MTH ELECTRIC TRAINS

Although New York (then named New Amsterdam) established its first group of fire watchmen to raise the alarm (everyone was expected to help fight the fire) in 1658, it was not until 1737 that the first 35 official fire fighters were appointed. These fire fighters and their brethren would remain an all-volunteer force for more than a century. By 1865 the city recognized the need for a permanent, paid force, and the state-run Metropolitan Fire Department replaced the old volunteer system. Shortly thereafter a serious program of professionalization, including rules of conduct, classes, and competitive examinations, allowed the department to fight fires far more effectively with fewer than one-fifth the manpower. In 1870 this highly successful organization was re-organized into the Fire Department of the City of New York as it still exists today. Improvements continued into the twentieth century, with the introduction of the Fire College, the Fire Prevention Bureau, and the first Rescue Company, and the end of the the continuous duty system in favor if shift work. The first women fire fighters began work in 1982, and the FDNY took control of the city's emergency medical service in 1997. Today more than 11,000 firefighters, 3,000 emergency medical personnel and 1,200 civilian employees serve more than 8,000,000 people in a 320-square-mile area. For more information on the history of the FDNY, visit the NYC Fire Museum website at http://nycfiremuseum.org/.