HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe History of the Ithaca Fire Department by Bob Robinson - 1977 ITHACA FIRE DEPARTMENT
EARLY SETTLEMENT
Several centuries ago the Scandanavians had a God they called Thor. He
was in charge of the lightning and thunder brigades. Apparently some of
his brigades came to North America and Tompkins County before 1779.
Several dead trees were set on fire from lightning, mostly on the hilltops.
The trees on the swampy flats were too damp to burn.
In those days the forests were virgin timber. They didn't contain the brush
and undergrowth which became abundant when men cleared the land for
housing and the planting of crops. Fires, from the lightning, burned
themselves out and left clearings which the Indians used for their own
purposes. The clearings were preserved by burning them over twice each
year. The Indians touched them off in the spring and again in the fall.
Crops were planted in those clearings consisting mostly of corn and
orchards.
In 1779 the Sullivan Expedition marched through central New York
putting the torch to every burnable item they could find which might have
been of use to the Indians.That army laid waste to orchards,cornfields and
houses which had been erected by the Indians.
After 1779 a number of people moved into the area and constructed their
homes. Naturally they didn't build in the swamps and by 1806 there were
about twenty houses, or cabins,along the bases of east hill and south hill.
The Owego Turnpike came through White Church, Brooktondale and
down the north side of Six Mile Creek to the main road,in town,which was
called Owego Street.
Between Cascadilla Creek and Six Mile Creek a road was established and
called Aurora Street, running north and south. Parallel with that was
Tioga Street, both of them intersecting Owego Street. Connecting those
were the east to west streets named Seneca, Buel and Mill Streets.
The population increased and along with it the growth of industry. Mills
were erected near each of the creeks.The one on Mill Street drew water from
Six Mile Creek using a flume running under Owego Street, along the east
side of Aurora Street, near the foot of the hill, then under Aurora to the
industry at Mill and Tioga Streets. A brewery was started at Spencer and
Clinton Streets and a distillery at 509 Lake Street which boarded cows to
feed on the residue from the vats.
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The town had both white collar and blue collar workers.For two decades it cabinet shop of John Whit
was the rule that each man, after his day's work, would take at least one running along the base of E
leather bucket full of dirt from the sandbank located on Buel Street near fire it wasn't much. The
Parker Place to dump in the swamps west of Tioga Street. The system rapidly.
worked well and soon individuals bought land and constructed buildings
on that side of Tioga Street. The next fire wasn't as situp
the blacksmith shop of Mil
It was natural that buildings on Aurora,Tioga, Owego and Seneca Streets north side of Owego Street b
should become the main commercial establishments. They rose to three of Mr. Seymour were destroy
and four stories high.The State Turnpike crossed the north end of Cayuga being stopped after partia
Lake and supplies came in by boats which ran back and forth on the lake. Johnson near the corner of
while tossing water on the
The Ithaca and Owego Turnpike was officially opened in 1811 running
through White Church and down through that valley. In the same year a In that year there were no
turnpike was opened between Ithaca and Geneva. Stagecoaches from New apparatus. The only way to
York to Buffalo came through the town. getting water from the neare
how many men and women
Plaster was loaded on barges at the north end of the lake, in the dry state, exertion suffered during the
towed to Ithaca, loaded on wagons and hauled to Owego to the extent of
800 loaded wagons each day.Owego and Aurora Streets were the hub of the The citizens really had a fri,
community.A hotel was constructed at that corner with more being erected for the town to pass an ordi
at other intersections. A boom town was in the making, and in 1817 have one full bucket of wate
Tompkins County was formed from parts of Cayuga and Seneca Counties. no central heating in those d
was also ruled that each pl
In the year 1818 Ithaca was not yet a village but it made a tight fit for the enough to reach the top of
population of 800. There were only a couple of roads running across the
swamps to the inlet where the warehouses and boat building businesses Ithaca became an incorpora
were located. Both sides of the inlet were lined with warehouses but most of were quickly, if not easily, t
the population lived between Aurora and Cayuga Streets with Six Mile was time for a better water si
Creek the boundary on the south and Cascadilla Creek the north boundary. an aqueduct from his mil
location of Wilcox Press,
There were several springs in the flatlands with their brooks merging into emptying into tubs,or cistel
the swamps. One started at Buffalo (formerly Buell) and Cayuga Streets, A penstock,or shutoff, was
flowing northwest. Another started on the west side of Albany Street, become quagmires from tl
between State and Green,flowing north to State then west and southwest to square. Bennett was paid $
the inlet. There were several other springs on the sides of the hills and on ringing the Village bell whf
the flats which eventually seeped into the inlet. to extend the water line to tl
Ithaca was accepted as the hub of transportation. Travelers came in by
paid an extra $150 for that
stages drawn by four horses. Cargo came in by the wagonload to be placed The volunteers were greatly
on boats for the trip north to the turnpike. better system of putting t
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Prosperous days were ahead, but one night, in 1818, the cry of "Fire" bucketfull.
