RICHMOND, VIRGINIA

1858 was the beginning of a paid department in Richmond. After a long discussion, the City Council, in the fall of that year permitted the hiring of 10 slaves for each company. The requirements were that they be of good character. These men were to man the hand pumps then in use. The beginning of the end of hand drawn equipment meant that it would take less manpower to get the equipment to the fire and now the horses began to appear on the scene. Even as the Confederate Capital could almost smell the smoke of Yankee guns it had to protect its self from fire. A new steam engine in late 1863 required a skilled hand on the reins of the horses. Most southern young men had gone to war and someone was needed now. The City Council Fire Committee on January 5, 1864 authorized the hiring of two black firefighters. One was hired as a hostler while the other was to tend the stream engine and stoke the fire.

History of Blacks in Richmond Fire and Emergency Services  

In 1858, a paid fire department was organized in Richmond, Virginia. It consisted of six commanders, six foreman and 90 firefighters. This Fire Brigade was placed under the supervision of a City Council Committee. On October 25, 1858 City Council authorized each company to use 10 slaves "of good character" to man the pumps. During this time a movement to replace hand-pumped engines with steamers gathered force. On January 5, 1864, the Council Fire Committee authorized the Fire Brigade to select one Negro man to act as hostler (a person who takes care of horses) and one Negro man to serve as a fireman (a person who fires and lubricates steam locomotives) for a steamer fire engine. It was May 5, 1950, when a local paper announced that the city personnel department would soon set in motion operations for the recruitment of Richmond's and the State of Virginia "first ten Negro firefighters." On July 1, 1950, the department hired its first "Negro" firefighters to form the first black unit in the city. The plan called for the men to work under white officers until they could qualify for promotion. Ten men were selected from 500 applicants. They were as follows: Charles L. Belle, William E. Brown, Douglas P. Evans, Harvey S. Hicks II, Warren W. Kersey, Bernard C. Lewis, Farrar Lucas, Arthur L. Page, Arthur St. C. John, and Linwood M. Wooldridge. Arthur C. St. John was called to return to the military in 1950 and Frederick J. Robinson was hired. When Farrar Lucas resigned in 1951 Oscar L. Blake was hired. The black firefighters would man Engine Company 9 at Fifth and Duval streets "in the heart of a Negro residential and business district."

The qualifications for Negro firefighters were the same as for the white firefighters. However, white recruits would go immediately to the fire stations for company assignments and into regularly scheduled training classes, whereas a special training program was required for the Negro firefighters. The black firefighters were going into a single company house as a unit and under the leadership the "Drill Master" had to be completely trained in every detail before they could function as such. The black firefighters were trained for two months, twice the required time for white firefighters. Part of the reason the training was so long was the department erected separate sleeping quarters and bathrooms to house the four white officers and two white engineers. Black firefighters got most of the assignments to fight the constant dump fires and had to wash and clean the hoses for their own companies after a fire and sometimes for some of the white units at the scene. They were required to wash all the equipment after every run (while white companies washed equipment near the end of the shift). This meant that if they had six calls during a shift, they washed all the equipment six times. They were also required weekly to wash down the walls of the fire station from top to bottom, a task that white companies were not required to do. Black firefighters had to wear full dress uniforms (hat, coat, tie, dress shirt and pants) if they wanted to sit outside of the fire station. Therefore, if a fire call came and they were outside, they had to answer the call in dress uniforms. Other companies were not required to do this.

The men of Engine Co. 9 were often given the chores nobody else wanted. Members were called to City property when grass needed to be cut, buildings needed to be painted, or hornets' nests needed to be removed. They also drove the service truck from station to station collecting damaged equipment and delivering laundry and supplies. They could not go into three of the city's fire stations, (6, 13, & 19). Instead they would go around to the back of the stations and knock on the window and white firemen would bring their laundry to the driver. One of the white captains said "They are good firefighters under proper leadership and they are doing well learning to drive the equipment". "On one or two occasions, he said that nervousness and over-eagerness hindered them". Despite feeling as though they were being treated like second-class citizens, they made up their minds that they would be the best firefighters the City had. They were the first group to be trained as a company; they could go into a fire and put it out scientifically. Although being college graduates or having some college, the black firefighters of Engine Co. 9 were better educated and better trained than most of the City firefighters. But they were not afforded the same opportunities as their white counterparts.

