Fire Museum Moves to Blowing Rock, 1959

This posting is occasionally updated with new information. Last updated October 27, 2024. Added color photo of the museum at Tweetsie.

Note: See also these two active Facebook threads: Legeros Fire Line and SPAAMFAA (private group)

Watauga Democrat, May 28, 1959.

In May 1959, the fire equipment and fire apparatus collection of Vincent K. O’Meara of Hialeah, FL, was moved to the Tweetsie Railroad attraction in Blowing Rock, NC. The collection had previously been displayed at his Hialeah Fire Museum at 1022 E. 27th Street.

The extensive collection of artifacts also included 30 pieces of apparatus, with the oldest dating to 1792. O’Meara’s collection also included thousand of pieces of related fire equipment and what the local newspaper called the largest “fire protection library” in the southeast.

Among the displayed apparatus was Greensboro’s 1904 American LaFrance steam engine, reg #496. Originally acquired by a private owner in Winston-Salem, it was sold to Vincent K. O’Meara of Hialeah, FL, in August of 1951. See prior posting about the steamer.

Miami News, May 18, 1959

About the Apparatus

The O’Meara collection included 30 pieces of apparatus:

1792 hand engine [?].
1834 hand engine. Bought used by Bay City, MI, in the 1860s. Originally named Tiger, renamed Peninsular during service at Bay City. Acquired around March 1957. Sold after it was moved to Tweetsie. Source: Miami News, Mar 21, 1957; Facebook postings.
1852 Hunneman “endstroke” hand pumper, first used in Exeter, NH. Presently part of Hall of Flame collection in Phoenix, AZ. Entry from Handtubs Junction database:
Union | Hunneman| 1852 | 448 | Scottsdale, AZ | 5″ | Delivered to Exeter, NH; later to North Walpole, NH; sold to J.D. Filleul, later to Vincent K O’Meara, Hialeah, FL; sold at auction Murfreesboro, TN; to HOF.
1890 Boyer chemical cart with two 40 gallon tanks. Likely sold at auction in September 1966.
1890 Seller Gear Company horse-drawn hose wagon. Built in Providence, RI. Original to Providence FD, sold to Oaklawn VFD in Cranston, RI.
1890, circa, horse-drawn fire department sleigh. Ex-St. Johns, Newfoundland. Likely sold at auction in September 1966.
1890s hand-drawn hook and ladder truck, ex-Apnea, MI. Acquired around August 1958.
1900, Badger chemical engine, ex-US Government Plant Introduction Station, Perrine, FL. Likely sold at auction in September 1966.
1900s deluge chemical engine. Built by Prospect Fire Engine Company of Prospect, OH. Later likely the first apparatus for Homestead, FL.
1900 Kress Company fire wagon. Source: Miami Herald. Sep 7, 1958.
1904 American LaFrance steam engine, ex-Greensboro, NC. More information.
1905 American LaFrance steam engine, “Mallory,” named for Steven R. Mallory, Secretary of the Navy during the Confederacy, ex-Pensacola, FL. Source: Palm Beach Post, May 6, 1956.
1916 American LaFrance pumper, 750 GPM, reg #1130. Original to Lakeland, FL. Restored after disposed to O’Meara museum. Likely sold at auction in September 1966.
1917 American LaFrance pumper, 350 GPM. Reg #1784. Original to Lake Worth, FL. Sold in 1927 to Opa-locka, FL. Used until 1951, then disposed by town to O’Meara museum. Likely sold at auction in September 1966.
1920 Ford Model T/_____ hose car.
1920 Ford Model T/____ combination hose and chemical car. With two 35-gallon tanks. Original to Safety Harbor, FL. Disposed to museum by the city. Source: Palm Beach Press, May 6, 1956.
1921 American LaFrance/Brockway Torpedo chemical ca. Original to Lookout Mountain, TN. After six years, sold to Opa-locka, FL. Used from 1927 to 1954, and then disposed by the town to O’Meara’s museum.
1923 Ruggles Motor Truck Company service ladder truck. Originally a shorter-wheelbase combination chemical hose car. Extended into a ladder truck by fire department members. Original to Coral Gables Fire Company in Coral Gables, FL. Later transferred to town. Later disposed to museum by the town. Likely sold at auction in September 1966.
1924 American LaFrance pumper, ex-Hialeah. Bought by and returned to Pompano Beach in 1965, mistakenly believed to be a former PBFD engine. Source: Fort Lauderdale News, Apr 5, 1965.
1925 American LaFrance service ladder truck, reg #5198. Original to Miami, FL. Disposed to O’Meara museum in August 1956. Likely sold at auction in September 1966.
1926 American LaFrance pumper, 750 GPM, reg. #5555. “Old 75”. Original to Pompano Beach, FL. Retired 1948. Acquired April 1956. Source: Fort Lauderdale News, Apr 7, 1956. Alt. model year 1924.
1926 American LaFrance pumper, 750 GPM, reg. #5634. Original to Miami, FL, served as Engine 6, then as engine at drill tower. Disposed to O’Meara museum in 1954.
1926 American LaFrance pumper, 750 GPM, reg. #5578. Original to Hialeah, FL, second motor apparatus. Served 1926 to 1956, then disposed to O’Meara’s museum.
1926 Cadillac V-8 chief’s car. Original to Miami Beach, FL, used for first fire chief. Later equipped with two 40 gallon chemical tanks removed from two original MBFD pumpers. Disposed to Surfside, FL, and then the town disposed to O’Meara museum in 1952. Source: Palm Beach Press, May 6, 1956.
1926 Hudson Super Six chemical and hose car. Original to Hollywood, FL, and whose firemen built the apparatus on a new Hudson chassis. The town disposed the vehicle to the museum.
1926 American LaFrance pumper, ex-Miami, FL. Source: Palm Beach Press, May 6, 1956.
TBD. Ex-South Miami, FL.
TBD.
TBD.
TBD.

