to the pumper wagon.

    Horses were stationed in front of the wagon with their harnesses suspended overhead. A pull on a lever dropped the harnesses in place on the horses, which were usually dancing with excitement and eager to run.

    It was thrilling to see the fire wagon speeding down the street with the horses snorting and tugging at their bits, and "Mac" Megown stomping on the pedal that activated the bell to warn vehicles and pedestrians to stay out of the way.

    Anyway, back to Old Frank. He was a proud horse and quick to learn. All we had to do to hitch him to the milk wagon was to lift the shafts, and he backed into place on his own so the tugs could be fastened to the singletree.

    When we delivered milk, my father took one side of the street and I took the other. Frank soon knew the route so well he moved down the street and stopped at each customer's house without being driven -- he kept pace with us as we ran back and forth to the wagon.

    One fine summer morning in 1914, we were making deliveries on what was known as upper Union Street, a steep, hilly area. Deliverymen from Bross and Bier were making deliveries with Fox on lower Union, a few blocks down the hill.

    About 6:30 a.m. the fire bell at the station rang. It was loud and piercing; it could be heard for many blocks.

    The moment the bell sounded, Frank took off, broke into a full gallop and headed for the fire station. Neither Father nor I were near the wagon, so there was no stopping the driverless wagon.

     As Frank pounded down the street, Fox pulled out and joined him. The two horses raced down the street, neck and neck, just as they did when pulling the fire pumper wagon. The two milk wagons behind them hooked wheels and eventually both turned sideways as spokes flew and the wheels crumpled.

        Milk cans and bottles and milk were strewn along the route of the runaways. A few other delivery vans took to side streets as the racing team and wrecked wagons approached.

    When the two horses reached the station, the fire engine had already pulled out and the doors were closed. Frank and Fox stood there looking confused, oblivious to the damaged milk wagons they had dragged for a half-dozen blocks and, no doubt, wondering why things had changed.

    When Father and I got there, we calmed them down and unhitched them from the remains of the wagons.

    If Frank and Fox were criticized, I am unaware of it. Most people said that the horses only did what they were trained to do. Both horses pulled milk wagons for the next 7 or 8 years.

        Frank was "turned out to pasture" when he was about 20, and lived to be 25 years old. He never ceased to be a proud, intelligent animal. Few people who saw the "race to the firehouse" episode ever forgot it, and some of the old-timers were still taking about it years later.

    Obviously, I vividly recall it today.

--Reprinted from Draft Horse Journal--
FROM A WEB SITE

Babe

    "Babe," the oldest horse in the Los Angeles fire department, has recently received his "honorable discharge." He had served continually in that department for twenty years, and has not seen a sick day during that time.

    He is a large horse, finely formed, and has been one of the most intelligent and trustworthy horses in the department. During his long service he never was known to lie down in his stall. Frequently he has fallen asleep, but immediately sprang to his feet, seemingly much surprised that he had been caught napping.

    He had been serving in the different engine houses and had been transferred to the Highland Park house at its completion about a year and half ago. He is now allowed his liberty in the yard and in the neighborhood and has the best of care by the boys of the house.

    But his recent discharge from active duty does not seem to suit his dignified horseship. Every opportunity that is offered he will stalk into the engine house and show fight with the horse taking his place in the stall. At these times he is forcibly ejected to the yard where he drops his head and appears as disconsolate as a rejected lover. When the boys try to consol him he is as sullen and obstinate as a child.

    But "Babe" seems to think that, while he has been supplanted by another horse, in his estimation an inferior horse, he must not wander far away from the engine house, for the instant the gong taps his head and tail are up and away he goes in hot pursuit of the galloping horses attached to the engine, apparently determined to regain the rights usurped by the new horse

The Los Angeles Herald, May 16, 1905

FROM A WEB SITE

MEMORIES
Blackie the Last Fire Horse

By CAPT. H. J. GRIFFIN, Retired

"Blackie" is my name, to me belongs the honor of being the last fire horse. Today I am at home in Griffith Park, whetting my appetite on green grass with hay and oats as dessert. Just a life of ease for me, no more do I race and sweat down hardened highways pulling fire apparatus with clanging bells ringing in my ears, but my memory lingers on, of days when in a clean stall in a fire station called the marble palace I spent many happy hours, bedded down at night for a rest in clean hay with a breakfast of oats and drink of cooling water, and a valet to comb my sleek coat of hair, wash my mouth, clean my feet and attend my every need. If I felt ill a Doctor gave me the best of his skill to put me in the pink of condition. By a standing chain in front of my stall, I was ready to spring into action at the toll of the bell, taking my place under harness, where my Pals in blue dropped a leather suit on me, jerked a collar around my neck, snapped reins to my bridle, as out into the street I ran, pulling behind me a shiny red wagon, with smoke eaters hanging on the sides. Down dry, wet or slippery streets in the dead of night or in bright sunshine I ran with all my strength, I had a duty to perform, maybe it was saving a life or some one's home. I must get the men to the fire quickly. People used to stop and look as I passed by, and as I stopped at the fire, white with sweat, would offer me something dainty to eat, but I had to get my breath first, but, alas, my driver would spoil it all, drive me away back from the fire, hitch me to a post, and cover me with a blanket, thinking I might catch cold. Sometimes my shoes that were of steel and rubber came loose from my feet, but never did I stop, just running on in my bare feet. Of course I have been injured, many a fall have I taken cutting my flesh, breaking bones, and was I nervous and anxious to get on duty when my superiors made me rest up from an injury? Yes, I used to look with angry eyes when one of those steel gasoline autos passed me by, and tears came to my eyes as my comrades in the station whispered into my ear, "It looks like Blackie will soon be no more, the new gasoline fire apparatus will retire you." Yes, I can still feel the tug at the reins my driver R. J. Scott gave to me, and many who are now Officers in the Department rode upon the shiny red wagon which I was proud to pull. And can I remember the day they took me away from the home and comrades I loved dearly, I saw tears in the eyes of many, as the boys said when the new apparatus took my place. "Well" it may be faster and more modern, but they never can fill the place of our human Pals, the fire horses.