Normally, it took three years to qualify for an engineering position (driver/pump). However, when some of the members of Engine Co. 9 became qualified for the job, the position was mysteriously eliminated. Firefighters at Engine Co. 9 always scored in the top 10 in examination scores, however, because of segregation they were not allowed to supervise white firefighters. Therefore, unless there was a vacancy in Engine Co. 9 there were no promotion opportunities for black firefighters. Black firefighters were placed on promotion lists until the lists expired. Harvey S. Hicks was promoted to Lieutenant in 1955 and was assigned to E-9 and promoted to Captain in 1961 and assigned to E-9. Linwood M. Wooldridge was promoted to Lieutenant in 1956 and assigned to E-9. Oscar L. Blake was promoted to Lieutenant in 1959 and also assigned to E-9. Arthur L. Page was promoted to Lieutenant in 1961 to replace Lt. Harvey S. Hicks and was also assigned to E-9. Charles L. Belle was promoted to Lieutenant in 1967 and was assigned to E-9. Charles L. Belle passed the Lieutenant's examination in 1956 but had to take the test 10 more times before he was promoted to the rank of Lieutenant in December, 1967.

The black firefighters remained segregated at Engine Company 9 until 1963. A tragedy struck in 1963 that caused the department to take another look at segregation. On June 14, 1963 Captain Harvey S. Hicks, Douglas P. Evans and Calvin Wade attempted to rescue a self-employed contractor from a 23-feet deep pit. When the three failed to return, Herman Brown went down to see what had happened and saw that all four men had passed out. Feeling weak himself, Brown climbed back up the ladder. Lt. Oscar Blake went down next. Having just enough strength to pull off his mask, Lt. Blake climbed back up the ladder. By that time other firefighters had arrived. Using air packs they brought Wade up, administered oxygen and he regained consciousness. All Wade could remember was Captain Hicks was giving artificial respiration to the contractor. Captain Harvey S. Hicks, Firefighter Douglas P. Evans and the contractor were pronounced deceased on arrival at St. Phillip's Hospital. Captain Harvey S. Hicks, the department's highest-ranking black officer and firefighter Douglas P. Evans suffocated in this rescue attempt of a contractor who was also a good friend of the firefighters. Since all the black firefighters were stationed together it was possible that a major catastrophe could possibly wipe out the company.

After 13 years some type of action was taken to integrate six of the department's 28 companies with the departments' 13 black firefighters. Two black firefighters were assigned to each of the six fire companies and one assumed a fire communications position. On July 6, 1963 Bernard C. Lewis and Charles L. Belle Jr. were assigned to Engine Co. 5. William W. Kersey and Herman O. Brown were assigned to Engine Co. 17. Roscoe W. Friend and Frederick J. Robinson were assigned to Engine Co. 12. Robert L. Myers and Calvin Wade were assigned to Engine Co. 11. Ralph Hutchins was assigned to Truck Co. 4. After a temporary assignment working out of the Chief's office, another first for Blacks, Arthur C. St. John was assigned to the fire communications center in Monroe Park, which also was another first assignment for blacks. Lt. Oscar L. Blake and Lt. Arthur L. Page remained at Engine Co. 9 under a white captain and over the white firefighters transferred to Engine Co 9. The black firefighters had consistently demonstrated competency and commitment to the department while battling subtle discrimination. Fire station No. 9 was built in 1902 and demolished in 1968. On Saturday, July 1, 2000 the Southwest Corner of 5th and Duval Street became a historical highway landmark.

Outside of Richmond many black firefighters nationwide began to demand equal rights also. On October 3, 1970 the International Association of Black Professional Firefighters (Keep The Fire Burning For Justice) was founded. Black Brothers Combined joined the International Association of Black Professional Firefighters later. In 1974, under the combined efforts of Theodore Fuller, Roscoe Friend, Norville Marshall, James Duke Stewart III, Everette Jasper, Alvin Mosby and others, Black Brothers Combined Professional Firefighters of Richmond, Virginia Inc. was formed. James "Duke" Stewart, Jr. was Black Brothers Combined (BBC) mentor. The group was formed to ensure equality within the fire department. They established as their motto, "To Obtain the Unattained." At its inception the bureau had only one black Lieutenant, Charles L. Belle, one black Captain, Arthur L. Page and approximately 78 black firefighters . On July 17, 1974, BBC initiated a class action job discrimination lawsuit. The lawsuit charged racial discrimination in hiring assignments, transfers and promotions. In March, 1977, a federal judge issued a preliminary injunction barring further permanent promotions in the fire bureau until the lawsuit was decided. A judge ruled against the black firefighters and a federal judge upheld the decision in December, 1978, one month after the arrival of the bureau's first black chief, Ronald C. Lewis.