resounded and men and boys brought their leather buckets to the C
southwest corner of Aurora and Seneca Streets to put out a blaze in the On June 6, 1823 a bunch of
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hand pumper,of the gooseneck type,so that water could be forced through construction of cisterns at co
a short length of hose and nozzle to the scene of the fire.A fire company was installed on Owego Street fi
formed and a hand engine ordered from New York at a cost of $350. It
arrived near the end of the summer. Trouble arose when chimn
scurry to the scene of the alai
Twenty-seven feet of leather hose was also ordered,plus a drag line to pull bankers, lawyers, merchant!
the engine. The hose cost $27.28 and the rope $2.00. Naturally, it was truck carrying ladders long
necessary to have a fire house so a shed was built on Tioga Street at about February 4, 1831, a hook an
the location of 409 North Tioga Street.g S eet. The shed cost $72.50. was purchased which could
Station on South Tioga Stri
The bucket brigade was still needed because the new pumper had no
suction system and it was necessary to pour water into the holding tank In the year 1832 the new hoi
which held a few gallons. The leather hose was heavy and was carried by the meeting place for local c
the second bunch of men arriving at the station. Those arriving first had removed because they were t
the privilege of pulling the engine. On July 14, 1833 a fire desti
One of the first alarms was presumably on Spencer Street where a cabin Owego, Aurora, Seneca an(
burned while Indians sat on the bank watching the strange squirts from a along Tioga Street from Ov
four-wheeled machine. southeast corner of Seneca a
building, constructed of wo
In the year 1827 two roads ran west to the foot of the hill and a couple of
roads were cut on west hill. After Ithaca became a Village the population A money panic fell upon tl
rapidly increased to 3000 by the year 1828. distress too deep for hope of
affected and real estate becar
Chimney fires were common and the Village Fathers were afraid that one debt although the tax budge
of them might get out of hand so it was decided to obtain another hand to pay their taxes. Stores an
pumper. Therefore, on May 12, 1828 another fire company was formed from no apparent reason. Z
and a new hand engine ordered. started a paid fire departmen
When the new machine arrived it proved so much better than the previous chief, without pay.
engine the original company wanted it for their own.The new apparatus Over the years enough dirt
already had "RESCUE COMPANY TWO" painted on the sides of it, so Street, at the foot of east hill,
after much bickering it was agreed that the original company would Street.The name of the street
become company number two and the neophytes would be company an Indian burial ground wa
number one. Thus company two is the oldest. skeletons. They were reburi
Avenue were opened from
The shed, which had been constructed for the first engine on North Tioga Streets were extended to Ton
Street, was not large enough to accommodate another piece of equipment opened from Aurora to Lak
so a new station was built with room for expansion. It was located at 115
South Tioga Street. The original shed was kept as the fire station for In 1838 the Village bought a
company one. the Baptist Church on the ea
Jacob M. McCormick was el
Ithaca had always been a hard drinking town,and in 1829,restrictions were companies. He held that pc
made on the sale of hard liquor, metheglin and hard cider in the grocery President of the Village.
stores. About the same time 25,000 bricks were purchased for the together to elect another ch
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meetings the last of December in each year and that was the rule for about the one on South Tioga at tl
the next seventy years. Fathers was held in the eleg
construct a building which
In 1839 Lake Avenue and Railroad Avenue were extended.The fire limits one roof. Plans were drawl
were adopted for Owego Street which forbade the construction of any second floor for Village afl
wooden buildings within one hundred feet of the street between Aurora Tioga and Seneca Streets, 1
and Cayuga street.
The start of construction of
EXPANSION of new fires.They were corn
Ithaca had a theater, of sorts, located at 206 East Owego Street. It was at the Clinton House.At th;
behind a jewelry store and the business it received never warranted keeping faster method of getting to t
it in operation. The owner of the building was Frank Atwater and he and wells since fires gene
decided to discontinue the theater and install a billiard and ball alley in it's brigades were required to bi
place. This he did but Ithaca was among the top ten,in the United States,
for per capita liquor consumption. Thus fights broke out in the place. After further discussion it
needed to carry buckets and
A little after midnight, on May 28, 1840,one of the fights got nasty and at run fast and were full of 1
two o'clock in the morning bottles, chairs and lamps were used in the March 2, 1843. William Ht
fracas. A fire broke out and it rapidly spread to the east and north burning hooks to carry 100 buckets
everything which had been reconstructed after the fire of 1833 except for the
buildings on Tioga Street and the little house on Seneca Street which had Construction had already s
been spared in the earlier blaze. The Village Fathers posted a bond for Tioga Streets so a new loci
$1,000 to be used for the conviction of the persons fighting and starting the Village purchased the land
fire. Henry Walton painted a picture of the early stages of that fire showing with a tower so wet hose c
the hand pumper in operation.A large warehouse in the center of the block
was destroyed. It was owned by Mr. McCormick and later the blaze was Abetter fire alarm was nee(
called the McCormick fire. iron triangle four inches
tower constructed on Firer.
