Tacoma Fire Department
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- Jul 5, 1887The Great Fourth of July Fireman’s BrawlA celebratory fire competition in Tacoma turned sour as fire companies from across Washington Territory clashed over disputed rules and near-riotous crowds.Old Town, Tacoma, WA
- Nov 19, 1891Tacoma's Fire Chief and Driver Crash on Their Way to a BlazeA small house fire on Hood Street led to a collision at Pacific Avenue that cost driver H. M. Packenham his arm and left Chief Lillis with a possible brain injury.Tacoma, WA
- Jul 13, 1894Tacoma’s Fire Chief Lost His Job After a Drunken Ride in the Fire WagonA periodic bender, a joyride down Pacific Avenue in a fire wagon, and a mayor’s ultimatum ended Chief Lillis’s career—though supporters blamed the A.P.A.Pacific Avenue, Tacoma, WA
- Jul 27, 1894Tacoma’s City Jobs Become a Sectarian BattlegroundA Catholic vicar general says the anti-Catholic A.P.A. is driving Catholics off the public payroll—and the fire chief’s firing has the city trading charges.Tacoma Fire Department, Tacoma, WA
- Aug 10, 1894Tacoma's Suspicious Fires—and a Fire Department That Couldn't Get WaterA wave of blazes on E Street and beyond leaves homes in ashes, a hose driver suspended, an alarm delayed, and the fire chief convinced tramps set the occupied houses alight.E Street, Tacoma, WA
- Sep 11, 1894A Rope of Rags, a Jar of Coal Oil, and a Tacoma Arson PlotFire Chief Bruemmer found a carefully laid fuse running through a mortgaged tenement—just before the owner left town for Neah Bay.Tacoma, WA
- Sep 13, 1894The Firebug's Last Exit: A Tacoma Lodging-House Owner Hangs HimselfAfter firemen foiled his attempt to burn his own lodging house for insurance, Carl Haesbseche walked out before breakfast, rigged a twine noose, and stepped off a platform.Tacoma, WA
- Jan 13, 1904Tacoma’s Great Fires of 1903A year-end audit of the city's fire department reveals a staggering $309,000 in property loss, largely driven by massive blazes at industrial warehouses and cereal mills.Tacoma, WA
- Aug 26, 1904A Fireman's Long Injury Ends in Tragedy at HeadquartersAssistant Fire Chief George H. Leggett, still suffering from a railroad wreck injury, took his life at department headquarters—a death that stunned the men who slept nearby.Tacoma, WA
- Feb 12, 1909Nine Votes to Kill Civil Service—Tacoma's Council Tries to Gut the CharterAt a special meeting, nine councilmen back a plan to let the mayor fire city workers at will; reformists need to hold two more votes to stop it.Tacoma, WA
- Apr 20, 1909Fire Department Botches North End BlazeA carpenter shop burns to the ground as equipment fails and engines fail to build pressure.3128 North 8th Street, Tacoma, WA