The hiring of the former Philadelphia Battalion Chief was historic for another reason. He was the first top man who did not rise through the ranks of the Richmond Fire Bureau. Under Chief Lewis' command a 60-hour workweek dropped to 56 hours, modern equipment replaced old apparatus and firefighters received new uniforms. Chief Lewis headed a department of 510 employees and protected 62.5 square miles. Also under his leadership, a highly skilled river rescue team was developed, a Hazardous Materials Unit was created and the Fire Information Management System, which computerized all information in the department, was installed. Even though the discrimination lawsuit was dismissed by the court system, the City of Richmond made significant changes in the hiring and promotion process within the Bureau of Fire. On December 26, 1979, Captain Arthur L. Page was promoted to Deputy Battalion Chief. He was the first Black to rise through the ranks from firefighter to Deputy Battalion Chief where he worked until his retirement. On Sunday, February 10, 2002 during Black History Month, Deputy Battalion Chief Arthur L. Page was honor at his church by family, friends and co- workers for his accomplishments throughout his fire department career and life. A portrait of Chief Arthur L. Page, was commission by James "Duke" Stewart, III and unveiled by Arthur C. St. John and Fredrick J. Robinson.

On November 3, 1979 history was made again in the Richmond Fire department, Barbara J. Hicks-Spring the first female and first black female firefighter was hired. On July 11, 1988 Tina Watkins was hire as the second female and second black female firefighter. She was promoted to Lieutenant on September 20, 1997. With this appointment, Lt. Watkins was the only female officer and the first female in Fire Prevention. Tina Watkins was appointed to Captain on May 3, 2003. Deputy Battalion Chief Page and others like him led the way for Division Chief John E. Tunstall, Division Chief Larry Tunstall, Division Chief Alvin Mosby, Battalion Chief Norville Marshall, and Battalion Chief Everette Jasper and others to rise to the top ranks within Fire and Emergency Services department today. They began their careers in the Richmond Fire Department as firefighters and through the years they worked their way up through the ranks with hard work, determination and dedication to be promoted. John E. Tunstall has risen through the ranks from firefighter to Fire Marshall Chief. He became a firefighter August 17, 1970. During his years in the department, John was promoted to Lieutenant in February 1976, Captain in January 1979, Deputy Battalion Chief on March 17, 1984, Battalion Chief in 1986 and Division Chief in 1987. John was the first to serve as Fire Marshall Chief, one of the top four positions in the department before moving on to the City of Hopewell, Virginia. John is currently the Chief of Hopewell fire department, the first African American to hold this position, making history again.

Larry R. Tunstall, a 34-year veteran, was the first to serve as Chief of Operations/Administration, another of the top four positions of Richmond Fire and Emergency Services. He was hired as a firefighter on September 29, 1969. Larry was promoted to Lieutenant in February 1976, to Captain in May of 1979, Deputy Battalion Chief in 1984, to Battalion Chief in 1987, to Division Chief on June 10, 1998, and Fire Marshall Chief on August 26, 2002. On September 12, 2003 Larry was appointed Chief/Director of Fire and Emergency Services. Larry R. Tunstall is the first African American to come through the ranks to the top position. Alvin W. Mosby Sr., a 35-year veteran, has risen through the ranks from firefighter to become Chief of Operations/Administration. He was hired as a firefighter on November 20, 1968, promoted to Fire Inspector on April 26, 1976, Lieutenant on November 2, 1979, Captain on September 17, 1983, Battalion Chief on October 3, 1987 and on August 26, 2002 was promoted to Division Chief of Operations/Administration. This is another of the top four positions of Richmond Fire and Emergency Services.

Joseph Jenkins Jr., a 33-year veteran is currently serving as Commander of Training Academy was hired on April 6, 1970 as a firefighter and later promoted to Lieutenant on June 25, 1983 and to Captain on October 7, 1989. This is another of the top four positions of Richmond Fire and Emergency Services. Don J. Horton, a 23-year veteran is currently serving as Acting Fire Marshall Chief as of August 2001.

Wir stellen die Firefighters (Feuerfresser) von 1858 Virginia,Richmond nach.

Fire Fighter im Jahr 1858 In Einsatzkleidung von Richmond