In 1772 the first firemen in Brooklyn were stablished, they were six men strong. In 1785 the Western District VFD was organized resulting in the first fire company being built. In 1816 the village of Brooklyn was established and in 1821 Flatbush was established. Many other independent volunteer companies were established after that eventually leading to the formation of the paid Brooklyn Fire Department in 1869. The city was equipped with 30 alarm boxes by 1873, this number grew to 38 by 1878. In November 1879 a central office was established, but not put into service until 1880. New Lots was annexed to Brooklyn on August 4, 1886 and the Flatbush Volunteer Fire Department was taken over by 1895. By 1893 hose reels had been replaced by horse drawn wagons with the department continuing to grow substantially by 1896. It joined the FDNY in 1898.
All items (9)
