FDNY and NYC Firehouses and Fire Companies - 2nd Section

[mack]

ENGINE 15/LADDER 18/BATTALION 4 (ENGINE 17 DISBANDED) FIREHOUSE 25 PITT STREET LOWER EAST SIDE, MANHATTAN DIVISION 1, BATTALION 4 "FORT PITT"


LADDER 18 MEDAL


CHARLES C. MALONEY FF. LAD. 18 MAR. 22, 2008 2009 COLUMBIA ASSOCIATION



FIREFIGHTER CHARLES C. MALONEY LADDER COMPANY 18
Appointed to the FDNY on October 14, 1978. Previously assigned to Engine 17. Member of the Emerald and Holy Name Societies. Cited for bravery on five previous occasions, including the Thomas F. Dougherty Medal in 1999. Also the recipient of the New York City Fire Museum Board of Trustees Award, an award from Firehouse Magazine for Heroism and Community Service and the 2009 Liberty Mutual Firemark Award. Holds an AA degree in Liberal Arts from the College of Staten Island. Resides on Staten Island with his wife, Maureen.

March 22, 2008, 1600 hours, Box 75-440, 1023 FDR Drive, Manhattan


The 9x6 tour of March 22, 2008, started like many others for the members of Ladder 18. It was a quiet, sunny Saturday on the lower east side. That changed at 1555 hours when Ladder 18 was dispatched to Manhattan Box 440, reporting a structural fire at the address of 1223 FDR Drive. Second-source information determined that the fire location actually was 1023 FDR Drive and Ladder 18 proceeded to the address. The fire location was in a cluster of low-rise housing projects known as Jacob Riis Houses.

Lieutenant John Heaney ordered FF Ronald Lattari, Ladder 18’s chauffeur, to approach the building via the courtyard off Avenue D. Turning into the courtyard, heavy gray/black smoke could be seen from a third-floor window. As Ladder 18 reached its position, arms were seen waving frantically through the child gate. The Lieutenant transmitted the 10-75, ordered the tower ladder into position and entered the building with his forcible entry team.

FF Charles Maloney, Ladder 18’s outside vent Firefighter, took his position in the tower ladder bucket and raised it to the third-floor window. The woman, Carmen Henry, in her panicked state, had become entangled in the window gate, preventing FF Maloney from removing the gate. Twice during this incident, the woman lost consciousness. This added to the difficulty of the rescue because she was unable to assist her rescuer. Sensing the urgency of the situation, he removed the window glass to relieve the smoke condition in the apartment.

With one foot in the bucket and the other on the windowsill, FF Maloney cleared the woman from the gate and lifted her over the unusually high windowsill and into Ladder 18’s bucket. Checking on her condition once she was in the bucket, the woman, a home health aide, communicated to FF Maloney that the person in her care was still in the apartment.

FF Maloney transmitted the report of another victim in the apartment via handie-talkie and prepared to re-enter the apartment. With severe pain in his neck and back caused by muscle spasms from lifting the large woman into the bucket, the Firefighter removed the window gate, cleared the remaining window sashes and re-entered the apartment.

As he conducted the search for the second victim, the rescuer faced intense heat and blinding smoke from the fire, which had burned through the bedroom door. Still searching without a hose-line in place, FF Maloney also knew that when Engine 28 members started operating, they would be pushing the smoke, fire and heat in his direction.

FF Maloney was able to locate the second victim, Adeline Lunnon, in her hospital bed. With the assistance of FF Stephen Katz--the Rescue Battalion Aide who had entered the apartment from the third-floor window--the pair carried the woman to the window. FF Katz passed the woman to FF Maloney and into the safety of Ladder 18’s bucket.

In spite of injuries sustained while completing the first rescue, FF Charles Maloney re-entered the fire apartment and effected a second rescue. His initiative and capability were on display and he is recognized today with the Columbia Association Medal.

 

[mack]

ENGINE 15/LADDER 18/BATTALION 4 (ENGINE 17 DISBANDED) FIREHOUSE 25 PITT STREET LOWER EAST SIDE, MANHATTAN DIVISION 1, BATTALION 4 "FORT PITT"


LADDER 18 MEDAL


CHRISTOPHER J. DIGIULIO FF. LAD. 18 2014 2015 COMPANY OFFICERS ASSOCIATION




Firefighter Christopher DiGuilio

August 13, 2014, 1620 hours, Box 75-0244, Manhattan

Company Officers Association Medal


When each tour begins, Firefighters gather in the kitchen or on the apparatus floor to receive their riding positions and any specific instructions from their Officer. In truck companies, the positions are broken down by the “inside team”-- Officer, forcible entry (irons) and extinguisher (can) and the “outside team”--outside vent, roof and chauffeur. While the chauffeur position is just as essential in saving lives as the irons or can Firefighters, there are occasions when the chauffeur, acting in a search capacity, makes a difference at a critical moment. This was the case in the late afternoon
on August 13, 2014, when a fire broke out at Box 0244, a six story, 60 foot by 80-foot, Class 1, multiple dwelling.