Soon I will be gone to my place in horse heaven, where all my Pals have gone long ago. I just stand and look at the green hills, occasionally petted by a passing man or woman and dream and dream of memories of long ago. Sometimes I am honored by being taken to the noise and bustle of the City, where I am afraid of the speed of traffic, and hear some child ask it's Mother as I pass, "Mother" what is a FIRE HORSE?" could the younger generation have seen and heard the praise, "Oh, those human beasts look so beautiful as they rear and tear to a fire." You don't hear it now-a days as a steel thing goes past with a siren sounding, they are not as sweet as the bells of long ago.

Of course I am grateful that those that I served so faithful have given me a life of ease. But could I live again those days of old, my sleek coat of hair has grown to be long and shaggy, my teeth are not as sharp, no one to play valet to me now, but the Honor is still mine, "BLACKIE" the only living fire horse of the City of Angels. I hope some day that a statue will rest in a City Park to remind the children of tomorrow of the Human Heroes of yesterday. The FIRE HORSES. The deeds of which is history.

This article appeared in the March 15, 1937 issue of THE FIREMAN'S GRAPEVINE

Why are Dalmations Firehouse Dogs?

Here's the Answer in Black and White
Reprinted from May/June 1992 issues of Reminisce Magazine
Ever see a fire truck in a parade without a Dalmatian in the seat up front or in the lap of a smiling fireman riding in back? Ever visit a firehouse without having one of those black and white spotted dogs come wagging up to you?

Why is that? Why do Dalmations and firehouses go together like smoke and fire? The answer is interesting, and one you'll likely recall every time you see the Dalmation/firehouse combo from now on.

It all began in the days of stagecoaches. Horse theft was so common back then that many stagecoach drivers strung a hammock between two stalls at night, then slept behind their horses to guard against thieves.

But, if the driver owned a Dalmatian, he could sleep in the house or the stagecoach hotel. Why? Because it was observed that Dalmatians formed an amazingly tight bond with horses. When they became close as with a team, no stranger would dare lay a hand on them.

Once the knowledge of this trait spread, more coach drivers went to great lengths to get Dalmatians to watch their teams. In fact, this practice became so common that Dalmatians were first called "coach dogs". They were used by coach drivers centuries ago in England, Scotland and Wales.

Horse's Best Friend?

"Dalmatians have always gotten along well with horses," says Esmeralda Treen of Milwaukee, Wisconsin, a recognized authority on the breed. "Horses are gregarious and feel the need for company. You can't leave them alone too long. Dalmatians take to horses and become 'companions'. Back in the stagecoach days, the 'Dals' would run alongside the coaches, or under the rear axle of the moving coach. They'd keep up with the team as far as it ran, sometimes over 20 or 30 miles a day.

"When the coached reached the inn, the coachman left the dog to guard the team as well as luggage in the coach," Esmeralda explains. "IF the coachman stayed to guard, a robber would sometimes distract him in conversation while others pilfered the goods. They couldn't pull that ruse on the Dal, since they're very alert dogs."

When horse numbers grew here in the New World, the number of Dalmatians grew with it for the same reason they were popular in the Old Country. And, since every firehouse back then had a set of fast horses to pull the pumper wagon, it became common for each group of firemen to keep a Dalmatian.

Again, the spotted dogs not only guarded the firehouse horses, they kept them company during their long, boring waits between fires. And, when they took off for a fire, the dog would run alongside the pumper.

The horses are gone from the fire stations today, but the Dalmatians aren't. The tradition has been carried on, and it may be as much for the looks and appeal of these beautiful dogs as it is for their nostalgic tie to yesteryear.

While all the facts are well founded, there is a common but false rumor that these spotted dogs that breed enthusiasts would like dispelled. It's that Dalmatians are kept at firehouses because they're deaf and therefore, the siren does not bother their ears nor make them "spook" like it would other dogs.

"I once heard that on national TV and could not believe my ears," says Chris Benoit, president of the Chicagoland Dalmatian Club. "It's true that there is a problem with deafness in the breed, but that story is totally false!"

What is true is that Dalmatians are the fastest growing breed of dog in America today. A relative rarity until recent years, Dals are expected to soar into the top ten soon, right up there with beagles and dachshunds.

Spots in Fashion

Another thing that's true is that these dogs have spots everywhere--even inside their mouths and on the bottom of their paws! And they've become the polka dot darlings of advertising and fashion photographers, who say they like the high contrast of these black and white dogs.

