“There is nothing new in the world except the history you do not know” – Harry S Truman (American President 1945-1953)
At the Museum of Fire our Heritage Team are kept busy every day digging through historical documents on a mission to understand what transpired in the past. Whether they are assisting the public with an inquiry, conducting research for the many projects we undertake for Fire and Rescue NSW (FRNSW); or working to update the displays in the Museum our team are constantly uncovering tid bits of historical narrative that we enjoy sharing.
It may seem that after spending the better part of the last half-century serving the public by sharing history the Museum has no more stories to share BUT this is hardly the case! There is always more history to uncover and as Truman states, the only new thing you’ll discover is the history you don’t yet know!
Continuing our teams love of sharing history this blog takes a closer look at what was happening within the NSW Fire Brigade (NSWFB, today FRNSW) a century ago and 50 years ago.
A Century Ago – 100 Years: 1924
One hundred years ago, in 1924, the last horses within the Sydney Fire District (SFD) were retired from service. This meant that the whole of the SFD was now motorised. Further afield though, stations still relied on horsepower, with turbine engines provided to Bellingen, Dungog and Mullumbimby.
Across the state 12 brigades received new stations with an additional two erected to be opened the following year. On top of this, four new brigades were formed with two of those receiving new stations in 1924, while the other two had to wait several years before receiving purpose-built stations.
The brigades who received new stations in 1924 were Eastwood, Cooma, Coraki, Tenterfield, Tweed Heads, Parkes, Bulli, Thirroul, Wellington, West Wyalong.
New stations were also built in Harbord and Fairfield (today known as Yennora) but these were not officially opened until the following year.
New brigades were established, and new stations erected in Maroubra and Dee Why.
Additionally new brigades were established and operated out of temporary premises in Northmead (today Baulkham Hills) and Baulkham Hills (today Castle Hill) with purpose-built stations erected in subsequent years.
Half A Century Ago - 50 Years: 1974
Throughout 1974, 50 years ago, new stations were erected in 7 locations, with one new Brigade also formed. In Armidale and Thirroul new stations replaced previous 1920’s builds while in Kyogle and Miranda new stations replaced 1950s built stations.
Though a local volunteer brigade had existed in Merriwa since the 1950s, it was from November 1974 that a brigade, under the direction of the Board of Fire Commissioners of NSW (NSWFB governing body) was initiated and a new purpose-built station erected.
In the Sutherland Shire, Caringbah Fire Station was closed with the Brigade transferred to the newly erected Miranda Fire Station. This was to further centralise the fire response for the region.
The highlight for the NSWFB building program though in 1974 was the completion of the first ever purpose-built training college which opened at Alexandria. The following year, 1975, No. 13 Alexandria Fire Station would open on the same site. Prior to the opening of the new Alexandria Training College training had taken place at various temporary locations across Sydney. It wasn’t until after World War Two (WWII) that a formalised training program was put in place for NSWFB recruits. Up until this time most training had occurred on the job at a recruit’s assigned station. Initially, the new training program had been conducted at Headquarters (No. 1 City of Sydney Fire Station) before it outgrew the space and was moved into the closed Woollahra Fire Station. After training was conducted at the closed Paddington, Five Dock and Waverly Fire Stations; it was timely that a purpose-built facility be erected and used to train the next generations of NSW’s Firefighters. Training would remain in Alexandria until 2018 when a new state of the art facility was opened in Sydney’s West, at Orchard Hills. That facility is now known as the Emergency Services Academy (ESA).
The Board of Fire Commissioners wasn’t just proud of the new training college! The 1974 Annual Report proudly talks about the acquisition of a notable addition to the brigade’s fleet – the International Simonitor and Simon Snorkel Unit. To read about the unit check out the Museum’s blog from earlier this year: www.museumoffire.net/single-post/the-cherry-picker-1975-erf-snorkel
History is created every single day. What will be remembered in 50 or 100 years from now? How will future generations see us? Looking back can often offer interesting insights for the future.
- Blog By CEO Belinda McMartin
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