The citizens of the Village decided that another fire company was needed the building to the police
so, on March 11, 1842, company number four was organized. They took activate the clapper in cas
over the original pumper, being used by Company One, but found it so
unsatisfactory another was ordered from Button and Son of Waterford at a Let's go back a bit so as to t
cost of $1200. Ithaca in the early days wit
business and built the Ith
The new apparatus had only arrived when fire broke out at midnight July that prospects were better
24, 1842 in the rear of the shoe shop at 207 East Owego Street.It burned east business, and headed west
to the Chronicle building, which was constructed of brick, west to the
corner of Tioga and south to the building next to the firehouse.Water was In Luther returned tt
splashed on the firehouse to preserve it at all costs. just t a as s good here as in O
northwest corner of Owego
Since most of the fires appeared to be from arson the taxpayers offered 1819,business flourished 1
rewards for the conviction of people who had committed arson. of Albany Street the atmos
Guy Clark brought his w
The fire stations, on south Tioga Street and North Tioga Street were
separated by about four blocks and volunteers had the habit of running to Before morning Guy had s
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hung, the first hanging in Ithaca,on the grounds now occupied by the Fall
Creek School. He was buried there but before morning the body had The swamp, the center
disappeared presumably for the use of a doctor in making further studies in individuals moved their bi
anatomy. banks of the inlet were hur
thriving business. In 1847
After the Guy Clark episode the Columbia Inn lost it's business. The lines were installed throug
building was torn down and parts of the lumber were bought by a Mr. Avenue was opened to the
Carson who constructed a tavern on the west side of Cayuga Street between
Owego and Green Streets. People knew where the lumber came from and In 1849 Plain Street was op
refused to patronize the tavern so it was sold to a Mr. Franklin who Street was opened from Al
converted it into the"Franklin House."It still had some sort of stink about and fines of ten dollars wt
it so people would walk on the other side of the street instead of passing it's
door. Further water supply was
was constructed at Cayug
During the first week of June 1845 two men, at the bar, were overheard Church,with the cistern b,
hatching up another murder. On the tenth of June 1845 a person, or In the same year,Jay,Cori
persons,unknown,put a match to the straw and hay in the Franklin House Streets were opened. The
stables. That fire consumed everything between Owego and Green Streets consisting of Leonard Tr(
from Cayuga to Geneva with the exception of the fronts of the buildings on paugh. They immediatel
Owego Street, the building on the northeast corner of Geneva and Green, and two.
and the small building on the northwest corner of Cayuga and Green.
The population of the Vil
In 1840 a stone arch bridge was erected over six-mile creek for the Aurora 1851, Marshall, Varick an
Street traffic.In 1842 General Robert Halsey was elected chief and osiah B.
J Esty, Utica, Meadow and
Williams assistant chief of the Fire Department. In 1843 a new hand constructed over the inlet
pumper was purchased together with new hose.In 1845 Madison,Hancock
and First Street were opened. In the same year a reward of$250 was offered In 1853 five miles of road
for the discovery of the person who set fire to the plow shop behind the decided it was time for thi
Ithaca Hotel,and to the Franklin stables.The fire at the stables was within March 23, 1853, The Her
a few days of the disappearance of the wife and child of Edward H.Rulloff, station, and tower, being
the great criminal and philologist. and Fulton Streets.A hose
Tornado Hook and Ladder Company Three chartered the steamboat bell was installed in the a I
DeWitt Clinton on August 8, 1845 for a trip to Cayuga.There they took the Village when there was a 1
the inlet and the first funs
train to Rochester and, by using various boats and trains, ended up in
Detroit. At each town, and city, which they visited, the local fire In 1827 the First Baptist Cl
department turned out in force. Since the Hooks were in full uniform a Park. It was 47 by 70 feet i
formal spread was served and punch dipped from a tub in each locality. church is located. It was
The uniform was a green shirt and coat, white and green pants with oil-
basement at a cost of abot
cloth covered blue caps. Boswell's Ithaca Brass Band was taken along on On January 11, 1854 the A
the tour together with the department and Village officers,totaling eighty- caught fire from the inside
three in number. During the return trip home,on the sixteenth,practically the cistern by the Presbyt
all of the Ithaca Department went to Aurora for a party and to act as an flying embers ignited the i
escort for the Hooks the rest of the way home. blaze was put out. The ch
Another church was consti
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