Working the chauffeur position at Ladder 18 that summer afternoon was FF Christopher DiGiulio. The Firefighter could be forgiven if his mind was elsewhere, as he had just learned that his wife was pregnant. However, his focus was on the job at hand when at 1620 hours, the tones went off at the “Fort Pitt” firehouse and the company was assigned to respond as the first due truck for a reported fire in a fifth-floor apartment on Manhattan’s lower east side. Approximately three minutes later, both Engine 15 and Ladder 18 arrived on-scene and a 10-75 signal was transmitted by Engine 15.

While the inside team was moving toward the building, FF DiGiulio and the company’s outside vent Firefighter conducted a survey and determined apparatus and portable ladders were of little use at this operation. FF DiGiulio then was ordered by the Incident Commander to join up with his company’s inside team and assist in search and rescue operations.

FF DiGiulio quickly regrouped with the team members who were slightly delayed in gaining access to the apartment. When the door finally was breached, the members were met with high heat and zero visibility. The unchecked fire was quickly consuming the apartment’s furniture and materials in the dining room/office next to the kitchen.

FF DiGiulio was ordered to search left, while the irons Firefighter moved right to search the living room. While conditions worsened and Engine 15 struggled to stretch the 10 lengths of 13 ⁄4-inch hose needed to fight the still-growing blaze, Ladder 18’s Officer and can Firefighter moved forward to hold back the fire and conduct search operations.

FF DiGiulio continued left and searched down a side hallway. At this point, he heard low moans from behind a slightly ajar door. Because the victim was blocking the door, the rescuer quickly removed the door on the hinge side and was able to gain access. He found an unconscious, burned female victim, who was in respiratory distress. FF DiGiulio transmitted a 10-45 signal and single-handedly removed the victim from the fire apartment and into the hallway. He was assisted by FF Maxwell Weber, Engine 9, who aided him in bringing the victim to the floor below and starting patient care.

In his incident report, Battalion Chief John Rail, Battalion 4, noted: “Firefighter DiGiulio entered the fire apartment under punishing conditions and initiated a search. He located the unconscious victim and removed her to safety without the protection of a charged hose-line.” This sentiment was reinforced by Deputy Chief John Bley, Division 1, who noted that he exhibited bravery in passing an active fire, as well as initiative and capability in forcing open a blocked door on the hinge side to gain access to an unconscious woman.

Therefore, in recognition of his personal bravery and quick thinking, the New York City Fire Department is proud to honor FF Christopher J. DiGiulio today with the Company Officers Association Medal.







NYFirestore.com

August 14, 2014

Congratulations to #FDNY firefighter Christopher DiGiulo of Ladder 18 for saving a woman from a Manhattan fire yesterday!

Firefighters Save Woman from Manhattan Fire

FDNY firefighters from Ladder 18 saved a woman from a fire in Manhattan on August 13.

“This is why you become a firefighter, to help someone,” Firefighter Christopher DiGiulo said. “It’s an amazing feeling.”

Lt. Michael Cantwell, and Firefighters DiGiulo, Mathew Marin, John Manning, Harry Antonopoulos and James Trainor were called to a building on Madison Street just after 4 p.m. When they arrived, smoke was pushing out the windows of a fifth floor apartment.

Firefighters quickly made their way inside, while the company chauffeur, Firefighter DiGiulo, attempted to move the rig to access the fifth floor window, which proved difficult due to the building’s unusual shape and numerous parked cars blocking access outside. Ladder 6 arrived soon after and experienced similar issues. So the Chief in charge told Firefighter DiGiulo to go inside and help his company search the apartment.

Lt. Cantwell told Firefighter DiGiulo to go left to search for victims once inside, while others searched the right side and worked to hold back flames from the fire located in the kitchen.

Firefighter DiGiulo crawled down a long hallway, with zero visibility, and located a bedroom door that was open two inches.

“I tried to push open but couldn’t, it was wedged,” Firefighter DiGiulo said. “I felt what I thought was a leg, but couldn’t open the door any further, there was too much debris.”

So he did the first thing he could think to do – he took the door off its hinges.

“We’ve always talked about it, practiced doing it and drilled on it – and all the training paid off,” he said. “It was the first thing that popped into my mind.”

He tossed the door to the side and pulled the woman to the door. She was semi-conscious, but not alert, and gasping for air; she was covered in soot and her arms were burned.

He was then met by Firefighter Max Weber from Engine 9, who helped carry her to the street. There, paramedics from a local hospital transported her in serious condition.

“He did everything right,” Lt. Cantwell said. “And he was in the right place at the right time. Everything went well.”

Firefighter DiGiulo, an 8-year veteran of the FDNY, said this was his first rescue.

“It wasn’t until I was outside and took my mask off that I thought, ‘Did this just happen?’” he said. “Every firefighter goes from 0 to 100 [at a fire] and when time finally catches up, it’s incredible.”

He said he has received calls from numerous firefighters asking what happened and congratulating him for his great rescue, but, “They all would have done the same thing, getting the credit for it is the hard thing.

