What’s in a Name? – The Meaning Behind the Museum of Fire

The name of our museum often turns heads and prompts a curious “Oh?” from visitors. It’s not uncommon for people to ask, “The Museum of Fire? That sounds cool, but what is it actually about?” Some even refer to us simply as “the fire museum,” but few realise the rich history behind our name and what it has come to represent.

Our Humble Beginnings

The Museum of Fire wasn’t always known by its current name. Our story began in 1968 when Brian Blunt and Bob Winch purchased a Dennis Big 4 fire engine from the Board of Fire Commissioners of NSW. As interest grew in preserving historic fire engines, Brian gathered like-minded individuals and formed the Historic Fire Engine Association of Australia (HFEAA), now known as the Historic Fire Engine Association. The group held its first official meeting in March 1969.

How many children can you fit on a fire engine? Line up of fire appliance at the HFEA Inaugural Rally, 1969 [Museum of Fire Collection]

In 1975, the HFEAA was invited to manage a museum at the newly established NSW Fire Brigades Training College in Alexandria (now known as Fire and Rescue NSW, or FRNSW). The museum opened in 1979 under the name The Fire Services Museum, our first official title.

Chasing a Permanent Home

The Fire Services Museum had a somewhat nomadic early life. Its time at Alexandria lasted only a year before relocating to Walsh Bay and Campbells Cove. During this period, the museum took on the name NSW Fire Services Museum and enjoyed stunning views of the Harbour Bridge and Opera House. However, Sydney’s bicentenary developments forced the museum to vacate these prime locations.

In 1986, a new permanent home was found in the decommissioned Penrith Power Station, where we still reside today. With the move came a new name: The Museum of Fire.

A New Era and a New Vision

The name change was led by the Museum’s first Director (now called the CEO), Julian Faigan, alongside our Board of Directors. In a Fire News article, Faigan reflected on the significance of the new name. It wasn’t just cosmetic, it marked the beginning of a broader vision.

By becoming the Museum of Fire, the organisation could now explore a much wider range of exhibitions and storytelling opportunities. While the core of our identity would always be firefighting and fire service history, the new name invited the possibility to explore topics like fire in mythology, religious uses of fire, and fire as a weapon of warfare just to cite a few of Faigan’s ideas.

While many of these exhibitions have yet to materialise, our mission still aligns with that original vision:

“To provide a world-class facility for the study and enjoyment of the history, use, and control of fire, as well as the preservation of firefighting and fire service history in Australia.”

The Power of Fire as a Theme

Fire is one of the few themes that transcends disciplines, it’s scientific, technological, environmental, cultural, and deeply symbolic. Our museum has a unique opportunity to explore this powerful element through diverse lenses, and I believe we’ve already started to do that.

A great example is our Annual Art Competition, now in its sixth year. We invite primary school students to submit artworks responding to themes like bushfires and resilience. While we are not an art gallery, this competition has become one of the most popular parts of our calendar. It offers a creative and thoughtful way to engage with topics like bravery, community, and can create a safe space through art to navigate trauma.

The Museum of Fire's 2023 Art Competition [Museum of Fire Collection]

Looking to the Future

The Art Competition is just one example of how we are stretching beyond being a traditional museum of firefighting objects. There is so much potential in the “Museum of Fire” name, potential to dive into the cultural, philosophical, and elemental meaning of fire across time and place.

It’s exciting to think about the exhibitions and experiences we can still create. The idea seeded by Julian Faigan in 1986 that our museum can be a place to explore all dimensions of fire still burns strong.

So stay connected! Follow us on social media and keep an eye on our website to see what exciting directions the Museum of Fire will take next.

-Story by Ben Dickson, Acting CEO