Other possible apparatus:

Babcock horse-drawn aerial ladder with front and rear steering. Likely sold at auction in September 1966.
Lapeer hose reel. Likely sold at auction in September 1966.
O. J. Childs chemical engine. Likely sold at auction in September 1966.
W & R hand-drawn hose reel. Likely sold at auction in September 1966.
1850 Rumsey hand engine. Likely sold at auction in September 1966.
1908 Fox steam engine, reg #3246, ex-Pensacola, FL. Source: Ed Hass steam fire engine records (PDF).

Museum guide book, circa 1958 [?] – Read digital version (PDF)

About Vincent O’Meara

Who was O’Meara? He was a retired firefighter from Florida with 18 years of service, including at the Opa-Locka Marine Base. He was a member of five other departments, including as a volunteer member. He started collecting as a hobby when he was five-years old. His collection had been acquired over 29+ years, when he started seriously pursuing collecting. His wife was also an avid buff and helped manage and expand the collection.

About the O’Meara Collection

In addition to apparatus, the collection included:

Over 80 framed pictures and over 100 rare pictures.
Over 15,000 documents, including photographers, manufacturer’s catalogs, training manuals, and even “yellow sheet music dedicated to favorite fire companies.”
Hand-sewn leather buckets from colonial times.
Speaking trumpets, including one dating to 1840.
Three pompier ladders.
Charred brick from the White House, burned by the British in 1912.
Old programs and tickets
Fire axes, hydrant wrenches, nozzle couplings, lanterns
Fire bells and gongs
Fire insurance marks.
Fire helmets and firefighter uniforms from around the world.
Silver spoons commemorating the San Francisco fire and earthquake in 1906.
Collection of miniature fire apparatus that he built, as well as cast-iron toys from 50 years ago.

Sources: Various.

About the Hialeah Fire Museum

Courtesy Miami Springs Historical Society and Museum

O’Meara’s museum opened [at its last location?] on February 11, 1956. Source: Miami Herald, Apr 2, 1957.

In August 1958, newspapers reported that Hialeah city officials were studying a request from O’Meara for funding. He wrote a letter stating that lack of operating funds might force the museum’s closure. He stated that between $300 and $400 a month was needed for rent and utilities on the building. The museum had been operating at a loss since it operated 12 years ago. This was their first request for help to the city. The museum, said the article, was recognized by the Smithsonian Institution as “being the largest collection of fire department apparatus in the world.” It was open to the public seven days a week.

In May 1959, newspapers reported that O’Meara was moving them to the “North Carolina summer resort at Blowing Rock” so that “more people than ever before” could see the historical fire equipment. Grover Robbins, current owner of the Tweetsie Railroad in Blowing Rock, was “instrumental” in bringing the fire museum to North Carolina.

Noted the Miami News on May 18, 1959, O’Meara was turning the collection over to Robbins. And Moss Trucking Company of Charlotte transported the collection, reported the Sumter Daily on May 22, 1959.

Then What Happened?

Undated photo, via Travis Spencer via Facebook thread

Watauga Democrat, June 30, 1960

Here’s some selected information:

By July 1960, Tweetsie Railroad advertisements included “fire engine museum” as part of their listed attractions. The museum may also have been called the O’Meara Fire Engine Museum.
On 1965, April 5, the Fort Lauderdale News reported that least two of the trucks had been stored in a barn for about ten years at Tweetsie Railroad. [ The collection wasn’t moved to Tweetsie until 1959, so either the citation of “about ten years” is incorrect or, perhaps, there were earlier fire trucks in storage at Tweetsie? ]
In 1966, numerous pieces of the O’Meara collection were sold at auction in Tennessee, see below, including Greensboro’s old steamer, which was moved to Gatlinburg, TN.
In 1977, Tweetsie Railroad’s attractions included “an old-time fire house with horse-drawn fire engines.” Source: Statesville Record & Landmark, May 28, 1977.
In 1977, September 19, Vincent K. O’Meara died at Veteran’s Hospital in Miami [?], FL. His still lived in Hialeah. He was 57 years old. After O’Meara’s death, the museum collection was sold at auction by his widow, cites the web site of the Hall of Flame museum. It says they acquired a large collection of photos, records and memorabilia, as well as several pieces of apparatus. Source.
In 1981, an advertisement for Tweetsie Railroad mentioned a firehouse on Tweetsie Square. Source: Charlotte Observer, June 14, 1981. [ Did Tweetsie retain or buy some of the O’Meara collection after the time of his death? TBD. ]

About the 1966 Auction in Tennessee

From a Nashville newspaper, here’s the auction listing from September 1966 that included numerous pieces of the O’Meara collection at Tweetsie:

The Fire Museum Building Today

The museum building was described in a March 2016 document (PDF) titled Historic Architectural Resource Report – Intensive Evaluation for the Tweetsie Railroad Theme Park and the Shull House as follows:

7. Fire Museum Building, ca. 1965
Contributing Building
This one-story, brick and concrete block building originally housed a fire museum, but has been incorporated into the repair shop complex. The unadorned, utilitarian building has a terracotta cap on a parapet wall.