Still, the Dalmatians haven't lost their old status as the fireman's friend. For example, in Middletown Connecticut alone, individual fire fighters own Dals named "Hydrant", "Chief", and "Cinder".

That tradition holds across America. Even today, where there's smoke, there's likely fire...and where there's a firehouse, there's likely a Dalmatian.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The Dalmation is a strong, muscular, active dog capable of great endurance and considerable speed."

"Dalmations not only look aristrocratic but behave like gentlemen. Neat and clean, short coated and sensible."

"They were orignally known as 'coach dogs' in England, where they were used as guards for the mail and later accompanied fashionable carriages. In the stables and fire stations of London, the Dalmation proved it was no mere decorative mascot. It destroyed rats and other vermin. Almost inevitably, given its great capacity and almost insatiable desire for exercise, it was invariably turned out with the fire engine and raced with the horses through the streets. During this time thoughout North America, it acquired the nickname 'The Fire House Dogs.

It's gentle disposition was attractive to children, horses, and those hardy pioneers who manned the old pumpers. The occupational hazards of those early Firefighters remain, still taking their toll of smoke filled lungs, burned hands, smashed knees, wrenched backs, and heart attacks. The mascot has retired to hearth and home but faithfully carries on as the symbol for fire protection."

MAKE SOMEONE SMILE TODAY

WAYNE

DO YOU KNOW

THAT BESIDES WATER PUMPING CONTESTS MANY COMMUNITIES HAD RUNNING ONES ALSO.

THEY WOULD HAVE EIGHT MEN PULLING HOSE CARTS FOR APPROXIMATELY 1/3 OF A MILE .

THEY WERE TIMED AND THE FASTEST TIME WON.

DO YOU KNOW

THAT APPARATUS BELLS FIRST APPEARED IN THE

1788 TO 1800 ERA

DO YOU KNOW

THAT BELLS WERE MADE OF BRASS, BRONZE

& BELL METAL, WHICH WAS COPPER AND TIN.

THEY WERE EITHER "NICKEL OR CHROME PLATED".

DO YOU KNOW

THAT MOST INSURANCE COMPANIES ADVERTISED ON "BLOTTERS"

I KNOW YOU OLD FARTS REMEMBER WHAT A BLOTTER WAS BUT SOME OF YOU YOUNGER RETIREES

DON'T .

IF ANY YOUNG "WHIPPER SNAPPERS" ARE READING THIS "STUFF" I KNOW YOU DON'T HAVE A CLUE..

IT IS A PIECE OF THIN CARDBOARD WITH ADVERTISING ON ONE SIDE AND VERY ABSORBENT PAPER ON THE

OTHER.

AFTER YOU WROTE WITH A FOUNTAIN PEN (INK PEN BEFORE BALL POINTS) YOU LAID THIS ON THE FRESHLY WRITTEN INK TO "BLOT" IT DRY

DO YOU KNOW

WHAT ENGINE PANELS WERE

THEY WERE REMOVABLE MAHOGANY PANELS THAT WERE HAND PAINTED BY VARIOUS ARTISTS

IN SCENES BEFITTING AN INDIVIDUAL COMPANIES IMAGE
.
THEY WERE ON THE BACK AND SIDES OF THEIR RIG.

THEY WERE ONLY USED FOR PARADES AND OTHER SPECIAL OCCASIONS.

AFTERWARD THEY WERE REMOVED AND PACKED AWAY FOR SAFE KEEPING.

MAKE SOMEONE SMILE TODAY
WAYNE

DO YOU KNOW

WHAT LIQUID WAS IN THOSE OLD GLASS GRENADE FIRE EXTINGUISHERS.

SALTWATER
+
BICARBONATE OF SODA
+
MURIATE OF AMMONIA______________

SOME HAD CARBON TETRACHLORIDE IN THEM

DO YOU KNOW

THAT "GRAPPLING HOOKS" WERE USED TO PULL

BURNING THATCH FROM ROOFS.

DO YOU KNOW

THAT THE FIRST FIRE FIGHTING DEVICE ON RECORD IS A

LEATHER BAG WITH A LONG NOZZLE ATTACHED.

DO YOU KNOW

WHAT ELIMINATED THE RIGS FIRE BELL.

THE AIR HORN

IT WAS LOUDER AND PROBABLY CHEAPER TO MANUFACTURE

DO YOU REMEMBER

WHEN YOU WERE TOTALLY BEAT FROM A BAD DAY AND

YOU SAID:

"IS IT TIME TO GO HOME YET"

DO YOU KNOW

THAT THE EARLY VOLUNTEERS RULES WERE MADE TO RAISE FUNDS

MORE THEN TO CONTROL THE MEN'S BEHAVIOR.

DO YOU KNOW

THAT IN 1857 IS WHEN THE VOLUNTEERS FIRST WERE

ALLOWED TO BUNK IN THE FIRE HOUSE.

DO YOU KNOW

THAT TWO REASONS FOR THE VOLUNTEERS TO RACE TO A FIRE PULLING THEIR HAND PUMPERS WAS

THE QUICKER THEY GOT THERE THE LESS CHANCE THE FIRE HAD TO SPREAD AND THE FASTER IT WOULD

BE PUT OUT. ALSO THERE WAS THE CHANCE OF A MONETARY REWARD FOR FIRST WATER.

BUT ANOTHER FACTOR WAS
"PRIDE"
IN BEING BETTER THEN ANY OTHER COMPANY.

