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When it comes to operating a museum about firefighting, it may seem ironic that one of the greatest threats to a museum, is fire, or it may be the perfect opportunity to practice what we preach when it comes to fire safety. You may have noticed a few planned and sudden un-planned closures for the Museum this year and at the heart of all these closures has been our desire to ensure the Museum is protected when it comes to fire safety and the integrity of the building. Five ye

It’s time again for another CEO Blog and the speed at which they seem to come around only highlights just how fast this year is moving! Our team have been so busy reflecting on how demanding April and May were that the prospect of the upcoming school holiday period being just as eventful was relegated to the backs of our minds. Now as the end of the financial year and July fast approaches what’s up next for our team is at the top of our minds! For our heritage team, in the Mu

For the last 46 years (since 1977), International Museum Day has been celebrated by Museum’s all around the world. The theme is selected by the International Council of Museum’s (ICOM) and organisations, no matter what size, are encouraged to engage and share their stories. Ironically, I was so busy talking Museum’s at the #AMAGA2023 conference in Newcastle that the day almost passed me by, and I didn’t get my usual chance to reflect on what the day meant for our small organi

The Museum of Fire is proud to have been shortlisted in the 2023 National Heritage Awards in the category of Conservation – Interiors and Objects for the restoration of the 1959 Commer Fire Engine. The project saw an original 1959 Commer C5FT fire engine restored by our hard-working team of volunteers to a state of completeness unseen since 1983. The Commer C5FT is one of four in existence in NSW and is the only known one to have been restored to this degree. The Commer has

An update from our CEO, Belinda McMartin The team at the Museum have come to accept that April and May are now our busiest time of year with lots of activities at the Museum, school holidays and our attendance at the Easter Show as well as the Hawkesbury Show. Rather than be daunted by the numerous tasks at hand our team rally and tackle each event with new vigour. To allow these activities to take place our entire staffing body is required to lend a hand, all hands to the p

An Update From Our CEO, Belinda McMartin The Museum of Fire is located in a heritage listed building. Our site was a former power station that was built to alleviate major power shortages to Sydney after World War Two. The building holds a unique place within the history of the development of the local area as well as in industrial (specifically power station) history across NSW due to the unique design and “packaged” nature of the plant. At the time of its construction thre

In the Museum’s collection is a wonderful historic fire engine, the 1923 Merryweather Turntable Ladders, which celebrates its 100th birthday this year. In honour of such it has been commemorated as the Museum of Fire’s vehicle of the year for 2023. Whilst a somewhat allusive fire engine in the historical record, the Merryweather has certainly got some stories to tell over its 100-year tenure. Early History of Merryweather and the Petrol Fire Engine Revolution The turntable la

At the start of 2022 our team at the Museum of Fire selected “Floods” as the theme of that year’s art competition. In the previous two years the competition had paid tribute to the terrible bushfires of 2019-2020 and more recently the resilience the community showed during the COVID-19 pandemic. These topics all reflect how difficult the last three years have been and while the artworks created by the children could have reflected a very pessimistic or gloomy view of the worl

My last blog took a look back at the last year so it's perfect that this blog now looks to what we have planned for 2023! Our team at the Museum have a busy schedule of events planned for the year and I’m excited to see lots of visitors pass through our doors. Our calendar of public events kicks off on Sunday 12 February with our first Heritage Day of the year. The theme for this event is ladder, platform and aerial appliances. The two feature vehicles of this display day wil

Since taking up the position of Museum of Fire CEO in mid-2020 I have been pleased to see the Museum develop and grow in all areas. When we re-opened the Museum following the first COVID closure in early 2020 we had just two permanent staff and three casual weekend staff. Two and a half years later we now have a team of fifteen and our heritage arm continues to be the greatest beneficiary of that growth. How have we achieved this growth many ask? We haven’t found a magical go