 

[mack]

ENGINE 15/LADDER 18/BATTALION 4 (ENGINE 17 DISBANDED) FIREHOUSE 25 PITT STREET LOWER EAST SIDE, MANHATTAN DIVISION 1, BATTALION 4 "FORT PITT"


BATTALION 4 LODD


BATTALION CHIEF WILLIAM H. NASH BATTALION 4 SEPTEMBER 14, 1875



At 10:50 a.m. William H. Nash Chief of the 4th Battalion and a detail of men were exhibiting an aerial ladder (made by Scott Uda Ladders) to some visitors from Patterson, New Jersey in the square at the junction of East Broadway and Canal Street. When the ladder was raised, Chief Nash went to the top section. Fireman William Hughes of Ladder 6 and Fireman Phillip L. Maus of Engine 9 followed him closely. When Chief Nash was 98 feet from the ground, the ladder broke at the third section, caused by defective wood of which it was built. The three men were dashed to the pavement below, horribly mangled and they expired immediately. - from The Last Alarm









- from Reminiscences of the old fire laddies and volunteer fire departments of New York and Brooklyn




9/14/1875 three Manhattan, New York (FDNY) firefighters died during a “public demonstration that was held of the first aerial ladders in the FDNY. Four, eight – section, 97- foot, Scott Uda aerials, which had been built by the Concord Wagon Co. in Concord, NH, were purchased for $16,000 from Mrs. Marie Belle Scott-Uda. One of the aerials was raised to its full height and seven firefighters climbed it, spacing themselves up the ladder. Without warning, the ladder snapped about 30 feet up, pitching all seven men to the ground, killing three of them. Two firefighters were killed instantly as they hit the cobblestones. The third firefighter also hit the street and died shortly after as he gasped for air. It was determined that the Fire Commission Secretary had made a deal with Uda to purchase the patent for the aerial if the city bought the aerials from them. It was further discovered that the ladders were of inferior materials and workmanship. During the very first demonstration at the City Hall, there were difficulties in raising a similar ladder, and it broke in half injuring two men. The ladders were placed in storage for ten years and never used.”



SCOTT UDA AERIAL LADDERS





Bugle-Fall-2016-Newsletter-Final2.pdf (wrfmc.com)


ACCIDENT LODDS

William H. Nash BC Battalion 4
William S. Hughes FF Engine 9
Phillip L. Maus FF Ladder 6


RIP. NEVER FORGET.

 

[mack]

ENGINE 15/LADDER 18/BATTALION 4 (ENGINE 17 DISBANDED) FIREHOUSE 25 PITT STREET LOWER EAST SIDE, MANHATTAN DIVISION 1, BATTALION 4 "FORT PITT"


BATTALION 4 LODD

BATTALION CHIEF WILLIAM H. NASH BATTALION 4 SEPTEMBER 14, 1875 (CONTINUED)



THE MYSTERY OF THE HEROIC FIREMAN–WAS HE ALSO A CIVIL WAR SHARPSHOOTER?


July 26, 2018 by Jeff Richman

After leading tours at Green-Wood for 28 years, I still love to create new ones. One of the virtues of doing new and different tours of Green-Wood: I get to research and learn. So it is with my recent tour, “Sound the Alarm: Green-Wood’s Firemen.” I knew, before I began this research, about several lots and monuments at the cemetery dedicated to firemen. However, as I prepared for this tour, I learned a great deal more. One story that has come together: that of hero Fireman William H. Nash.

A great source for information about New York City firemen is Reminiscences of the Old Fire Laddies and Volunteer Fire Departments of New York City and Brooklyn, Together with a Complete History of the Paid Departments of Both Cities (that’s quite a title!), by J. Frank Kernan, published in 1885.

Kernan devotes many pages of his 897-page tome to Nash. In addition to accounts of Nash’s heroism as a fireman, Kernan describes in detail Nash’s service as an officer in the United States Sharpshooters (also called Berdan’s Sharpshooters, after their colonel’s last name) during the Civil War. The first regiment of Sharpshooters (there would be two regiments during the Civil War), an elite unit, was organized late in 1861. Volunteers had to try out for admission, hitting a ten-inch target with ten shots from 200 yards. Here is Kernan’s relevant passage about Nash’s military service:


The description of the Civil War service of Captain William H. Nash of the U.S. Sharpshooters, as it appears in Old Fire Laddies.

Nash was described as 6 feet tall with a “military air.” He lived with his wife and children in Manhattan. Kernan also details at length the particulars of Nash’s service as a fireman–his acts of heroism, his rise through the ranks to battalion chief, and ultimately his tragic death in the line of duty.

Nash joined the New York City Fire Department in 1868 and rose to battalion chief. He was awarded the Bronze Bennett Medal, the highest award for valor given to firefighters, for his actions on December 30, 1872, when, without the protection of a hose-line, he made his way to a rear bedroom, engulfed in flames, to save two children. According to Nash’s obituary in the New York Daily Tribune, he saved the lives of at least 15 New Yorkers at a series of fires during his career.

