Contents I. What is a Fire Department History? II. Sanborn Fire - - PDF document

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Researching Fire g Department Histories

Mike Legeros - Raleigh, NC [ e-mail hidden ]

Contents

I. What is a Fire Department History? II. Sanborn Fire Insurance Maps III. Newspapers, Magazines, Journals, p p , g , , and Books

• IV. Other Information Sources

V. Example Fire Department Histories

About the Presenter

• Raleigh Fire Department, 1989-1992
• Computer Industry, 1993-present
• Historian, Author, Photographer
• FireNews Contributor
• Raleigh and Wake County Firefighting
• Raleigh and Wake County Firefighting

Volume II

Part One

What is a Fire Department History?

What is a History?

• Milestones
• Apparatus
• Facilities
• People
• People
• Organization
• Incidents
• Other events
• Context

Milestones

• Date organized
• Date incorporated
• First paid member
• First fully-paid member
• Apparatus delivered
• Facilities opened
• etc.

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Apparatus

• First apparatus
• Early apparatus
• Date delivered
• Date in service
• Makes and models
• Dispositions of past apparatus
• etc.

Facilities

• First fire station
• Early fire stations
• Dates of openings
• Dates of dedications
• Architect / builder
• Dispositions of former facilities
• etc.

People

• First firefighters
• First officers
• First Fire Chief
• First Board of Directors
• First Board of Directors
• Early rosters
• Auxiliaries
• Junior firefighters
• etc.

Organization

• Number of personnel
• Number of shifts
• Number of companies
• Administrative staff
• Support staff
• etc.

Incidents

• Fires
• Disasters
• Mass-casualty
• Large scale or size
• Injured firefighters
• Line-of-duty deaths
• etc.

Other Events

• Fundraisers
• Funerals
• Ceremonies
• Celebrations
• Demonstrations
• Competitions
• etc.

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Context

• Community
• Government
• Commerce
• Industry
• Industry
• Transportation
• Political climate
• Social climate
• etc.

Part Two

Sanborn Fire Insurance Maps

Sanborn Maps Sanborn Maps

• Created to assess fire insurance risks
• Created from 1867 to 1970
• Mapped 12,000 locations in US
• Mapped 150+ locations in NC

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• Scale of 50 feet to one inch
• Size 21 inches by 25 inches
• Bound in volumes
• Available on microfilm
• Available online via www.nclive.org

Sanborn Maps Sanborn Maps

Index Sheet Map Sheet

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Map Sheet Map Sheet Number Adjoining Map Sheet Numbers Compass First Sheet Buildings Streets

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Fire Station Fire Station Description Index Sheet Key Map Summary Key

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Streets Index Specials Index

Earlier and Later

www.nclive.org Select library and enter password

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Select Images and Maps Select Sanborn Maps Second window displays After a few seconds, window changes

Select State

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Select State Select City Select City Select Date Select Date Window changes and displays map sheets

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Change city or date Or select map Or, select map sheets Next button Clicking a map sheet displays a third window Map viewer window Change zoom value Change viewer size

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Navigate map Click Download Map button to display entire map as Adobe PDF file in another window

Entire map displays in fourth window Displayed as PDF file in Adobe reader

More Information

• http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sanborn_Maps

Part Three

Newspapers, Magazines, Journals, and Books

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Newspapers Newspapers Finding Newspaper Articles

• Visit the newspaper publisher
• Visit a public or college library
• Visit the State Archives
• Consult department scrapbooks
• Consult department files
• Consult personal scrapbooks
• America’s Newspapers via NC LIVE

Notes on Newspaper Articles

• Indexes may be available
• Calculating dates in news articles
• Locating newspaper photographs
• Searching before and after an event
• Consulting end-of-year summaries
• Fire Prevention Week articles
• Milestone and anniversary articles

Microforms Microforms

Microfilm Microfiche 16mm 35mm

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Microforms Readers Notes on Microforms

• Readers are machines equipped with lens

with adjustable focus, rotation, and zoom

• Different lenses with varied magnification

R d b t d t i t

• Readers can be connected to printers or

computer scanners

• Film can be both positive (black on white)

and negative (white on black)

Microform Film

Positive Negative

Magazines and Journals Magazines and Journals

• Fire service

Firehouse, Fire Apparatus Journal, etc.

• Local or regional

The State Magazine etc The State Magazine, etc.

• Historical

North Carolina Historical Review, etc.

• Individual articles

Finding Magazines and Journals

• Visit a public or college library
• Visit the State Archives
• Magazine indexes via NC LIVE
• Back issues via eBay
• Back issues via magazine publisher
• Fire department collections
• Personal collections

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Books Finding Books

• Libraries
• Archives
• Bookstores
• Book dealers
• Book web sites
• Personal collections

Types of Books

• Local or regional history
• Architectural history
• Heritage of
• Images of America
• General fire service
• Department yearbooks

Book Examples

• Anderson, Norman P., and B.T. Fowler. Raleigh: North

Carolina's Capital City in Postcards. Charleston: Arcadia, 1996

• Hutchins, Nan. Cameron Village: A History 1949-1999.

