Blog

Did you know? The Women’s Fire Auxiliary (WFA), established in the 1940s, was primarily formed to aid the NSW Fire Brigade on the home front during World War II? Albeit an interesting little tidbit of history for you here, you may be thinking: pray, what is the connection between the WFA and a 1942 “mobile canteen”? The Mobile Canteen in question, is a rare example of motorized canteen services used by the Metropolitan Fire Service from 1942 to 1974 and was supported, enthus

*This information is an extract from the colour-book produced by the Museum of Fire's Heritage Team to celebrate the re-opening of Pyrmont Fire Station back in 2016. Should you wish to use any of the information and pictures provided we ask that you please reference the Museum correctly and contact the Museum for permission where applicable. The Pyrmont Volunteer Fire Brigade (1881-1886) On Saturday 26 November 1881 some 2,000 people congregated on the green facing Union and

Fire Brigade Championships (as we know them today) began as ‘Demonstrations’ where fire brigades demonstrated their skills to the local community. Events in the ‘Demo’ are based on real situations that firefighters face daily and are designed to highlight their talent and expertise. Following the formation of the NSW Fire Brigades in 1910, it was not until 1932 that ‘Demos’ were reinstated as a regular occurrence. Now, State Firefighting Championships continue to be one of Fi

*This information is an extract from the colour-book produced by the Museum of Fire's Heritage Team to celebrate the opening of the new Mt. Druitt Fire Station in 2018. Should you wish to use any of the information and pictures provided we ask that you please reference the Museum correctly and contact the Museum for permission where applicable. We thought this would be a great time to share this history of Mt. Druitt Fire Brigade as the Brigade celebrated 50 years of operatio

Prior to the advent of the modern motorised appliances used by Fire and Rescue NSW today (FRNSW), brigades responded to fire calls with hand (or horse) drawn devices. These manual appliances typically required at least two personnel to operate and were essential for transporting firefighting equipment to the scene of an incident. This blog will give a brief overview of the manual hose reels utilised in New South Wales firefighting efforts from the 1870s up until the 1940s. As

*This information is an extract from the colour-book produced by the Museum of Fire's Heritage Team to celebrate the centenary of Willoughby Fire Station back in 2015. Should you wish to use any of the information and pictures provided we ask that you please reference the Museum correctly and contact the Museum for permission where applicable. What's In A Name? Today the Fire Station on Laurel Street, celebrating it’s Centenary, is known as Willoughby Fire Station. This was n

Hornsby has a long and interesting history relating to the topic of fire protection. Over the years, the area has been afflicted by a range of incidents; from floods and fires to motor vehicle accidents (and sometimes a combination of both!). A well-known incident is of course the destruction of the Hornsby Fire Station building, an incident that took place 50 years ago today (5 January 1971). Before we look at this incident though we’d like to share a brief history of Hornsb

*This information is an extract from the colour-book produced by the Museum of Fire's Heritage Team to celebrate the centenary of Mosman Fire Brigade. Should you wish to use any of the information and pictures provided we ask that you please reference the Museum correctly and contact the Museum for permission where applicable. The Establishment of a Fire Brigade in Mosman The Fire Brigades Act was extended to Mosman on 3 December 1893 and following a realignment of borough bo

As Fire and Rescue NSW’s (FRNSW) official heritage partner, the Museum of Fire is often approached to assist in uncovering the origins and ownership of items housed within FRNSW stations. The final heritage reports produced in response to these enquiries complement our regular heritage work of writing brigade or station-specific histories. Today we would like to share the heart-warming story which saw Orange Fire Brigade’s billiard table rehomed to a local charity following c

The first thing visitors to the Fire and Rescue NSW Emergency Services Academy at Orchard Hills see upon arrival is a Garford Hale Type 15 Pumper. This isn't just any ordinary fire engine though and to answer your questions about the history behind the vehicle we've put together this blog. The appliance has a significant past as it was assigned to Station No. 205 Armidale in 1926 and used by the Brigade at the devastating F. Braund Store fire of 1933. In response to the valia