Nash died in a tragic accident on September 14, 1875 and was interred at Green-Wood three days later. As per The Last Alarm by Boucher, Urbanowicz and Melahn, on that date, Battalion Chief Nash and a detail of firemen were assigned to demonstrate to the public the latest addition to the Fire Department’s equipment: a wooden aerial ladder. As buildings got taller and taller in Manhattan, the need for a ladder that could extend upward became acute. This aerial ladder was thought to be the solution. Nash had tested the ladder at sunrise that morning, ascending to its top–and all had seemed in order. At 11:00 a.m., at the junction of East Broadway and Canal Streets in Manhattan, an expectant crowd gathered; police pushed the spectators back from the ladder to prevent injury in case of an accident. When Nash gave the other fireman the order to climb the aerial ladder, they seemed uneasy and hesitated, apparently concerned about their safety. He urged them upward, exclaiming, “Why, there’s no danger,” and himself took the lead, racing to the top. But as he reached that top, followed closely by two other firefighters, the ladder splintered and broke, apparently because of the poor spruce wood with which it had been made, the solidity of which was further undermined when the holes for the rungs were drilled. As the crowd watched in horror, the three firemen fell 98 feet to the pavement below. Nash and another fireman died instantly; a third died shortly thereafter. The five other firemen, who were on the ladder, but below the section that gave way, were uninjured.


Aerial Ladder Accident on September 14, 1875. Courtesy of Gary Urbanowicz.

There is no question that the William H. Nash who died in the aerial ladder accident of September 14, 1875, is interred at Green-Wood. The William H. Nash who is interred at Green-Wood had died, as per cemetery records, on that same date of a “fracture of skull.”

Having worked on 5,200 Civil War-related biographies for Green-Wood’s Civil War Project on an ongoing basis for 16 years now, I was intrigued by the details of William H. Nash’s military service in Kernan’s book. I was particularly interested in his service as an officer in the United States Sharpshooters, an elite regiment. However, when I attempted to confirm Kernan’s information about Nash’s Civil War service, I ran into a problem. The best source for detailed information about the particulars of Civil War army service is the American Civil War Research Database, to which I have been a subscriber for 16 years. Here’s what I found when I searched for the officer by the name of William H. Nash who served in Berdan’s Sharpshooters:


The record of William H. Nash’s service in the United States Sharpshooters, 1st Regiment (known as Berdan’s Sharpshooters), as reported in the American Civil War Research Database. Click on the image to get a better look at it.

A per the above report, the William H. Nash who served in the Sharpshooters, 1st Regiment (I checked the regimental muster roll: there was only one William H. Nash in that regiment), was born in Ohio and died on December 2, 1902. If that were correct, our hero fireman, who was born in New York City and died in 1875, could not be the William H. Nash who served as a captain in Berdan’s Sharpshooters.

But this didn’t seem right. Something was very wrong. Kernan, when he wrote his Old Fire Laddies, personally knew the men he was writing about. They were his contemporaries. And there were many others alive in New York City who knew the stories of these men. So how could Kernan have gotten so much detailed information so wrong? How could he have given Battalion Chief William H. Nash a Civil War soldier’s history that was that of another William H. Nash? Could he have made such a grievous mistake?

I decided there was only one solution to this problem: Sue Ramsey. Sue is a volunteer researcher with our Civil War Project who lives out in California. By the miracle of the Internet, she is able to work at solving our most perplexing mysteries. And she is certainly always up for a challenge. So I sent her the information: hero Fireman William H. Nash died on September 14, 1875, and was interred at Green-Wood three days later. Was he also the William H. Nash who served as a captain in Berdan’s Sharpshooters during the Civil War?

Sue plunged right in. And, within days, she was able to confirm that the information that the William H. Nash of Berdan’s Sharpshooters was born in Ohio and died in 1902 was oh so wrong–and to confirm our suspicions that the hero fireman interred at Green-Wood was also the heroic soldier.

Here’s what Sue found. The obituary in the New York Tribune of the hero fireman who is interred at Green-Wood confirms his Civil War service: “During the war he served in the army, and was several times promoted for gallantry.” The New York Times, in its obituary, lists pallbearers at his funeral who were officers in the Fire Department as well as those from the Third Army Corps Union (a fraternal organization of veterans of that corps). Notably, when Captain William H. Nash served with the United States Sharpshooters, that regiment was attached to the Third Corps of the Union’s Army of the Potomac. Additionally, the New York Herald reported on the day of his funeral that the Third Army Corps Union had passed a resolution describing the battalion chief as “our much beloved and esteemed comrade, Captain William H. Nash.” Captain was the highest rank achieved by the William H. Nash who served in the Sharpshooters; “captain” would have been an appropriate reference to his military service. Further, a delegation from the Grand Army of the Republic, the fraternal organization of Union Civil War veterans, was present at his funeral–ostensibly honoring their comrade in arms.

As Sue researched, I was able to find William H. Nash’s gravestone at Green-Wood:

The gravestone of Battalion Chief William H. Nash and his widow, Harriet. They are interred in section 15, public lot 17263, grave 1042. This gravestone is visible from Maple Avenue, on the side of Maple Avenue closest to the cemetery’s perimeter fence.

Note the name on the gravestone of William H. Nash’s wife: Harriet. And we know that the widow of the William H. Nash who served in the United States Sharpshooters was named Harriet, as is shown on this pension index card:


The pension index card for the widow of Captain William Nash of the 1st Regiment of the United States Sharpshooters, Company K (written on the pension index card as K1USSS).

