Long Beach Fireman's Historical Museum

The city of Long Beach was incorporated in 1897, and shortly thereafter, a group of citizens formed the first Volunteer Fire Department and elected Brewster C. Kenyon as Captain. After a 1905 fire destroyed the Long Beach Pavilion, a $30,000 bond was issued by popular vote to build a central fire station as well as provide equipment, including fire alarm boxes, a steam fire engine, a hose wagon, and a hook and ladder truck, as well as a team of horses to pull the newly purchased trucks. In 1906, the first official fire station (Station No. 1) was built at 210 West Third Street. The department was headed by Chief Joseph E. Shrewsbury and Assistant Chief George Craw, with a few men hired to be trained as firemen. The regular firemen were assisted by "Call Firemen," who would be paid per fire fought. In 1907, the department purchased its first motorized fire trucks. In 1908, Station No. 2 and Station No. 3 were opened, and Station No. 4 was opened in 1910. In 1916, Chief Shrewsbury was killed in an automobile accident while responding to a fire call (which ultimately turned out to be a false alarm), and George Craw replaced him as the city's second Fire Chief. In 1917, in response to the city's growing population and the increase in the number of fires, the Fire Prevention Bureau was established. In 1920, the department hired additional full-time personnel and ground was broken on two additional fire stations, Station No. 5 and Station No. 6. Between 1924 and 1929, and additional six stations were built throughout the city. Oil was discovered in the Signal Hill area of Long Beach in 1921, and the oil industry swiftly descended on the city to begin drilling operations. The early oil fields were extremely dangerous places. Due to a general disregard for safety, and the fact that oil derricks were built using wood, the oil fields were particularly susceptible to fires. The first major oil fire occurred at the Fisher refinery in 1924, which was followed by the Alamitos fire in 1927. On March 10, 1933, a 6.3 earthquake occurred, within an epicenter located a few miles off shore from Newport Beach. This devastated Long Beach and many surrounding cities. Several fire stations (Stations No. 1, 5, 7, and 9), along with many other buildings including Polytechnic High School, were destroyed in the quake, and a few firemen died as a result of injuries sustained. Another major oil fire, the Richfield Oil Refinery fire, occurred in June of that year, and was most likely caused by residual damage from the March earthquake. Following the earthquake, the city went to work building new stations to replace those destroyed, as well as adding additional fire stations and increasing the number of personnel employed by the department. In 1938, the department moved to install "Talk Alarm" receivers in various stations, which greatly increased the effectiveness of the department by allowing identical information to be received in all stations, thus reducing errors in responding to the wrong address on alarms. In 1942, the city acquired its first fire boat, the "Charles S. Windham." The decision to invest in fire boats proved a good one in December 1945, when a large fire took place on Pier 1 at Berths 51, 52, 53, and 54. The fire, which was the most disastrous in the city's history, burned for several days, though fortunately no casualties were recorded. In 1964, a new drill tower and Fire College opened to train the many new fire fighters needed to service the expanding city. The Long Beach Fireman's Historical Museum was founded in 1980 by Herb Bramley to document the history of fire fighters in Long Beach and to restore historic fire engines. The museum is currently housed in the building which originally housed Fire Station No. 10, and also contains an extensive collection of fire fighter's tools and equipment, as well as log books used by the department throughout its history.

From the description of Long Beach Fireman's Historical Museum photographs collection, 1840-1971, 1906-1971 (California State University, Dominguez Hills). WorldCat record id: 680703490

History of the Long Beach Fire Department

The city of Long Beach was incorporated in 1897, and shortly thereafter, a group of citizens formed the first Volunteer Fire Department and elected Brewster C. Kenyon as Captain. After a 1905 fire destroyed the Long Beach Pavilion, a $30,000 bond was issued by popular vote to build a central fire station as well as provide equipment, including fire alarm boxes, a steam fire engine, a hose wagon, and a hook and ladder truck, as well as a team of horses to pull the newly purchased trucks.

In 1906, the first official fire station (Station No. 1) was built at 210 West Third Street. The department was headed by Chief Joseph E. Shrewsbury and Assistant Chief George Craw, with a few men hired to be trained as firemen. The regular firemen were assisted by "Call Firemen," who would be paid per fire fought. In 1907, the department purchased its first motorized fire trucks. In 1908, Station No. 2 and Station No. 3 were opened, and Station No. 4 was opened in 1910. In 1916, Chief Shrewsbury was killed in an automobile accident while responding to a fire call (which ultimately turned out to be a false alarm), and George Craw replaced him as the city's second Fire Chief.

In 1917, in response to the city's growing population and the increase in the number of fires, the Fire Prevention Bureau was established. In 1920, the department hired additional full-time personnel and ground was broken on two additional fire stations, Station No. 5 and Station No. 6. Between 1924 and 1929, and additional six stations were built throughout the city.

Oil was discovered in the Signal Hill area of Long Beach in 1921, and the oil industry swiftly descended on the city to begin drilling operations. The early oil fields were extremely dangerous places. Due to a general disregard for safety, and the fact that oil derricks were built using wood, the oil fields were particularly susceptible to fires. The first major oil fire occurred at the Fisher refinery in 1924, which was followed by the Alamitos fire in 1927.

On March 10, 1933, a 6.3 earthquake occurred, within an epicenter located a few miles off shore from Newport Beach. This devastated Long Beach and many surrounding cities. Several fire stations (Stations No. 1, 5, 7, and 9), along with many other buildings including Polytechnic High School, were destroyed in the quake, and a few firemen died as a result of injuries sustained. Another major oil fire, the Richfield Oil Refinery fire, occurred in June of that year, and was most likely caused by residual damage from the March earthquake.

Following the earthquake, the city went to work building new stations to replace those destroyed, as well as adding additional fire stations and increasing the number of personnel employed by the department. In 1938, the department moved to install "Talk Alarm" receivers in various stations, which greatly increased the effectiveness of the department by allowing identical information to be received in all stations, thus reducing errors in responding to the wrong address on alarms. In 1942, the city acquired its first fire boat, the "Charles S. Windham." The decision to invest in fire boats proved a good one in December 1945, when a large fire took place on Pier 1 at Berths 51, 52, 53, and 54. The fire, which was the most disastrous in the city's history, burned for several days, though fortunately no casualties were recorded. In 1964, a new drill tower and Fire College opened to train the many new fire fighters needed to service the expanding city.

The Long Beach Fireman's Historical Museum was founded in 1980 by Herb Bramley to document the history of fire fighters in Long Beach and to restore historic fire engines. The museum is currently housed in the building which originally housed Fire Station No. 10, and also contains an extensive collection of fire fighter's tools and equipment, as well as log books used by the department throughout its history.

From the guide to the Long Beach Fireman's Historical Museum Photographs Collection, 1840-1971, 1906-1971, (California State University, Dominguez Hills Archives and Special Collections)