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Boston on Fire A History of Fires and Firefighting in Boston Stephanie Schorow
Boston on Fire A History of Fires and Firefighting in Boston by Stephanie Schorow
Soft Cover
242 pages
Copyright 2003
CONTENTS
FOREWORD Leo Stapletonvii
INTRODUCTION The Fire Trail
CHAPTER 1 Built to Burn: Kindling Fire in Early Boston
CHAPTER 2 Fires of Wrath: The 1834 Convent Fire and the 1837 Broad Street Riot13
CHAPTER 3 Built in Boston: The Soul of the Old Masheen30
CHAPTER 4 Strike the Alarm: The Nerves of Boston's Fire Alarm System40
CHAPTER 5 The Great Fire of 1872: A Disaster Foretold67
CHAPTER 6 Twice Burned in Chelsea: The 1908 and 1973 Conflagrations103
CHAPTER 7 The Cocoanut Grove: Heat, Smoke, and Panic126
CHAPTER 8 Death in the Vendome: The Perils of Firefighting176
CHAPTER 9 Mr. Flare and the Ring of Fire: Arson in Boston191
AFTERWORD212
REFERENCES 219
INDEX 233
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS242
FOREWORD
During the nearly forty years I served with the Boston Fire Department, I found that most of the department's rich history, including the history of the many Boston fires, was based on rumors, innuendo, and occasionally outright falsehoods. Stephanie Schorow's marvelous historical account of Boston fires and fire fighting has made me feel quite sheepish that I didn't take enough interest in those who had preceded my colleagues and me, and in how the organization has evolved into one of the most respected in the entire fire service.
Covering a wide span of historystarting with the first primitive attempts to control fires, shortly after the Puritans made their way to Boston, and continuing into the presentis certainly an awesome task for any author. It involves dedication, determination, and a love of the subject matter, along with a style of writing that captures the reader's attention.
There have been thousands upon thousands of serious fires in Boston and the surrounding communities through the centuries, and Ms. Schorow has selected a number of the most serious and prominent incidents, often involving loss of lives and tremendous property damage. These disasters represent the difficulties and dangers firefighters frequently encounter in the course of their duties.
A great number of firsts are associated with the Boston Fire Department, including the purchase of the initial vehicle designed for fighting fires, back in the 1600s; the first telegraph fire alarm system in the world, in 1851; and many other innovations related to respiratory protection and other personal protective equipment for firefighters.
The representative number of fires Ms. Schorow chose to research in depth is a very wise selection. Until I read this book, I only vaguely remembered hearing about the 1834 Ursuline Convent fire in the Charlestown District. The fascinating circumstances leading up to the incident made me realize just how much prejudice, both ethnic and religious, existed in those long-ago daysnot unlike what still remains today in many parts of the country and the world. The Broad Street Riot, just a few years later, which is so well described, further underscores this view.
Ms. Schorow describes in detail the Great Fire of 1872, which destroyed much of Boston's financial and commercial district; the 1942 Cocoanut Grove disaster, which led to the largest loss of life in a nightclub fire; the 1908 and 1973 conflagrations in the nearby city of Chelsea; and the 1972 fire at the Vendome Hotel, in which nine firefighters died when the hotel partially collapsed. For her discussion of twentieth-century fires, wherever possible Ms. Schorow has personally interviewed survivors as well as fire personnel who participated in rescue and fire-fighting efforts.
A massive number of arson fires plagued Boston during the early 1980s, when a severe budget crisis led to the termination of many firefighters. Ms. Schorow has managed to interview some of those behind the events of this bizarre periodnone of whom were laid-off members of the fire department.
The afterword briefly describes other notable, serious incidents, including the Bellflower Street fire, the Prudential Tower fire, and major fires in surrounding communities. Ms. Schorow's personal reflections about how her research has affected her own views of the fire service are quite poignant.
Reading the names of so many figures, prominent in the history of the country, who lived and worked in Boston, and their relationship to the fire service, makes one realize how large a part this city played, from a historical point of view, in the establishment of the United States of America, as well as in the evolution of fire fighting. The details of fire fighting operations, as well as many personal reflections of those involved, make for a book that anyone with a love of the fire service should cherish. It should also be most instructive to the general population, who know so little about what firefighters actually accomplish on their behalf.
LEO D. STAPLETON
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