MAKE SOMEONE SMILE TODAY
WAYNE

DO YOU KNOW

THAT IN SOME COMMUNITIES THE TOWER BELL NOT ONLY RANG TO SIGNAL

A FIRE BUT

CONTINUED RINGING TILL THE FIRE WAS OUT.

DO YOU KNOW

WHAT THE EARLY VOLUNTEERS YELLED WHILE THEY WERE RESPONDING TO THE FIRE HOUSE.

"QUICK, MAN THE ROPES"

DO YOU KNOW

THAT TO TRY TO NOT BE "WASHED" BY THE COMPANY PUMPING INTO THEM A VOLUNTEER WOULD STAND ON THE IN PUMPING ENGINES LINE.

YOU KNOW THIS LED TO A FIGHT.

DO YOU KNOW

THAT THE WATCHMAN IN THE TOWER INDICATED BY THE NUMBER OF BELL RINGS, A FLAG IN THE DAYTIME

AND A LANTERN AT NIGHT AS TO THE DISTRICT THE FIRE WAS IN.

BUT THE MEN STILL DID NOT HAVE AN EXACT FIRE LOCATION.

THEY HAD TO RUN PULLING THEIR HAND PUMPER TO THE DISTRICT TO TRY TO FIND THE HOUSE ON FIRE.

IF IT WAS BLAZING THROUGH OUT IT WAS EASY TO SPOT BUT IF IT WAS JUST A SMALL FIRE IT MUST HAVE

BEEN HARD TO FIND, ESPECIALLY HAULING A HEAVY RIG.

DO YOU KNOW

THAT THE OLD HELMET SHIELD WAS TALLER THEN TODAY'S, AS THE SOLID BRASS / BRONZE

EAGLE SHIELD HOLDER WAS HIGHER THEN THE TOP OF THE HELMET.

TODAY'S SHEET METAL SHIELD HOLDER IS THE SAME HEIGHT AS THE TOP OF THE HELMET, THUS A SHORTER

SHIELD.

DO YOU KNOW

THAT BESIDES THE WATCHMEN ON "RATTLE WATCH"

CARRYING A RATTLE, SOME HOMEOWNERS ALSO HAD

THEIR OWN RATTLES TO WARN OF A FIRE.

DO YOU KNOW

THAT THE U.S. POSTAL SERVICE ISSUED THREE FIRE FIGHTING STAMPS

OCTOBER 4, 1948
COMMEMORATING THE 300TH ANNIVERSARY OF VOLUNTEER FIREMEN IN AMERICA

DECEMBER 10, 1981
DEPICTING A STEAMER ENGINE

SEPTEMBER 28, 1988
DEPICTING AN AHRENS-FOX FIRE ENGINE

MAKE SOMEONE SMILE TODAY
WAYNE
DO YOU KNOW

IT WAS COMMON IF THERE WERE ANY "UNHITCHED" HORSES AROUND WHEN A TEAM OF FIRE HORSES

RAN BY, PULLING A SMOKING , BELL CLANGING STEAMER, THAT THEY WOULD GET STARTLED AND RUN AWAY.

DO YOU KNOW

SOME OF THE HORSE SHOEING WAS DONE BY PRIVATE CONTRACTOR AND OTHERS WERE DONE

BY THE FIRE DEPARTMENTS OWN BLACKSMITH.

DO YOU KNOW

The man first at the engine house and the first man at the tongue are entitled to hold the butt into the next engine .
DO YOU KNOW
SOME CALLS FROM THE FOREMAN TO THE MEN PUMPING THE BRAKES OF A HAND PUMPER
  'Every one of you, now, will you work?
' 'Work her lively, lads!' '
You don't half work!'
'Now you've got her!'
'Stave her sides in!'
'Say you will, now!'
DO YOU KNOW

  It was customary with many of the early companies, upon getting their machines back after repairs or redecorating,
to give a grand feast to welcome it back.

FROM A WEB SITE
The firemen at all times naturally took the shortest cut to a fire and the easiest road. The easiest was the sidewalk,    On May 20, the Common Council took the matter in hand. Alderman Smith proposed a resolution, notifying the engine companies that they would be dissolved if known to run on the sidewalks. In reference to this the Fireman's Journal, edited by Mr. Anthony B. Child, said on the following day:

"If Alderman Smith's resolution becomes a law we hope more attention will be paid by the authorities to the condition of the streets. In some of our principal thoroughfares it is almost impossible to drag an apparatus in the streets. Not only is there severe labor requisite for such an act, but there is also the risk of the apparatus breaking down and danger to the men. If our streets were kept in a passable condition the firemen would not be obliged to take the walk. The firemen have to complain, not only of the deep ruts in the street, but the manner in which they are lumbered up for building and railway purposes, thus giving the firemen but on resource either to take the walk, or turn back and go six or seven blocks out of their way.

