We are in the process of archiving all weekly updates by the month. All of the weekly updates for this month are on this page.
Just scroll down to locate the desired update.
July 2021
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| Hamden Fire Retirees Association, Inc. |
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| CLICK here for daily flag status |
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FRIDAY, MARCH 6, 2015
Website is updated every Friday - Important interim updates will be posted when necessary
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| CLICK to monitor HFD radio |
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| Spring Glen's Co-op Market
1665 Whitney Avenue
December 14, 1976
Platoon 4 had its hands full on its last night shift when a fire that originated in the basement of Spring Glen's Co-op Market heavily damaged the market and the adjoining liquor store on a cold December morning in 1976.
Capt. Jack Laffin and his crew of Engine 3, the 1973 Maxim Telesqurt, were first in. With intense heat and smoke making impossible a direct interior attack through a basement trapdoor, they initiated a "blitz" attack into the basement with the telesquirt's pre-connected nozzle after taking out several adjacent basement windows for ventilation.
Posted 3/6/15
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| October 1976 - Capt. Jack Laffin and crew by the Telesqurt (L-R): Ffs. Doug Yocher, John Reilly, Art Heriot and Bill Davin. John O'Hare behind the camera. |
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| December 15, 1976 New Haven Register article courtesy of Jim Koutsopolos |
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| Photo by William Hoagland |
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Don't get the wrong idea. The guy in the middle wasn't "in his cups" or otherwise impaired from wedding festivities at which this 1992 photo was taken. (And, no, it was not his wedding.) He and the other two end men were just mugging it up for the wedding photographer.
The guy in the middle, of course, is retired lieutenant and HFRA member Jeff Stoehr. The two gentlemen flanking Jeff were both long retired from the HFD when this photo was taken.
Retired Lt. Frank Eitler (left) and retired D/C George Reutenauer (right) both served on Platoon 3 with Jeff and a lot of the guests that day.
Frank Eitler served on the department from 1948 to 1981. He passed away in 2000. George Reutenauer served from 1946 to 1984, and passed in 2005. Both of these fellows were also regular attendees at the annual retirement dinners.
Posted 3/6/15
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Hamden Fire Department
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Telephone Numbers - 1918 - 1988
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The first commercial telephone exchange in the world - yes, in the world - was established on January 28, 1878 in New Haven, eventually becoming the Southern New England Telephone Co.
The first Hamden telephone exchange was established in 1915. Telephone service was a fairly rare and expensive luxury for most households at the time.
In 1918, the Town of Hamden began paying for telephone service for Companies 1, 2, 3 and 4, each of which owned their own quarters. In 1918, Co. 5 was located in a building that was not its own quarters. Companies 6, 7, 8 and 9 were not organized until after 1918.
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| 1927 SNET Directory |
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| 1910s - 1920s |
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The Centerville, Mt. Carmel and Mix District companies were all on the "Hamden" telephone exchange. The other Hamden fire companies, all located in the southern end of town, were on New Haven's "COLONY" and "LIBERTY" exchanges.
The Humphrey, Centerville, and Whitneyville fire companies all had "party" lines. Party lines were assigned to individual customers who, despite having their own telephone numbers, shared the same phone line with another subscriber. If one of the party line customers was using the telephone, then both parties' telephones were busy.
You might have a problem if you had to report a fire and the firehouse telephone's "other" party was using his phone.
The 1927 telephone directory entry shown above documents a unique era in the history of the Whitneyville fire station. Between November 1926 and May 1927, the original wood-frame firehouse at 39 Putnam Avenue was torn down. A new two-story, two-bay brick building was constructed in its place.
While the new station was being built, a temporary Whitneyville fire station was located at the home of H.F. Hall, 116 Putnam Avenue, two blocks away. Mr. Hall was a prominent member of Co. 3 and part owner of Brock-Hall dairy.
From the Station 3 Log Book (1926-1947): "We moved our [1910 Locomobile and 1915 Maxim] from the old Fire house to H.F. Hall's garage on Thursday Nov. 18, 1926. Was moved back to New quaters (sic) - Saturday May 15, 1927."
New Haven's COLONY and LIBERTY telephone exchange names disappeared in 1930 when dial service was introduced in most New Haven area communities. Exchange names would return in 1950, when the addition of two more digits to all phone numbers permitted the creation of thousands more urgently needed new telephone numbers for all New Haven area telephone exchanges.
