The Chapel Hill Fire Department was established in 1896. Everybody knows that, right? Says so on their emblem. But what happens when historical records suggest, perhaps, something different? Let’s a look.

Our story begins with a “visiting professor.” Enter local fire historian and CHFD friend Mike Legeros.

Starting in late spring, he commenced a deep dive into Chapel Hill fire history. He connected with the department historian (and his retired predecessor) and began an exploration, an expansion, a review, an audit, of their written history.

That is, everything about their past in find-able written form.  

Town Minutes Excerpts

In the CHFD archives was a typed copy of town minutes, excerpted from 1896 to 1922. (Which you can read here.) They’d been transcribed by someone, some years or decades prior. And they’re some of the oldest municipal records about the department. Click to enlarge:

The first part of the first page reads:

BOOK I – Page 630 – March 2, 1896

A petition of certain citizens proposed to operate a Fire Company if equipped by the Town was read & laid on the table. The project was looked on with favour but the municipal year was near its end with no funds, so it was thought not necessary to agitate the matter.

BOOK II – Page 76 – September 23, 1901

Board authorized the Finance Committee to purchase for the town a hook & ladder outfit for fire protection – the same to cost not exceeding $200.00. Town also authorized to provide a suitable place for housing it and the 2 reels of hose to be supplied by the University & a part of the fire protection outfit for joint use of Town & University.

May 12, 1902 – P.96

First Fire Chief: John O’Daniel elected. Also Fire Commission: W. S. Roberson, A.A. Kluttz & W. W. Pickard.

May 30, 1902 – P. 103

A fire limit established in view of the fact that no wooden buildings be erected except with approval of the Board of Aldermen.

Etc.

Continue reading ‘Chapel Hill’s First Fire Company – A Chronological Quandary’ »

For your Thursday enjoyment, nine issues of Hose and Nozzle magazine from 1955. Digitized by Yours Truly from physical copies in a bound volume at Wilson Library, UNC.

View the issues at www.legeros.com/history/hose

Who’s the current copyright owner? Is there one?

Good question!

Learned a good lesson the other day.

I’ve long-used shorthand, for noting the concept of “one year or the next year.” For example, writing “the fire truck was a 1950 or 1951 Ford” as “the fire truck was a 1950-51 Ford.”

No problem, right? But watch what happens here:

• 1950 – The fire department was organized.
• 1951 – The fire engine was purchased.
• 1951-52 – The fire station was built.

The third line can mean either (a.) “the fire station was built in 1951 or 1952” or (b.) “the fire station was built during the years 1951 and 1952.” And that, my friends, is a problem.

Interpret Carefully – Be Explicit

As a self-taught historian, I’ve been making things up as I go, and learning best practices by the examples of others, and my own experiences along the way.

One of the most important points is interpretation. Assume nothing. Interpret carefully. And, as I learned this in this example, explicitly state what you are stating, versus relying upon your own shorthand.

In the future I will be paying much closer attention to this.

Do I need to go back and revise all manner of materials? Probably not. It’s too time prohibitive to begin with. 

In some cases, my shorthand works fine. If I’m listing, say, the model years of vehicles, saying 1950-51 works fine. But in a narrative context, as in the second example, it’s a potential point of confusion.

Lesson learned.

For your Saturday reading pleasure, a vintage document from Monroe, NC. 

Constitution and by-laws of Monroe Fire Company No. 1.

Undated, probably from early 1900s. Scanned from physical copy at Wilson Library at UNC, part of the North Carolina Collection. Call number  Cp971.90 M75m1 

Read the document (PDF, 2 MB)