FROM A WEB SITE

Many a fight has occurred for the possession of a hydrant. On one occasion a very funny, , fierce, fight took place for the possession of a hydrant.    . One dark night there was a fire up-town, where the streets were then poorly paved and worse lighted--in fact, not lighted at all in some places. In one of these dark spots, not far from the fire, Fireman Burr, as the company dashed along, saw the outline looming up of a big hydrant. He instantly made for the hydrant, but found another man    clutching at it also, a member of a rival company that had come along. Burr and the other fellow contended for that hydrant in the darkness; then, finding the fight going against him, Burr, called for his men, who came. Then the other chap called out for his men, who came, and a fierce struggle took place in the dark for the supremacy and the hydrant. The fight was terminated in a curious way. One of the men, who was smoking while the rest were squabbling, lit a match at the end of his cigar and looked at the object for whose possession they were fighting all around him. Then he burst into a loud laugh, and no wonder; for what they thought was a hydrant wasn't a hydrant at all. It was a buried cannon, with half of it sticking out of the ground. This discovery ended the fight.

MAKE SOMEONE SMILE TODAY
WAYNE

DO YOU REMEMBER

WHEN THE FRONT SUCTION WAS ONLY
ONLY 12 TO 15 FEET IN LENGTH

THERE WERE PLENTY OF TIMES THAT A CAR BLOCKING A HYDRANT PREVENTED THE ENGINE FROM HOOKING UP AND WE

WOULD HAVE TO GO TO THE NEXT HYDRANT OR EVEN THE NEXT IF THAT ONE WAS BLOCKED. MANY TIMES THE WHOLE

BLOCK HAD CARS PARKED IF FRONT OF HYDRANTS

THE SHOP FINALLY HAD TO GO TO THE 25 FOOT FRONT SUCTIONS TO SOLVE THE PROBLEM OF

BLOCKED HYDRANTS.

IN THE MOVIE" BACKDRAFT" THE GUYS BUSTED OUT THE WINDOWS OF A CAR AND PUT THE FRONT SUCTION

RIGHT THROUGH THE FRONT SEAT.

IT MADE FOR A GOOD SCENE BUT I NEVER SAW IT DONE.

WE LAID IT OVER THE HOOD OR TRUNK IF IT WAS ABSOLUTELY NECESSARY, REPORTS OF SOMEONE TRAPPED OR A

HOUSE TOTALLY INVOLVED

WE HAD TO PLAY THE SITUATION BY EAR ON BLOCKED HYDRANTS AT FIRES. IF IT WAS JUST A PLAIN OLD CAR YOU COULD

TAKE A CHANCE AND LAY IT OVER THE HOOD OR TRUNK BUT IF THERE IS A LARGE CROWD YOU MIGHT TRY GOING

UNDER THE CAR. WHAT WORKED IS IF YOU GOT SOME OF THE CROWD TO TRY TO PUSH THE CAR OUT OF THE WAY. IF THAT

DIDN'T WORK YOU WOULD GET THEM TO HELP YOU TO LAY IT OVER THE HOOD OR TRUNK. THAT WAY SOME OTHER PEOPLE

WERE INVOLVED IF THE IRATE OWNER SHOWED UP. IF HE DID I TOOK THE OFFENSE RATHER THEN THE DEFENSE. I STATED

HE JUST COST SOMEONE THE LOSS OF THEIR HOME DUE TO IT TAKING LONGER TO HOOK UP. I'D HAVE TO INCLUDE THIS

FACT IN OUR REPORT WHICH WOULD PROBABLY RESULT IN A STATEMENT FROM HIM. THE GUY USUALLY LEFT THE SCENE

MAKE SOMEONE SMILE TODAY ..............................AND DON'T BLOCK ANY HYDRANTS
WAYNE

DO YOU KNOW

THAT SOME OF THE EARLY FIRE HOUSES WERE CONVERTED STABLES OR OLD SALOONS. THESE

WERE JUST TEMPORARY UNTIL THE MEN WERE ABLE TO ACQUIRED OR BUILD A PERMANENT HOUSE.

ALSO SOME HAD A SEPARATE ADJOINING BUILDINGS FOR THE MAINTENANCE

(CLEANING AND OILING) OF THEIR LEATHER HOSE.

OTHER COMPANIES DID THE CLEANING AND OILING IN FRONT OF THEIR STATION WHICH PRODUCED

MANY COMPLAINTS FROM THE CITIZENS DUE TO THE DIRT AND OIL ON THE WOODEN WALKWAYS

DO YOU KNOW

SOME EARLY MOTTOS

"TO SAVE LIFE WE RISK OURS"

"PROMPT TO ACT WHEN DANGER CALLS"

"FAITHFUL & FEARLESS"

IN SOME CASES THESE MOTTOS WERE ON THEIR LANTERNS

DO YOU KNOW

THAT "FIRST WATER" WAS SO IMPORTANT IN MANY COMMUNITIES THAT THE TOWNS PAPER STATED IN

THEIR EDITION WHAT COMPANY GOT FIRST WATER AT A FIRE.

DO YOU KNOW

THAT ENGINE COMPANIES WEREN'T THE ONLY ONES TO RACE TO A FIRE TO GET "FIRST WATER". AT TIMES

THE HOSE COMPANIES WOULD TRY TO BEAT THE ENGINE SO THEY COULD CLAIM "FIRST WATER"

DO YOU KNOW

SOME EARLY LADDER TRUCK MEN WERE NICKNAMED THE "HOOKS"

FOR HOOK AND LADDER COMPANIES

DO YOU KNOW

THAT SOMETIMES THE STREETS WERE SO IMPASSIBLE THAT ONLY THE HOSE COMPANY COULD MAKE IT TO

THE FIRE. THE HEAVIER ENGINE JUST COULD NOT GET THERE.