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| 1920s - 1930s |
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| 1932 SNET Directory |
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By 1932, dial telephone service was available in Hamden. Each volunteer company had its own telephone number, as they do to this day. And Hamden residents now had a single telephone number for reporting fire emergencies.
NOTE: The last four digits of Dunbar Hill's telephone number has remained unchanged since 1932.
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| Alarm Room in 1940 |
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The Hamden Fire Department emergency number changed in 1941, when fire dispatch facilities moved from the Humphrey station, which was covered by the New Haven exchange, to the new alarm room at the Centerville station.
Hamden's old emergency telephone number, 5-1432, was a New Haven telephone number. The new emergency number, 2-3511, was a Hamden telephone number.
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| 1930s |
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| 1948 SNET Directory |
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| 1930s - 1940s |
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| 1948 SNET Directory - The West Woods School was then a one-room facility. It would later serve as quarters for Vol. Co. 9. Many years later, the old one-room house as well as the Newhall St. School would both serve as quarters for HFD administrative offices.
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| From The Hamden Chronicle, 1950 (Courtesy of the Hamden Historical Society) |
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| 1950s |
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Between June 1950 and the end of 1951, all phone numbers in New Haven and surrounding communities were changed from five or six digits to seven digits.
To help subscribers remember a seven number sequence - something we now take for granted - names like "CHestnut," "ATwater," LOcust" and "MAin" were added to all telephone numbers to represent the first two digits of the number. The caller only had to remember the first two letters of the exchange name, followed by five numbers.
Most Hamden telephone customers, especially north of the parkway, had either an ATwater 8 or CHestnut 8 telephone number.
The Hamden Fire Department's new emergency number became CHestnut 8-5521, so the caller simply dialed CH 8-5521. Many Hamden telephone customers south of Putnam Avenue had New Haven exchanges, such as LOcust 2 (562), MAin 4 (624), FUlton 7 (387), SPruce 6 (776) or SPruce 7 (777).
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| 1955 SNET Directory |
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Typical SNET 1950s number card, mounted in the center of the dial. This one was HFD's emergency number.
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| 1960s - 1970s |
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When SNET went with "all-number" dialing with the 1962-63 telephone directories, CH 8-5521 became 248-5521, which remained the HFD fire emergency number until the introduction of 911 service on November 19, 1981.
911
From 1981 until 1988, 911 calls from telephone numbers with the prefixes 248, 288, or 281 went directly to Hamden Central Communications. 911 calls from Hamden residents with New Haven prefixes like 562, 624, 387, 777, etc. went directly to the New Haven public safety answering position, located at 200 Orange Street. All such calls were then manually rerouted to Hamden's Central Communications.
When Central received a 911 call from a North Haven resident with a 248, 281, or 288 telephone number, the call was rerouted to North Haven fire or police. If a structure fire was reported in certain areas of North Haven west of Ridge Road, Hamden would report the fire to North Haven and then send a Hamden engine, truck and rescue, as Hamden's apparatus was closer and would arrive much sooner than North Haven units. Several North Haven house fires in that vicinity were knocked down by Hamden units.
ENHANCED 911
When Enhanced 911 (E-911) was introduced in 1988, all 911 calls could be directed to the appropriate municipal dispatch center regardless of the caller's telephone number prefix.
E-911 also provided public safety dispatchers with what we today call "Caller ID." All 911 calls generated a readout of the name, address and telephone number of the place where the call originated. This included all "unlisted" telephone numbers. The "Caller ID" feature required that individual telephone lines could no longer be shared - i.e. no more party lines.
HOUSE NUMBERING & OTHER HEADACHES
E-911 also required that every street address in Hamden have a unique number - no more fractional or so-called "rear" addresses.
When it was built, the first house on Hepburn Road near the corner of London Drive had been assigned the house number "1." Years later, another house was built on the same side of Hepburn Road, but even closer to the corner of London Drive. The new house was assigned the house number "1/2."
Unfortunately, E-911 put an end to that novelty, but gave rise to a new one. The house that was once number "1/2" is now "0." Different!
The introduction of E-911 also created (and corrected) some oddball situations: There is a Hamden residence on Hartford Turnpike, just north of where Mt. Carmel Avenue ends, that was discovered to be a much quicker run for Engines 4 and 3, than for Engine 5.