Raleigh: Spirit Press, 2001.

• Peterson, Edward L, and Ed Lindley Peterson, First to the

Flames, Krause Publications, 1999.

• Summerall, Hope. History of Wake County North Carolina.

Raleigh: Edwards and Broughton Printing Company, 1922.

• Wilson, Lee. City of Raleigh Fire Apparatus, Raleigh. 2002

Yearbooks Yearbooks

• Asheville, 2001-2005

Taylor Publishing

• Charlotte / 1988

Taylor Publishing

• Charlotte / 1999

Fine Books Publishing

• Lenoir, 1877-2002
• Raleigh / 1984

Taylor Publishing

• Raleigh, 1984-2002

Taylor Publishing

• Durham / 1990s

Taylor Publishing

• Greensboro, 1808-1984

Taylor Publishing

• Greensboro, 1808-1990

Taylor Publishing

• Greensboro, 1926-2001
• Rocky Mount, 1986-1996

Taylor Publishing

• Wilmington, 1897-1985

Taylor Publishing

• Winston-Salem, 1913-1992

Taylor Publishing

• Winston-Salem / 2000

Fine Books Publishing

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General Fire Books

• Conway, W. Fred. Those Magnificent Old Steam Fire

Engines.New Albany, IN: Fire Buff House, 1997.

• Ditzel, Paul. Fire Alarm! The Fascinating Story Behind the

Red Box on the Corner. New Albany, IN: Fire Buff House, 1997.

• Lee, Mathew. A Pictorial History of the Fire Engine, Volume I.

Detroit, MI: Lee and Sons, 1989.

• McCall, Walter. American Fire Engines Since 1900. Glen

Ellyn, Illinois: Crestline Publishing, 1976

• Zurier, Rebecca. The American Firehouse: An Architectural

and Social History. New York, NY: Abbeyville, 1990

Part Four

Other Sources of Information

Other Sources

• Agency Records
• Artifacts
• City Directories
• Department Records
• Internet Sites
• People
• Photographs
• Other Printed
• Department Records
• Government Records
• Other Printed

Materials

Agency Records Agency Records

• City / county / regional associations
• Office of State Fire Marshall
• Convention programs
• Meeting minutes
• Newsletters
• Rosters

Artifacts

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Artifacts

• Alarm equipment
• Apparatus
• Badges
• Bunker gear
• Helmets
• Hose equipment
• Ladders
• Patches
• Bunker gear
• Extinguishers
• Hand tools
• Patches
• Pins
• Uniforms

City Directories City Directories

• Fire station addresses
• Fire company locations
• Fire company officers
• Fire alarm box locations
• Fire alarm box signals
• Firefighter listed as occupation

Finding City Directories

• Libraries
• Archives
• Museums

Department Records Finding Department Records

• Department facilities
• Municipal or community facilities
• Off-site storage
• Department member homes
• Department member homes
• Department family member homes
• Libraries
• Museums
• Archives

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Types of Records

• Annual reports
• Apparatus records
• Bid documents
• Blueprints
• Maps
• Membership

information

• Memos
• Blueprints
• Budget documents
• Fire reports
• Log books

Memos

• Personnel records
• Recruit information
• SOPs

Government Records Government Records

• Municipal annual reports (local)
• Municipal budget documents (local)
• Governing body meeting minutes (local,

county) county)

• Death certificates (county)
• Real estate records (county)
• Corporations database (state)
• Census and Social Security (federal)

Finding Government Records

• Internet
• Government offices
• Libraries
• Archives
• Museums

Internet Sites Internet Sites

• http://www.google.com

Internet search engine

• http://maps.google.com

Street maps and aerial photos

• http://www.timeanddate.com

p Calendar generator

• http://www.nclive.org

NC LIVE

• http://demog.state.nc.us

NC demographics

• http://www.ncmuseums.org

NC museums

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Other Online Sources

• Local library catalogs
• College library catalogs
• State library catalogs
• State archives catalogs
• Museum image galleries

People People

• Department members, active or retired
• Family of department members
• Participants and community members
• Buffs
• Historians
• Oral histories
• Written histories

Photographs Who Takes Photographs?

• News photographers
• Studio photographers
• Department members
• Family of department members
• Participants or community members
• Buffs

Finding Photographs

• Hanging or displayed
• Boxed
• Scrapbooks
• Loose or filed
• Loose or filed
• Printed in periodicals or books
• Libraries
• Archives
• Museums

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Photograph Details Photograph Details Photograph Details Photograph Details Photograph Details Other Printed Materials

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Other Printed Materials

• Magazine advertisements
• Manufacturer catalogs
• Manufacturer records
• Board of Underwriters reports

Part Five

Examples of Fire Department Histories

Essay – Asheville Posters – Raleigh Displays – Fayetteville

Newspaper – Randolph County

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Web Page – Wilmington Web Page – Lumberton Web Page – Lexington Web Page – New Bern Web Page – Salisbury Web Page – Raleigh

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Yearbook – Charlotte Yearbook – Lenoir Yearbook – Greensboro Book – Raleigh / Wake County

The End Questions?