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Proud History
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BERTHS (
1908 - 1962 - 1976 - 1990 - 1992
)
Engine Co. 57
Battery Park, North River.
Engine Co. 86
Pier 53, Bloomfield St., North River.
Engine Co. 85
Pier 75, West 35th St., North River.
Engine Co. 87
East 135th St., Harlem River.
Engine Co. 78
East 90th St., East River.
Engine Co. 232
Noble St., Brooklyn, East River.
Engine Co. 66
Grand St., Corlears Hook, East River.
Engine Co. 77
Fulton St., Brooklyn, East River.
Engine Co. 223
37th Street, Brooklyn, Upper Bay.
Engine Co. 51
Saint George, Staten Island, Upper Bay.
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Fireboat Locations
(1908-1948)
As important as the fireboats being designed and constructed was the Fire Department's decision of where to station them in this immense harbor. In the Port of New York with hundreds of miles of developing waterfront to protect, this was not a simple task.
In the earliest years, the entire crews of fireboats lived aboard. There were no permanent pierside stations or quarters. As the fleet and service demands grew, boats could easily be moved to new, more practical, locations. All that was needed was a telegraph connection for communication with the FDNY Dispatchers at their Central Office.
Toward the end of the nineteenth century, some proponents of fireboat design believed that smaller deckhouses and more open deck space made for a more efficient fireboat. The idea of less cabin space aboard and permanent quarters ashore took hold. Among the first quarters built was the landmark Victorian frame structure constructed along the seawall at Battery Park, North River (as the lower Hudson is called). Occupied in 1895 this was the quarters for Engine Co. 57, then using the powerful fireboat The New Yorker.
The new quarters provided office space, permanent communications equipment, amenities such as kitchen and dormitory facilities, and storage space for supplies required for the boat. Although the Fire Officer and his complement of Firefighters stayed in the new quarters; the Pilots, Engineers, and Stokers (who tended the coal-fired boats) still had their living accommodations aboard, always ready to get underway at a moment's notice.
After the turn of the century the fleet grew quickly. It reached its maximum strength of ten fireboats with delivery of three new boats in 1908. Permanent locations for these boats were pretty well agreed upon. Construction of the new stations kept up with the placement of the boats.
Most fireboats were concentrated in the central part of the harbor. Being located at the southern end of the East and North Rivers gave them the ability to respond quickly to the areas of greatest danger. As one moved to the outer reaches of the Port, fireboat stations became more widely spaced.
Since they were pumping apparatus, fireboats in these years were classified as Engine Companies just like the horse-drawn steam pumpers in local firehouses. This was more than tradition as the same telegraph signal applied to all Engine Companies. This allowed them to be dispatched quickly to any fire location, or to cover at the berths of fireboats working or otherwise out of service.
All fire alarm assignments were predetermined for thousands of locations throughout the city. Printed on "assignment cards" they listed the sequence that all Engine and Hook and Ladder Companies were to respond to that location on the first through the fifth alarm. These cards were found in every firehouse, and when the Dispatchers transmitted an alarm over the bells, looking at the card would indicate which Companies were due to respond. For locations on or near the waterfront fireboats were listed in sequence alongside the land engines.
Minor variations occur, locations shown are typical.
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