There is a house at the end of Thorpe Drive that is actually in New Haven. That situation resulted in a late-1980s meeting between Hamden's Chief John Tramontano and New Haven's Chief John Reardon. The two chiefs decided that if a fire department response was needed at that Thorpe Drive New Haven home, Hamden would provide full fire department coverage and New Haven would respond with an engine and truck.
If you ever see New Haven's Engine 6 and Truck 4 turning into Woodin from Dixwell, they are probably headed for Thorpe Drive.
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Now It's TEN Digit Telephone Numbers!
In 1960, the Southern New England Telephone Company was among the first Bell System affiliates to begin abandoning telephone number exchange names by going with "all-number dialing" in the Waterbury area. The New Haven area followed suit in October 1962.
This was somewhat controversial at the time. Some critics of "all number" telephone numbers were concerned that most folks would never be able to remember seven numbers in a row.
As of Saturday, November 14, 2009, when the area code became a necessary component of every local telephone call, all telephone subscribers had to dial TEN digits, even to place a call next door. What would folks have thought about that in 1962?
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Here is yet another great photo from Chan Brainard's collection that he took at the 1955 Connecticut State Firemen's Convention Parade at West Haven. It's West Shore's 1947 Series 700 American LaFrance cab-forward pumper inching its way up Campbell Avenue.
American LaFrance was among the first American manufacturers of fire apparatus to offer a cab-forward design, and this one would have been among the first. According to Walter McCall's American Fire Engines Since 1900 (Crestline Publishing: 1976), the 700 series was first announced in late 1945, but the first examples were not built until early 1947.
Posted 3/6/15
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| Hamden Fire Retirees Association, Inc. |
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| CLICK here for daily flag status |
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FRIDAY, MARCH 13, 2015
Website is updated every Friday - Important interim updates will be posted when necessary
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| CLICK to monitor HFD radio |
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Five Honored at Local 2687 Annual Retirement Dinner
Approximately twenty-five Hamden Fire Department retirees, many accompanied by their wives, attended Local 2687's Annual Retirement Dinner last Saturday night at the popular Country House in Foxon. Five retirees representing 120 years of service were honored at the dinner. The members of the HFRA wish Marshal Dennis Harrison, Supt. Don Buchele, Lt. Dave Proux, Lt. Brian Bird and Ff. Ron Mikolinski each a long, happy and healthy retirement.
Posted 3/13/15
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Hamden's Newest Firefighter Joining Dad
Fifteen-year veteran Hamden Firefighter Ralph Difonzo, Jr. was joined by many of his colleagues in the rotunda of Hamden's Memorial Town Hall last Friday to witness the swearing-in of his son, Ralph III, as Hamden's newest firefighter. The HFRA wishes Probationary Ff. Ralph Difonzo III a long, productive and safe career with the HFD!
Posted 3/13/15
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Deputy Chief Gary Merwede, Firefighters Ralph DiFonzo, Sr. and Ralph DiFonzo, Jr. and Chief David Berardesca
(Photo by Ff. Kevin Shields)
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40 Years Ago
Station 5 Annex Groundbreaking Ceremony
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| Before the annex |
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On Sunday, March 16, 1975, a couple of dozen members of the Mt. Carmel Volunteer Fire Company were joined by Chief V. Paul Leddy and Hamden Mayor Lucien DiMeo to break ground on an annex to the fifty-year old fire station.
By 1975, the largest and newest Hamden fire apparatus that would fit inside the original station was the 1954 Maxim. The proposed building annex, constructed on a concrete slab, would be capable of housing the largest fire apparatus available at the time, providing Mt. Carmel with a fire station for many years to come.
Plans for the annex, begun the previous summer, hinged on a land swap with Hamden's Board of Education. In order to widen the property frontage sufficiently to accommodate the new annex, the fire company traded a large parcel of land at the rear of their lot for a ten foot strip of the old Mt. Carmel School parking lot.
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| Sunday, March 16, 1975 (Photo by William Olesen) |
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In the center of the photo, Mayor Lucien DiMeo (in dark coat) and Chief V. Paul Leddy are flanked by over twenty regular and auxiliary members of the Mt. Carmel Volunteer Fire company, some of whom were also regular members of the career department. The fellow in the red Co. 5 jacket is Firefighter Fred Fletcher, who joined the department in 1946 and served at Station 5 for many years on "old" Platoon 2 and "new" Platoon 4.
