Evanston Fire Department history – part 4

As promised, the trustees made an effort to establish a paid fire department in May 1882. They allocated $850 to compensate the Fire Marshal and other firefighters for their service. The Fire Marshal was to receive a part-time salary of $100 annually, while each of the nine members of the part-time fire company would be paid $50 per year. Additionally, a full-time police/fire officer—acting as both a night watchman and caretaker of the fire equipment—was to earn $600 per year, with half paid by the police department and half by the fire department.

Although Fire Marshal Bailey received his salary and Austin McDonough, a former member of the Pioneer Hose Company, was appointed as the full-time police/fire officer, the proposed nine-man fire company never came to fruition. By May 1885, the position was abolished, signaling a continued lack of commitment to a structured fire department.

On May 1, 1883, after two years of unfulfilled promises from the village board, Chief Bailey once again offered his resignation. This time, the trustees accepted it. However, by that spring, most of the original board members had been replaced. Only President J. J. Parkhurst remained. New trustees, especially Alexander Drummond, a former Evanston firefighter, recognized the need for a more effective fire company that could match the performance of the old Pioneer and Gilbert Hose Companies and provide fair compensation for its members.

On July 17, 1883, the Village of Evanston Board of Trustees appointed Sam Harrison, a local merchant and former C. J. Gilbert Hose Company officer, as the new Fire Marshal. They tasked him with forming a part-time, paid fire company. Just over a week later, on July 28, Harrison—like Bailey, a butcher by trade—presented a 12-man company to the village board for approval. It was officially accepted on November 6, 1883. Each member received $40 annually for their service, while the Fire Marshal still earned $100 per year.

The EFD’s first horse-drawn hose wagon, built by Evanstonian Gerhard Brienen and pulled by a horse named Dave, was put into service in October 1883. The new fire company moved into a remodeled paint shop at the northwest corner of Sherman Avenue and Davis Street—a location that would later become the site of the first city parking garage.

In addition to the Fire Patrol, a one-horse, four-wheeled hose wagon, and a two-horse Babcock chemical engine (converted to a horse-drawn unit in 1884), a two-horse hook & ladder wagon built by the Davenport Fire Apparatus Company was introduced in 1885. From 1885 to 1892, the horses used to pull the hook & ladder truck were also occasionally used by the street department to haul garbage. The Davenport truck served for over 32 years, until it was finally retired and scrapped in January 1918.

The fire company formed by Sam Harrison in 1883 became the foundation of Engine Co. 1, later known as Engine Co. 21. Harrison led the company for several years before handing over command to J. E. “Jack” Sweeting in 1895. Sweeting became the first captain of Engine Co. 1 and later served as the EFD’s first Assistant Chief Fire Marshal in 1905. He spent all 25 years of his career with the EFD, and died of stomach cancer on Christmas Day 1912. He held the record for the longest tenure with the department until George Hargreaves celebrated his 25th anniversary in 1918.

At 10:45 PM on Tuesday, September 25, 1883, the new fire company responded to a report of smoke coming from the Dwight-Buell stable behind the Avenue House hotel at the northeast corner of Davis and Chicago. The hotel, known for its wrap-around porch, was later demolished and replaced by the North Shore Hotel in 1916. Upon arrival, Chief Harrison was told that 31-year-old coachman George Gale, a native of England like himself, was likely asleep inside. Despite repeated efforts, Gale succumbed to smoke inhalation. The Cook County Coroner ruled the death a homicide, citing arson. Some believed this fire was linked to other recent arsons in the village, but the fires ceased immediately after Gale’s death, and no one was ever charged.

On December 20, 1883, at 8:50 AM, a fire broke out at Evanston Township High School, just three months after its opening. Located at the northeast corner of Crain and Benson (now Elmwood Avenue), the school was still unfamiliar to the fire department. Chief Harrison struggled to navigate the smoky building and, fearing for his men's safety, requested help from the Chicago Fire Department—the first time the EFD asked for mutual aid. Within 19 minutes, a train carrying a steam engine, hoses, ladders, and 10 firefighters arrived. The fire was extinguished within an hour, saving the school with only $5,000 in damage and no injuries.

Despite these successes, the new fire company faced challenges. On Sunday, November 22, 1884, the First Congregational Church at Grove and Hinman was destroyed when firefighters opened doors and windows to ventilate, unintentionally letting in wind that turned a small fire into a raging blaze. The neighborhood was saved, but the church suffered $32,000 in losses. Twenty-year-old rookie firefighter Tim Kelleher, who had just joined, inhaled smoke during the incident. He later developed a respiratory infection that led to tuberculosis and died in July 1888. While the exact cause of his death remains uncertain, many believe the smoke exposure played a role.