DO YOU KNOW

THAT AS A VOLUNTEER IN SOME COMMUNITIES YOU COULD BE FINED OR EVEN EXPELLED IF YOU REPEATED

ANY INFORMATION TO A NON-MEMBER OF WHAT TRANSPIRED AT YOUR MONTHLY MEETING

DO YOU KNOW

THAT IN VERY EARLY ROME THEY DIDN'T EVEN ATTEMPT TO EXTINGUISH THE FIRE.

THEY JUST PULLED DOWN THE SURROUNDING BUILDINGS TO STOP THE FIRE FROM SPREADING.

DO YOU REMEMBER

THE RULE ABOUT NOT USING THE RED LINE TO WASH OFF THE RIGS. EVEN IF THE RIG WAS

ENCRUSTED IN MUD AND YOU COULD BLAST IT OFF WITH THE RED LINE YOU COULD NOT USE IT..

YOU USED THE GARDEN HOSE AND LOTS OF ELBOW GREASE

MAKE SOMEONE SMILE TODAY
WAYNE

REPRINTED WITH PERMISSION

Who or What is a Fire Buff?
By James P. Rasmussen, Past President IFBA

Not to be confused with a fire bug, a FIRE BUFF, (or fire fan, as called in times past) is anything but a pyromaniac. On the contrary, just the opposite is true. Fire Buffs, nicknamed before the turn of the century because of the buffalo robe worn during the winter by men who frequently followed fire engines to an alarm destination, are ardent supporters of their local fire departments. They are dedicated to the prevention of fires, and the safety and well being of those who fight fires. In this respect, fire buffs have a solid reputation for community service.

Fire Buffs take many forms, and can be found throughout the United States, Canada, and in many overseas countries as well. Buffs come from every walk of life and profession: Doctors, mechanics, lawyers, teachers, priests, ministers, laborers, accountants, and just about any vocation that comes to mind can be found in the ranks of fire buffing. Many professional and volunteer fire fighters are proud to be counted as buffs, also. Some more prominent fire buffs include Benjamin Franklin, Arthur Fielder, and Fiorello La Guardia (Mayor of NY City).

Buffing activity is not restricted exclusively to men, for many women are likewise involved. Buffs nurture a special relationship with organized fire departments world-wide. In their own communities they are frequently known as the strongest, most enthusiastic supporters of the local volunteer or full time, paid fire companies. A strong bond exists between buffs, fire department officers, and administration, down to the newest recruit riding a rig. In many cities, Fire Buffs are considered to be part of the close-knit fire fighting family.

At the community level, Fire Buffs provide a variety of services to better the lot of fire fighters. Canteen/Rehab operations is a typical example that provides exhausted fire fighters with a cheering smile and a hot cup of coffee while at a 2:00 am fire on a cold and blustery morning. At times, when a major blaze keeps fire fighters busy battling flames for an extended period of time, buffs and their Canteen/Rehab operations supply weary smoke eaters with a hot meal and a moment's diversion from the dangerous job they are engaged in. Other buff clubs operate museums dedicated to preserving the memory of heroic fire fighters of the past, and the artifacts of their trade. Members of a few clubs assist at a fire scene by hauling hose, directing traffic, or recharging and changing air bottles.

Each Buff Group is unique, and distinctively individual in its own way. In the United States and Canada there are more than 80 organized Fire Buff groups affiliated under an umbrella organization known as the International Fire Buff Associates or IFBA for short. The IFBA is a means of bringing otherwise independent Fire Buff Groups together sharing common interests. The IFBA acts as a communications vehicle between member groups. TURNOUT is the official Magazine of the IFBA and is for sharing information and ideas between affiliated member groups.

The answer to the question posed at the beginning of this article is simple: a Fire Buff is a community oriented individual, with strong ties to the fire service; Buffs come from many vocational backgrounds; and Fire Buffs are International in scope because of a shared avocation/hobby that recognizes no borders.

Copyright © 1996 by James P. Rasmussen
Past President - Racine Fire Bells
Past President - International Fire Buff Associates (1989-1990)

FROM A WEB SITE
NOTE : A TAPPER IS THE TAPPER BELL WE HAD ON THE WATCH BOARD NEAR THE BIG BELL (GONG)
THE TAPPER BELL WAS THE LITTLE BELL.

GENERAL ORDER No. 11

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To Officers and Members,
San Francisco Fire Department.
Every member of the Fire Department not having a tapper in service at the place where he takes his meals, shall at once, at his own expense, provide himself with one, of a type approved by the Department of Electricity, and such tapper will then be installed by the Department of Electricity without charge, except as hereinafter provided:

Should a member change his residence, except through unavoidable cause, within one year after the installation of his tapper, he shall defray the cost of re-installing the same at his new residence.

When members take their meals at a restaurant, boarding house, or other public place, the regular charges for installation and maintenance of tappers, as provided by Ordinance of the Board of Supervisors, shall be paid by such members, pro rata, unless the proprietor agrees to to assume the charges.

Battalion Chiefs are instructed to see that this Order is carried out in their respective districts.

