Morning history. Random find. The first “rural truck” in Wake County history. Built by members of the Apex Fire Department in 1952, to expand service to “rural residents,” e.g. those that lived outside of the town limits. News & Observer photos from May (top) and August (bottom) 1952, scanned from film prints. Reported the paper …
Updated December 2022 with content from archive blog postings, replacing links to pages no longer available. Back in 2009, we published a series of blog postings, listing vintage fire cause reports from around North Carolina from the late 1940s through the late 1950s, as (a.) reported to the State Insurance Commissioner’s office, (b.) compiled by …
Continue reading ‘Cigarette Carried to Attic By Pigeon and Other Unusual Fire Causes’ »
Last updated April 29, 2024 Here’s a master list of all motorized tractor-drawn aerial ladders (tillers) (plus one tiller rescue) past ‘n’ present ‘n’ future in North Carolina. Will update going forward, with newer deliveries. May expand with models and other details:
Posting created July 2022 Last updated June 2023 This is a blog version of an earlier Facebook posting. Random data play. Facts and figures about the 333 names on the North Carolina Fallen Firefighters Memorial, from research by Legeros. Contents – Career vs. Volunteer vs. Part-Time – Causes – Counties with Highest Counts – Departments …
Continue reading ‘Facts and Figures about North Carolina Fallen Firefighters’ »
This is a blog version of an earlier Facebook posting. Research alert. New findings about 1840s and 1850s hand engines in Edenton, Greenville, Greensboro (posted earlier), and Raleigh. The clippings (3 of 4) are from “Baltimore Builders of Fire Apparatus, 1823-1964” by the Fire Museum of Maryland, second edition, researched and written by Stephen Heaver, …
Continue reading ‘Early Hand Engine Deliveries in North Carolina’ »
How many black volunteer fire companies named Excelsior served in our state, back in the day? It appears just three. Shown are Durham (top), Greensboro (middle), and Rocky Mount (bottom). See below for details. Companies Durham Excelsior Hook and Ladder Company Housed at 201 Pine Street, now South Roxboro Street Served from mid-1880s to 1909 …
Guest post by Tom Link, retired Charlotte battalion chief and history buff For those of us who have loved the fire service, we have a special admiration for those firefighters who came before us, the men who built the organizations and established what would become hallowed traditions. For me, the appeal of the fire service …
Continue reading ‘Harper J. Elam and the Little Giant Fire Company’ »
Searches were suspended on Wednesday for the light plane with eight souls aboard that crashed off the coast of Carteret County, NC, on Sunday. The remains of all eight occupants had been located, along the plane’s fuselage. The expansive search started Sunday afternoon, after ATC at MCAS Cherry Point saw the craft disappear from radar. …
This content was previously published as a Facebook posting. Power and lighting units, what were the early ones in North Carolina? Below are some of the “big city” rigs. Shown left to right, top to bottom are: Charlotte – 1934-36 International/Charlotte Auto & Wagon Works. Added by June 1935, housed at Central Fire Station. Lights …
Contents Introduction Durham’s Auxiliary Trucks Wilmington’s Auxiliary Trucks Sources Introduction How many cities in North Carolina operated “auxiliary trucks” in the 1940s and later? Show are trucks from Wilmington, Raleigh, and Durham. The top photo, from a photocopy, appears in Wilmington Fire Department 1897-1985. More on their auxiliary trucks below. The middle photo is Raleigh’s 1948 …