The Fire Chief’s Citizenship Crisis
A political showdown at the Fire Board reveals deep divisions over the city's control of the department.
The story, cleaned up
A cleaned-up reading of the newspaper page: spelling and layout repaired, one story lifted off a crowded page. It follows the original closely but it is not a transcription. The original page is below; read it if a detail matters.
At the meeting of the fire commissioners last evening, Commissioner Kahaley made a motion that the office of chief of the fire department be declared vacant. Upon the vote, however, it failed to carry. Commissioner Kahaley voted in favor, and Commissioners Jones and Macks against, leaving it a tie vote for the mayor, who decided against the motion. The matter was brought up by a communication from Corporation Counsel Scott, in which he states that a number of papers had been submitted to him with reference to the eligibility of Chief Hunt to hold office. One of the papers included a resolution stating that Chief Hunt is not a citizen, and is holding the office of chief of the fire department of this city unlawfully and contrary to the provisions of the city charter. Commissioner Kahaley noted he was opposed to the selections the chief had made in reducing the force, as most of the men laid off were men of families, while Commissioner Jones defended the chief's judgment, arguing that the charter had been amended to give the chief more power and the commission less authority over the firemen.
“We have thoroughly investigated the question of citizenship, and can arrive at but one conclusion, that is that Chief Hunt is not a citizen.”
Conflicts over the professionalization versus the politicization of Seattle's public safety departments have been a persistent friction point in city governance for over a century. The battle over Chief Hunt’s citizenship status and hiring power reflects an era where 'merit' was a battlefield between patronage and reform, a struggle that remains relevant as Seattle continues to debate the independence and management of its city bureaus.
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