By Order,
Dennis T. Sullivan
Chief of Department

Approved by the Board of Fire
Commissioners, August 18, 1905

FROM A WEB SITE

The Eagle on the Helmet

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In our simple, childish way, we always believed that the eagle adorning a fireman’s helmet meant something special—the spirit of American enterprise, maybe, or onward to victory. We were wrong. The eagle, it seems, just happened, and has no particular significance at all. Long, long, ago, around 1825 to be exact, an unknown sculptor did a commemorative figure for the grave of a volunteer fireman. You can see it in Trinity Churchyard today; it shows the hero issuing from the flames, his trumpet in one hand, a sleeping babe in the other, and, on his hat, an eagle. Now, nobody was wearing eagles at the time; it was a flight of pure fancy on the sculptor’s part, but as soon as the firemen saw it they thought it was a splendid idea, and since every fire company in those days designed its own uniforms, it was widely adopted at once. It has remained on firemen’s hats ever since, in spite of the fact that it has proved, frequently and conclusively, to be a dangerous and expensive ornament indeed. It sticks up in the air. It catches its beak in window sashes, on telephone wires. It is always getting dented, bent and knocked off. Every so often, some realist points out how much safer and cheaper it would be to do away with the eagle, but the firemen always refuse.

We learned all this about firemen’s hats in the course of a little talk we had the other day with Mr. John Arthur Olson, of 183 Grand Street. Mr. Olson’s father started making hats for firemen in 1867, and Mr. Olson himself has been at it all his life. Recently, he amalgamated with his only rivals, Cairns & Brothers, a few doors down the street; they comprise now the only firm in America in the business. Foreign firemen wear a metal helmet which weighs five pounds, but our fire laddies’ hats weigh only thirty ounces. Despite this they give even better protection against falling bricks than the European ones do. They are made of stout tanned Western cowhide, a quarter of an inch thick, hand-sewed, reinforced with leather strips which rise like Gothic arches inside the crown, padded with felt. The long duckbill, or beavertail, effect which sticks out at the rear is to keep water from running down firemen’s necks. Hats for battalion chiefs and higher officers, are white, everyone else’s black. Hook-and-ladder companies have red leather shields (attached just under the eagle), engine companies black with white
numerals, the rescue squad blue.

According to Mr. Olson, there isn’t much money in making firemen’s hats. They sell for eight dollars and seventy-five cents, and as it is all handwork the profit is small. Besides, they last so long—about ten years, on the average. Matter of fact, the only thing that keeps the shop busy is the business of repairing the eagles, which are always coming in for regilding, refurbishing. For fixing eagles, the standard rate is one dollar, and has been for generations.

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The New Yorker
June 14, 1930

FROM A WEB SITE

October 16, 1906

To Battalion Chiefs,
San Francisco Fire Department.

General Order No. 11 requiring members to procure bells and relays at their own expense has been lost sight of since the earthquake, this is more necessary now than ever, because the companies are running with only seven men on duty. You are therefore instructed to notify the Captains of companies in your charge to direct the members of their respective companies to secure bells immediately, and to send a list of such members with their eating places to this office.

By Order,

P.H. Shaughnessy,
Chief of Departmen t

FROM A WEB SITE

February 17, 1908

To Battalion Chiefs and Acting-Battalion Chiefs,
San Franciso Fire Department

You are hereby directed to instruct Captains of your companies to apply to the nearest District Health Station to their respective quarters (the location of which can be ascertained by reference to the printed list of such already furnished you) for rat traps for the quarters of the different companies under your charge that are not already possessed of same, and instruct the officers in charge of said companies to use their utmost endeavor to assist the health authorities in their laudable effort to rid the city of the plague infested rodents.

By Order,

P. H. SHAUGHNESSY
Chief of Department

FROM A WEB SITE

June 2, 1909

To Captains of Companies,
San Franciso Fire Department

You are hereby ordered to instruct your drivers and acting-drivers, that, when responding to an alarm of fire, in going to which they will meet heavy grades, they shall save their horses as much as possible, so that the horses will not be exhausted before reaching the grade. You shall also warn your drivers against the
brutal and unnecessary use of whips under these or any other conditions.
A whip should be used, with judgment, only when a horse is lazy or refuses to pull, but under no circumstances on an exhausted horse. Drivers should be competent to judge whether their teams can make a grade or not, and after trying if they find the teams cannot do it, then immediate use should be made of the lead bars and teams double up.

By Order,

P. H. SHAUGHNESSY
Chief of Department

DO YOU KNOW

THAT IN 1847 A VOLUNTEER COMPANY WAS DISBANDED FOR "MUTINY".

IT WAS COMMON PRACTICE TO RELAY WATER FROM THE SOURCE OF WATER TO THE FIRE..

ONE COMPANY HATED ANOTHER COMPANY SO MUCH THEY REFUSED TO RELAY WATER TO THEM.

THE MUTINY CHARGE WAS ISSUED.

DO YOU KNOW

WHAT A PLUG UGLIE WAS?

IT WAS A "THUG", ( BOXER, STREET FIGHTER) HIRED BY THE VOLUNTEERS TO MAKE SURE THAT THE

HYDRANT CLOSEST TO THE FIRE WAS SECURED FOR THEIR COMPANY AND TO "PERSUADE" OTHER

COMPANIES NOT TO HOOK UP TO IT.

DO YOU KNOW

THAT SOME EARLY FIRE BLANKETS WERE ACTUALLY REGULAR BLANKETS SOAKED IN WATER KEPT

OFFSTAGE IN LONDON DURING PLAYS

DO YOU KNOW

THAT SOME EARLY ROOFS BESIDES COVERED BY THATCH ALSO HAD PITCH ON THEM, WHICH HELPED IN THE

SPREAD OF THE FLAMES.

