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Firefighting:
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Today most firefighters are paid professionals, but at one time the job was shared by a whole community. Owners of buildings kept buckets that could be quickly pressed into service. Groups banded together to form volunteer fire companies, with firehouses and engines owned by the group. Only in the last half of the 19th century did cities began to utilize paid, full-time firefighters. The Henry Ford has a large selection of artifacts from the volunteer era, which speak to the sense of pride, community, and civic duty of the citizens involved. |
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Volunteer Fire Company Parade Items:
Before the advent of paid, professional fire departments, both urban and rural parts of the country relied on volunteer firefighters. Volunteer fire companies were more than civic service organizations-they were also social clubs. Members took great pride in their fire companies, and created special symbols and uniforms to distinguish themselves from other companies. Firefighters regularly participated in civic ceremonies and parades, wearing their dress uniforms and carrying the symbols of firefighting.
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Fire Buckets:
Fire buckets were once standard equipment for buildings in cities. As early as 1686 New York City required homeowners to hang a bucket near the front door. When a fire broke out in the neighborhood the buckets were thrown into the street, where firefighters or common citizens would gather them up and form a "bucket brigade" between the fire and the nearest source of water.
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More
Information: (What
do the symbols below mean?)
See
Also the Firefighting
Vehicles (Transportation).
See the December
2001 pic of the month,
which uses museum's firefighting collections
and contemporary images and quotes to
create an online exhibit.
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