Twenty Years Ago
This is a blog version of an earlier Facebook posting. Found in my files. Twenty years ago last month, a burgeoning fire historian (and future blogger) was feeling his way around this thing called the Wake County Fire Commission.
Archive of posts filed under the History category.
Firehouse Expo South in Charlotte
This is a blog version of an earlier Facebook posting. We recently received and digitized a pair of program books from the Great American Firehouse Exposition and Muster South, held in Charlotte in May 1988 and May 1989. Both are fabulous snapshots of the late eighties fire service. They were gifted by a fellow history …
The History of Wrightsville Beach Fire Stations
The first fire department building in Wrightsville Beach was located in the 400 block of Waynick Boulevard, along with the police department, town hall, and coast guard station. Building erected in [goes here] Fire chief had residence upstairs Town hall and police station was next door. The original building was a small, wood frame cottage …
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Raleigh Fire Department – Milestones Poster
Here’s a chart of milestones of the Raleigh Fire Department, created in 2013 for the Raleigh Fire Museum. View as PDF.
Visual History of Raleigh Fire Stations
This is a blog version of a Facebook posting from April 2021. New from the Legeros History Labs. Each and every iteration of city fire stations with multiple versions. Plus the training tower and shop. Plus pics of all the one-and-done (to date) stations. View JPG | PDF See other visual histories
Raleigh-Wake County Rescue Medic Proposal, 1976
This is an updated version of a blog archives posting from April 2011. Let’s go back in time to 1976, when city and county officials were working to provide a better level of emergency medical service to residents of Raleigh and its suburban areas outside the city limits. Funeral homes hadn’t transported patients for about …
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Comparing Charlotte’s SouthPark and Raleigh’s Metropolitan Fires
Let’s comparing and contrasting Charlotte’s SouthPark fire (May 2023) and Raleigh’s Metropolitan fire (March 2017). See our prior posting about the Charlotte fire. Charlotte SouthPark Fire May 18, 2023 7740 Liberty Row Drive Five alarms Raleigh Metropolitan Fire March 16, 2017 400 W. North Street Five alarms Building Apartments under construction Seven stories, …
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Johnston County Foam Units
This content was originally posted on Facebook in May 2020. In the late 1970s, the first foam unit in Johnston County was created as a project of the Johnston County Firemen’s Association. The tractor-drawn tanker had a circa 1970 White 4000 tractor and a 1957 Heil tanker body, 6000 gallons, that had been modified to …
Baker Fire Apparatus of Charlotte
This is a blog version of a Facebook posting from October 2020. Left to right, top to bottom: Boone (two photos), Winston-Salem (Micah Bodford Collection), Carmel (Micah Bodford Collection). What’s the history of Baker Manufacturing of Charlotte and the fire apparatus they built? They were the Charlotte branch of the Richmond company that later built …
Raleigh Recruit Academy Historical Facts and Figures
Raleigh Recruit Academies 50 (short) and 51 (long) started this week. Here are some historical facts ‘n’ figures about the recruit academies. Largest graduating class – Academy 48 (2002) – 49 grads Followed by #41 (2016) with 37 grads, #42 (2017) with 36 grads, #23 (1999) with 36 grads, etc. Smallest graduating class – Academy …
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