DO YOU KNOW

THAT IN SOME COMMUNITIES THE AREA GARDENER WOULD REQUEST THE HORSE MANURE FOR THEIR GARDENS.

THIS WOULD SAVE THE FIREMEN FROM HAVING IT HAULED AWAY.

DO YOU KNOW

THAT IF YOU DID TAKE THE BIT OUT OF THE HORSES MOUTH IT WAS DIFFICULT TO PUT BACK UNLESS YOU KNEW HOW.

YOU HAD TO PUT YOUR THUMB BETWEEN HIS BACK TEETH WHICH CAUSED THE HORSE TO OPEN HIS JAW.

YOU THEN PUT THE BIT IN AND SNAPPED IT TO THE BRIDLE.

NOTE" HOPEFULLY YOU GOT YOUR THUMB BACK.

DO YOU KNOW

THAT TO PRODUCE MORE "SPARKS" (FOR SHOW) FROM THOSE OLD STEAMERS SOME FIREMEN WERE KNOWN TO THROW A HANDFUL OF SAWDUST ON THE FIRE

DO YOU KNOW

THAT SOME OF THE COMMUNITIES, THAT RENT HORSES RATHER THEN HAVING THEIR OWN, HAD AN

ALARM SYSTEM INSTALLED IN THE STABLE / STABLES THAT THEY USED. THEREFORE WHILE THE MEN WERE

RESPONDING TO THE FIREHOUSE THE LIVERY MAN WOULD ALSO RESPOND WITH HIS TEAM OF HORSES.

DO YOU KNOW

THAT IN WASHINGTON D.C. IN 1909 THEY HAD A CHIEFS CAR THAT HAD 2 ENGINES

IN CASE ONE FAILED

MAKE SOMEONE SMILE TODAY
WAYNE

DO YOU REMEMBER

BACK IN THE EARLY 60s WHEN SOMETIMES YOUR RIG WOULDN'T START. RATHER THEN CALL "OUT OF SERVICE" AND

MISS A RUN THE WHOLE ENGINE HOUSES CREW WOULD PUSH IT TO THE DOWN SLOPE OF THE APRON

. THE DRIVER WOULD HAVE IT IN GEAR AND "POP THE CLUTCH" THE RIG WOULD START AND YOU WOULD MAKE THE RUN.

YOU NEVER WANTED TO MISS A RUN,
ESPECIALLY WHEN IT WAS "YOUR FIRE".

DO YOU KNOW

WHILE SOME EARLY PUMPERS CARRIED HOSE IN BACK OTHERS HAD BENCH SEATS FOR THE FIREMEN

AND WERE FOLLOWED BY HOSE CARTS / WAGONS.

DO YOU KNOW

THAT THE EARLY "SIRENS" HAD A "HAND CRANK" TO

OPERATE THEM.

DO YOU KNOW

THAT DURING THE TRANSITION PERIOD OF STEAMERS AND MOTORIZED APPARATUS SOME "FUEL TRUCKS"

CARRIED BOTH FUEL AND COAL.

DO YOU KNOW

THAT WHILE MOTORIZED TRACTORS WERE USED TO REPLACE HORSES ON THE STEAMERS,

ELECTRIC TRACTORS WERE ALSO TRIED.

THEY PROVED TO BE TOO SLOW.

DO YOU KNOW

THAT SOME RIGS HAD CHAINS ON ALL FOUR TIRES WHICH WAS USED ON THE OLD DIRT / MUD ROADS.

DO YOU KNOW

THAT BESIDES RIVERS, PONDS , WELLS, CISTERNS BEING USED FOR A SOURCE OF WATER FOR THE EARLY RIGS,

HORSE TROUGHS WERE ALSO USED.

DO YOU KNOW

THAT RATTLES HAD BOTH SINGLE OR DOUBLE REEDS.

IN THE EARLY YEARS 1600s MANY RATTLES WERE HOMEMADE AND

THEN IN THE 1800s SOME COMPANIES STARTED MAKING THEM.

DO YOU KNOW

THAT IN ONE OF MY EARLIER COLUMN I STATED THAT OUR MONKEY TAIL IS ALSO KNOW AS A SQUIRREL TAIL

WELL A SQUIRREL TAIL WAS ALSO A HARD SUCTION (ONE , TWO OR THREE SECTIONS ATTACHED) THAT WAS

KEPT CONNECTION TO THE PUMPER. IT WAS THEN CURLED IN ONE OF THE FOLLOWING THREE POSITIONS:

FROM THE BACK TO THE FRONT

FROM THE FRONT TO THE BACK

FROM ONE SIDE , WRAPPED AROUND THE FRONT AND STRAPPED TO THE OTHER SIDE.

DO YOU KNOW

THAT SOME COMMUNITIES RATHER THEN BUY A "LARGE BELL" TO WARN OF A FIRE INSTEAD BOUGHT AN

"IRON TIRE" ,OF A LOCOMOTIVE WHEEL . THEY MOUNTED THIS ON SUPPORTS

AND STRUCK WITH A SLEDGE HAMMER.

MAKE SOMEONE SMILE TODAY
WAYNE