Further, the obituary for the Harriet Nash who is interred in that grave, published by the New York Herald on January 22, 1906, identifies Harriet Nash as “the wife of the late Chief of Battalion William H. Nash of New York Fire Department.”

As I researched further, I came across this photograph, on Find-A-Grave, purporting to be Battalion Chief William H. Nash:


Battalion Chief William H. Nash. Courtesy of Gary Urbanowicz.

I contacted Gary Urbanowicz, leading historian of the New York Fire Department, who had posted this portrait online, asking him how he knew that this was Nash. Gary explained that he had gotten this photograph from a private collector. Gary had then checked the NYFD files and found the same photograph there with that “unmistakeable” mustache. Further, I was able to find this photograph online with what appears to me to be 19th-century handwriting on the back:


A carte de visite photograph of Captain William H. Nash of the United States Sharpshooters.


The back of the carte de visite identifies its subject–Captain William H. Nash of the 1st United States Sharpshooters, with his signature.

Compare the two photographs above, that of Battalion Chief William H. Nash and that of Captain William H. Nash of the United States Sharpshooters. The same man! Note the similarity of the hairlines, the shape of the heads and cheeks, the prominent brows, and the facial hair.

William H. Nash led an extraordinary life of service. He deserves to be remembered for his service to his country and his city, both in war and in peace. He should be recalled,, and honored, for his service to his community as a fireman and for making the ultimate sacrifice in the line of duty. Hopefully this blog post will give him a measure of the recognition that he so richly earned during his too-short lifetime.


https://www.green-wood.com/2018/the...fireman-was-he-also-a-civil-war-sharpshooter/

 

[Lebby]

Who would've guessed a connection between the FDNY and Fort Ord or General Ord for that matter.

 

[mack]

ENGINE 15/LADDER 18/BATTALION 4 (ENGINE 17 DISBANDED) FIREHOUSE 25 PITT STREET LOWER EAST SIDE, MANHATTAN DIVISION 1, BATTALION 4 "FORT PITT"


ENGINE 17 LODD


FIREFIGHTER JOHN REILLY ENGINE 17 JANUARY 14, 1879

FF Reilly, Engine 17, made the Supreme Sacrifice January 14, 1879 at a fire in a 5 story, 100’x200’ commercial building at 462-468 Broadway. The building had previously been a store but had been altered at the time of the fire and had many tenants with significant stocks of cotton and woolen materials. After fire had been placed under control, a wall collapsed without warning on Engine 17 which was operating hose lines into burning debris. FF Reilly was killed and FF Dennis Doran, Engine 17, was seriously injured.




















RIP, NEVER FORGET.

 

[mack]

ENGINE 15/LADDER 18/BATTALION 4 (ENGINE 17 DISBANDED) FIREHOUSE 25 PITT STREET LOWER EAST SIDE, MANHATTAN DIVISION 1, BATTALION 4 "FORT PITT"


ENGINE 17 LODD


FIREFIGHTER JAMES DURAN ENGINE 17 MAY 1, 1880

FF Duran, Engine 17, died May 1, 1880 from injuries received in the line of duty. FF Duran was injured at a fire over a year before his death.







- from Reminiscences of the old fire laddies and volunteer fire departments of New York and Brooklyn


Note - FF Doran's name is not listed on NYC LODD rolls but appears to have died from injuries received in the performance of his duty at a fire.


RIP. NEVER FORGET.

 

[mack]

ENGINE 15/LADDER 18/BATTALION 4 (ENGINE 17 DISBANDED) FIREHOUSE 25 PITT STREET LOWER EAST SIDE, MANHATTAN DIVISION 1, BATTALION 4 "FORT PITT"


ENGINE 17 LODD


FIREFIGHTER JAMES P. SMITH ENGINE 17 FEBRUARY 4, 1885

Fireman James P. Smith of Engine 17 was operating with his company at 58 Park Place. He was on a ladder helping with a charged hose line. The nozzle was operating into a fifth floor window when it slipped from the grasp of the men above him. Fireman Smith, being in the center of the ladder, was knocked from the ladder and he fell to the sidewalk. He died immediately, landing on his head. - from "The Last Alarm"










RIP. NEVER FORGET.

 

[mack]

ENGINE 15/LADDER 18/BATTALION 4 (ENGINE 17 DISBANDED) FIREHOUSE 25 PITT STREET LOWER EAST SIDE, MANHATTAN DIVISION 1, BATTALION 4 "FORT PITT"


BATTALION 4 LODD


BATTALION CHIEF FRANCIS MAHEDY BATTALION 4 MARCH 12, 1886






Fire Service Line of Duty Deaths
March 11, 2019


March 12, 1886 - LODD
Battalion Chief Francis Mahedy, 47 - Battalion 4
FDNY. Manhattan, New York


Chief Mahedy was killed when his buggy collided with Engine 17 at Ludlow and Stanton Streets, while responding to an alarm.










FUNERAL





VETERAN

Chief Mahedy was a Civil War veteran who served in the Union Army. He was responsible for several life-saving rescues in his firefighting career. His widow received $1000 and $25 a month from the Police Relief Fund.






