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Updated January 20, 2007
Hiring - Fire Department and Police Department applicants were given the same test, administered in the basement of Memorial Auditorium. The test included questions about education background, as well as city officials and department members known to the applicant. The tests included few or no questions relating to firefighting. Some applicants would be offered jobs in either department. (1950)
Recruits - New firefighters were issued "high boots" and "globe clothes" consisting of a coat and pants. They would buy their own suspenders. (1950)
Recruits - New firefighters received their training on the job. Drills were conducted at Station 2 at Memorial Auditorium, with exercises including ladder climbing, hydrant catching, and hose streams. (1950)
Dispatching - Before the era of radio dispatching, companies were dispatched by box alarms. Activating an alarm box sounded bells in all fire stations at once. All companies dressed and boarded their trucks. If necessary, the Captain checked the ticker-tape and associated run card to determine both the first-due units and the street address of the alarm box. The first-due companies departed the station. The other companies in the city stayed awake awake (if at night) at near their trucks until either "all clear" was sounded (three bells) or additional companies were requested. (1950 and later)
Assistant Chiefs - Assistant Chiefs had radios in their cars, and were notified by the city radio center of fires. They responded to all fires. They sometimes had drivers, enlisting an extra man from Station 1. The Assistant Chiefs worked 24 hour shifts and slept at the station. (1950 and later)
Memorial Auditorium Fire Watch - Personnel were hired off-duty to perform "fire watch" duties at select events at Memorial Auditorium. They would mill about the event, keeping an eye out for safety hazards such as blocked or locked exits. (1950 and later)
Chief Cars - The department had two cars, one for Fire Prevention and one that was shared by the Fire Chief and Assistant Chief. The chiefs worked alternating shifts. (1950 and later)
Alarm Bells - Fire alarms were signaled by alarm bells corresponding to box numbers. If the alarm "4-4-4-4" was sounded, that was the signal to contact the dispatcher for the street address. (1950s)
Vernon Smith - After the 1952 apparatus accident injured Driver Vernon Smith, he worked as a dispatcher until the time of his death four years later. (1950s)
Ladder 6 - The 1939 / 1916 American LaFrance aerial ladder served at Station 6 for a period of time. To accommodate its length, the windows in the rear of the bay were removed and an enclosure was created to protect the ground ladders that stuck out. (1960s).
Station 1 - The Fire Prevention Office at Station 1 was located in the front center of the upstairs area. The dormitory was a single room, and the captains had separate sleeping quarters. The Assistant Chief also had his own sleeping area. The Fire Chief's office was downstairs, near the kitchen. The Fire Chief's secretary also had her own office downstairs. (1960s)
Station 4 - The original Station 4 on Jefferson Street had a small kitchen behind the apparatus bay, built by firefighters. Before it was built, the station bathroom served as the kitchen. The station had just three rooms excluding the apparatus bay. (1960s)
Hiring & Recruits - The Naval Reserve Center on Western Boulevard was used for accepting job applications, and for classroom instruction of new recruits. (1974)
Air Packs - Most companies had a couple air packs on their trucks, though they were not necessarily used. There was a social stigma attached to using an air pack versus breathing smoke. (1970s and maybe later)
Apparatus - Drivers were not allowed to drive the new Mack pumpers until they had been "Macksidized," or appropriate trained. (1970s)
Station 1 - The Station 1 dormitory was the last dormitory to have partitions added. They were added, as they were in the other fire stations, to accommodate the introduction of female firefighters. (1980s)
Miscellaneous - Firehouse recipes: chicken and rice, chicken and dumplings (also known as chicken slick), barbecue chicken, stuffed pork chops.
Miscellaneous - Starting salaries: $4,860/year, 1950. $6,100/year, 1974. $8,600/year, 1977. $15,890/year, 1986.
Miscellaneous - Nicknames: B.T., Big Bird, Bird Man, Blade, Branson, Chevy, Chicken, Chub, Cowboy (2), Doc, The Dogcatcher, Flip Top, Goose (2), Gray Mare, The Law, Lucifer, The Mayor, Rabbit Eye, Rambo, Red, Shay-Shay, Slick, Tramp, The Thriller.
Note that these are random and incomplete highlights of the oral interviews.
Copyright 2023 by Michael J. Legeros