RIP. NEVER FORGET.

 

[mack]

ENGINE 15/LADDER 18/BATTALION 4 (ENGINE 17 DISBANDED) FIREHOUSE 25 PITT STREET LOWER EAST SIDE, MANHATTAN DIVISION 1, BATTALION 4 "FORT PITT"


ENGINE 17 LODD


FIREFIGHTER CHARLES S. MORRIS ENGINE 17 JANUARY 3, 1890

Around one in the morning Fireman Charles H. Morris of Engine 17 fell down the pole hole in quarters on Christmas night. He was asleep and thought he heard the alarm bell ringing. He got up, went to the pole hole to slide it to the apparatus floor. Still sleeping, he missing the pole and fell to the first floor, fracturing his skull. He was taken to Gouverneur Hospital where he died on January 3, 1890 at four in the morning. -from "The Last Alarm


DEATH CERTIFICATE





RIP. NEVER FORGET.



GOUVERNEUR HOSPITAL

FF Morris, and many other FDNY Lower East Side firefighters, were treated at Gouverneur Hospital.



A Look at the Old Gouverneur Hospital, First Public Hospital with Tuberculosis Clinic

Gouverneur Hospital opened its first location in Manhattan’s Financial District in 1885. The original three-story building on Gouverneur Slip and Front Street previously served as a public market and the hospital specialized solely in accident cases. Yet, the hospital lacked an operating room and had one visiting physician and surgeon, one consulting surgeon, and three house staff. With only 40 beds and inadequate resources to accommodate the growing population of the Lower East Side (with a concentration of 330,000 people per square mile), the hospital decided to move to the larger location on Water Street in 1901.

https://untappedcities.com/2020/04/...rst-public-hospital-with-tuberculosis-clinic/

 

[mack]

ENGINE 15/LADDER 18/BATTALION 4 (ENGINE 17 DISBANDED) FIREHOUSE 25 PITT STREET LOWER EAST SIDE, MANHATTAN DIVISION 1, BATTALION 4 "FORT PITT"


LADDER 18 LODD


FIREFIGHTER PATRICK J. QUAIL LADDER 18 OCTOBER 11, 1902


FF Quail, Ladder 18, sustained serious injuries May 4, 1902 while responding to an alarm for fire. FF Quail was the truck tillerman and was thrown from the apparatus when it hit the curb at Attorney Street. FF Quail died October 11, 1902, as a result of his line-of-duty injuries.






RIP. NEVER FORGET.

 

[mack]

ENGINE 15/LADDER 18/BATTALION 4 (ENGINE 17 DISBANDED) FIREHOUSE 25 PITT STREET LOWER EAST SIDE, MANHATTAN DIVISION 1, BATTALION 4 "FORT PITT"


BATTALION 4 LODD


BATTALION CHIEF WILLIAM DEVLIN BATTALION 4 September 24, 1911



Fire Service Line of Duty Deaths
September 23, 2018 ·


September 24, 1911 - LODD
Battalion Chief William Devlin, 40 - Battalion 4
FDNY. Manhattan, New York

Chief Devlin died as a result of critical back and internal injuries sustained September 20, 1911, when he fell from a roof at a smoky loft building fire at 507 Broome Street, Manhattan.







FIRE BUILDING - 506 BROOME STREET





FUNERAL



Note - The floral piece from FDNY members was titled "The Gates Ajar". The Gates Ajar is an 1868 religious novel by Elizabeth Stuart Phelps (later Elizabeth Phelps Ward) that was immensely popular following its publication. It was the second best-selling religious novel of the 19th century. It was based on a soldier, "shot dead" in the American Civil War. - from Wikipedia



RIP. NEVER FORGET.

 

[mack]

ENGINE 15/LADDER 18/BATTALION 4 (ENGINE 17 DISBANDED) FIREHOUSE 25 PITT STREET LOWER EAST SIDE, MANHATTAN DIVISION 1, BATTALION 4 "FORT PITT"


ENGINE 15 LODD


FIREFIGHTER CHRISTIAN L. WALTER ENGINE 15 MARCH 17, 1917

Fireman Christian L. Walter of Engine 15 in Henry Street, Manhattan, fell out of a second floor window and into the rear yard of the firehouse. He was cleaning windows and lost his balance when an alarm went off. He was taken to the Gouveneur Hospital in an unconscious state, suffering from a fracture of both legs and a concussion of the brain. His left leg was amputated and blood poisoning set in. At the time of the accident he was alone on the second floor. He was twenty-six years old and lived in Brooklyn. He was survived by his wife, one child, his parents two sisters and two brothers. Funeral from the home of his mother at 9 Pennsylvania Ave., Brooklyn. Buried AT Evergreen cemetery.

- from http://www.maggieblanck.com/Goehle/Walters.html





RIP. NEVER FORGET.

 

[mack]

ENGINE 15/LADDER 18/BATTALION 4 (ENGINE 17 DISBANDED) FIREHOUSE 25 PITT STREET LOWER EAST SIDE, MANHATTAN DIVISION 1, BATTALION 4 "FORT PITT"


ENGINE 15 LODD


FIREFIGHTER STEPHEN J. FINN ENGINE 15 NOVEMBER 18, 1920


Fireman Stephen J. Finn of Engine 15 lost his life while responding to a fire at 263 Stanton Street. He was appointed to the Department on March 16, 1920 and was twenty-eight years old.



RIP. NEVER FORGET.

 

[mack]

ENGINE 15/LADDER 18/BATTALION 4 (ENGINE 17 DISBANDED) FIREHOUSE 25 PITT STREET LOWER EAST SIDE, MANHATTAN DIVISION 1, BATTALION 4 "FORT PITT"


ENGINE 15 LODD


CAPTAIN JOHN S. ROBERTS ENGINE 15 JANUARY 28, 1927

Box 66-270

Captain John S. Roberts of Engine 15 was overcome by illuminating gas at a small fire at 22 Mangin Street. Captain Roberts had worked the night before at the Goerck Street fire that killed three firemen. He had just walked out of the Goerck Street building when it collapsed. He worked all night digging through the rubble for his fallen brothers. He was told to go sick but returned back to quarters and remained on duty. The fire at 22 Mangin Street was in a six-story tenement on the third floor. Captain Roberts led his men into the fire apartment and found the bedroom ablaze. The fitting for the gas line to the light had melted and the gas was escaping into the room. The fire was almost out when Captain Roberts fell unconscious and died shortly after being removed from the building. He lived in Brooklyn, was forty-five years old and a member of the Department for twenty-three years. (- from "The Last Alarm")










RIP. NEVER FORGET.

 

[mack]

ENGINE 15/LADDER 18/BATTALION 4 (ENGINE 17 DISBANDED) FIREHOUSE 25 PITT STREET LOWER EAST SIDE, MANHATTAN DIVISION 1, BATTALION 4 "FORT PITT"


ENGINE 15 LODD


FIREFIGHTER PETER J. DANNHARDT ENGINE 15 JULY 4, 1943






2nd Lt USAAF WWII
ASN O-801493
34th BG, 391st B Sq, Based at Salinas AAB CA*
Navigator
From Brooklyn NY




He was the son of John Wolfgang Dannhardt and Anna Cecelia Colleary.


MISSING OVER PACIFIC







CREW/PLANE/MISSION

B-24E #42-7011 'The Eddie Rickenbacker' Major Thorel 'Skip' Johnson Crew




This plane crashed on 04 July 1943 (shown right). The ship was using fuel at an excessive rate prior to losing two engines over the Pacific off the coast of Santa Barbara. Pilot Johnson ordered the crew into their parachutes and turned the plane around, heading back towards Santa Barbara. Two airmen, Dannhardt and Prosser, not knowing they were still over the Pacific, bailed out prior to the Pilot giving the order and thus were lost at sea. The remaining eight crewmen bailed out safely once the plane had reached land over the mountains. The unmanned plane crashed 10 miles north of Santa Barbara. B-24E #42-7160 followed this plane on a search and rescue mission for the two airmen that bailed out over the Pacific, and the Instructor Pilot was Lieutenant Douglas J Thornburg, who was one of four survivors who bailed out of B-24E #42-7119 that crashed three weeks earlier. B-24E #42-7160 descended in heavy developing fog, and crashed head-on into Green Mountain on San Miguel Island, one of the three Channel Islands. A search was then initiated for this plane once it was known that they had lost contact. Eventually the search was called off and it was thought that the plane must have ditched in the Pacific. The following March, a Shepherder named Robert Brooks, one of only two people living on San Miguel Island at the time, found the plane and the remains of the twelve airmen on 800-foot Green Mountain. The plane and crew had crashed at approximately the 500-foot elevation. In 1953, additional crew remains were reported, and a Coast Guard ship was dispatched, however, it collided with the sailboat Aloha, resulting in civilian casualties. After this, the military began using the site for target practice. This aircraft wreck site was more recently visited and documented by aviation archaeologist and wreck finder G Pat Macha.

Major Thorel 'Skip' Johnson and crew named their next plane, B-24D #42-40837 'Bob 'N Pete' (shown at right) after Lt Robert Prosser and Lt Peter Dannhardt, the two crew members that were lost at sea. The crew had been re-assigned to the 14th Air Force, and this plane belonged to their group just prior to deployment to Yangkai, China.

The crew also flew B-24, the ‘Nip Nipper' of the 308th BG, 373rd B Sq.

While on a combat mission over interior China to Bangkok, Thailand, this crew also bailed out of B-24J #42-72835 'Flamingo II' of the 308th BG, 373rd B Sq, although there were several different crew members on board that day. All bailed out safely, however, Pilot Major Thorel 'Skip' Johnson reported that they 'were twenty-one days walking back to [their] base'.

As told by SSgt Gail Vanlandingham, they made it back by living off the land. Sgt Braydon Hassinger's widow Faye tells that all of the crew members had words written in Chinese sewn onto their jackets, saying they were friendly in case they went down. At one point some of the local Chinese assisted them with necessities.



1943 - FDNY HONORS





1944 - FDNY HONORS





1946 - ENGINE 15 PLAQUE CEREMONY









RIP. NEVER FORGET.

 

[mack]

ENGINE 15/LADDER 18/BATTALION 4 (ENGINE 17 DISBANDED) FIREHOUSE 25 PITT STREET LOWER EAST SIDE, MANHATTAN DIVISION 1, BATTALION 4 "FORT PITT"


ENGINE 15 LODD


FIREFIGHTER DANIEL K. KRAUSS ENGINE 15 DECEMBER 30, 1946





FF Daniel K Krauss, E-15

December 30, 1946

Box # 66-239, Henry Street/Governeur Street

Returning to quarters, thrown from rig









MEDAL DAY - 1947





RIP. NEVER FORGET.

 

[mack]

ENGINE 15/LADDER 18/BATTALION 4 (ENGINE 17 DISBANDED) FIREHOUSE 25 PITT STREET LOWER EAST SIDE, MANHATTAN DIVISION 1, BATTALION 4 "FORT PITT"


ENGINE 15 LODD


FIREFIGHTER SAMUEL R. DOHERTY ENGINE 15 NOVEMBER 28, 1949

FF Doherty died from injuries sustained in the performance of his duties.











RIP. NEVER FORGET.

 

[mack]

ENGINE 15/LADDER 18/BATTALION 4 (ENGINE 17 DISBANDED) FIREHOUSE 25 PITT STREET LOWER EAST SIDE, MANHATTAN DIVISION 1, BATTALION 4 "FORT PITT"


ENGINE 15 LODD


FIREFIGHTER ANDREW K. WRIGHT ENGINE 17 MAY 4, 1955





FF Wright, Engine 17, made the Supreme Sacrifice at a synagogue fire at 66 Pike Street, Manhattan, on May 4, 1955. FF Wright died from smoke poisoning.






FIRE BUILDING - 66 PIKE STREET - VACANT SYNAGOGUE








Tuesday, March 11, 2014

The 1904 Sons of Israel Kalwarie Synagogue --Nos. 13-15 Pike Street



As the century progressed, the Lower East Side changed. By the 1920s most of the German immigrant population was gone; and while the Jewish community still remained for decades, the ever-growing Chinatown area slowly engulfed more and more real estate.

In September 1979, just before Rosh Hashanah, congregants found themselves padlocked out of the Pike Street synagogue. Where once 1,500 worshipers crowded in for Saturday services, recently only about two dozen showed up. Without notifying the congregants, the trustees sold their synagogue to a Chinese group.

Esther Singer told Ari L. Goldman of The New York Times, “I was planning to come here Rosh ha-Shanah. Now they tell me don’t come—the place is for Buddhists.”

Trustees said that they accepted the $180,000 offer—the funds from which would be used to maintain the synagogue’s cemetery in Queens—because the Lower East Side had “drastically changed over the years to the extent that few Jews remain who attend religious services.”

The remaining congregants tried hard to save their synagogue. They held services on the sidewalk and vowed to prevent a Buddhist temple from taking over their building. They managed to stave off the sale on the legal grounds that religious property cannot be sold without prior notification of the congregation.

But in the end their protests and efforts were fruitless. In 1994 the building was sold to a developer who converted the school to retail space, a “community facility” (the Sung Tak Buddhist Temple) in the former sanctuary and residential apartments on the upper floors.



http://daytoninmanhattan.blogspot.com/2014/03/the-1904-sons-of-israel-kalwarie.html








RIP. NEVER FORGET.

 

[mack]

ENGINE 15/LADDER 18/BATTALION 4 (ENGINE 17 DISBANDED) FIREHOUSE 25 PITT STREET LOWER EAST SIDE, MANHATTAN DIVISION 1, BATTALION 4 "FORT PITT"


ENGINE 18 LODD


FIREFIGHTER MARTIN R. CELIC LADDER 18 - DETAILED ENGINE 15 JULY 10, 1977








Fire Service Line of Duty Deaths

July 10, 2016 ·

July 10, 1977 - LODD
Firefighter Martin Celic, 25
FDNY, New York

At 3:10 pm, a fire broke out on the fifth floor of an abandoned building located on East Eight Street between Avenues C & D. This location is now home to the Fireman's Garden, which honors all New York City Firemen who were killed in the line of duty. The garden pays particular tribute toFirefighter Celic. On July 2, Firefighter Celic, who was working an overtime tour with Engine Company 15, spotted the smoke on the way back to the firehouse after a false alarm. When Celic and the other FDNY members arrived at the warehouse, the blaze was spreading up the building. After the men entered the building, the teenager who had started the fire went back in and set another fire, on the second floor, trapping the firemen in the blazing structure. Ladder Company 18 raised its tower ladder to the fifth-floor window, and the firemen had to crawl onto the fire escape and jump to the tower ladder. Struggling through smoke and with heavy equipment on his back, Celic missed the bucket of the tower ladder and fell 70 feet to the ground. He was taken to Bellevue Hospital, where he died eight days later, on July 10, 1977. On Sept. 11, 2001, Celic's brother Thomas, 43, who worked for Marsh McLennan, died in Tower 1 at the World Trade Center.