The older gentleman holding what appears to be the shovel handle is Co. 5 President Raymond K. Spencer, who was then in his 50th year as a Co. 5 member, and in whose name the annex was re-dedicated in 2011 during the company's centennial observance. The Station 5 annex was completed during the spring and summer and dedicated on September 4th.
To this day, Station 5's Raymond K. Spencer Memorial Annex remains the most recent new construction to accommodate Hamden career fire apparatus. The newest free-standing fire station is Station 3, at Ridge and Hartford Turnpike, dedicated November 1, 1970.
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Sunday, March 16, 1975
Groundbreaking in the morning - Parade in the afternoon!
HFD contingent joins in a classic and wonderful New Haven tradition.
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| Former Co. 5 Capt. Don Steele and Hamden Mayor Lucien DiMeo |
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| New Haven's 1975 St. Patrick's Day Parade |
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Parade photographs by Patricia Doiron, courtesy of Ed Doiron Jr.
CLICK on either photo to enlarge.
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| Eddy & Tony last Saturday night |
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About two hours after the groundbreaking ceremony, Mayor Lucien DiMeo accompanied Co. 5 members marching in New Haven's Annual St. Patrick's Day Parade, pictured above.
The women guarding the colors and holding the company banner were members of the company's ladies' auxiliary.
The two flags bearers were career firefighters Eddy Doiron and Tony "Moonman" Melillo, who were also members of the fire company. Nicknamed by his fellow firefighters, Tony was and still is an avid amateur astronomer. He was often observed at night behind his telescope viewing the heavens in the rear yard of Station 5, where he and Eddy were both assigned on Platoon 2.
(This brings to mind some old stories of other firehouses where folks supposedly employed visual magnification devices to observe objects from afar. But those heavenly bodies were a lot closer to the ground.)
Retired since 1996, Tony now lives high atop a mountain in northern New Hampshire, where his view of the universe is relatively unobstructed.
Posted 3/13/15
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100 Years Ago - March 18, 1915
Mother association of the North Hamden Volunteer Fire Company
initiates protest meeting over proposed Hamden telephone exchange
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As mentioned in last week's article on HFD telephone numbers, Hamden's first telephone exchange was established in 1915. Previously, all Hamden telephone subscribers were served by the New Haven exchange, where calls to and from Hamden, Woodbridge, North Haven or Bethany were toll-free. In the newly proposed Hamden telephone exhange, however, all out-of-town calls into and out of Hamden would cost callers five cents each.
"Do you think this is fair to our town?"
Members of the North Hamden Improvement Society, which organized a second Mt. Carmel volunteer fire company up near Sleeping Giant, distributed a leaflet dated March 12, 1915 announcing a March 18th protest meeting at the town hall.
"Do you know [the New Haven grocer] can call a gardener who lives in North Haven, Woodbridge or Bethany, without extra charge? Do you think he will pay to call you or will call where he can get the same results without extra charge?"
One hundred years ago, a home telephone was an extravagance few could afford. But a telephone was really a necessity if you owned a business. Five-cent calls to and from neighboring communities represented a substantial hike and would certainly discourage out-of-town customers from calling Hamden businesses.
Check out the leaflet by CLICKing on the image. They made some good points.
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| CLICK to enlarge (Courtesy of Mary Jane McGaffin) |
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| Courtesy of the Hamden Historical Society |
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On March 18, 1915, the meeting to protest the proposed Hamden telephone exchange was held in Hamden's old town hall, which was erected in 1888. Over the years the building began to settle and walls began to crack. It was finally razed in 1924 for construction of the present Memorial Town Hall.
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Brooksvale Park 1962 - Here's a nice shot of the first Rescue 2, a 1960 International Travel-al, in service at Station 4 from February 9, 1960 until November 4, 1971. Rescue 1, a virtually identical 1958 model, was stationed at Whitneyville.
Before officers were assigned to Mt. Carmel and West Woods, when Engine 5 or Engine 9 was dispatched on a still alarm the rescue at Station 4 would also respond with the Co. 4 officer as the rider.
The second Rescue 2, with a modular body on a 1975 Ford chassis, was placed in service at Station 2 in April 1976.
Posted 3/13/15
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107 Harrison Drive last Wednesday morning. No one was hurt.
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| Photos by Kevin Shields |
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| Hamden Fire Retirees Association, Inc. |
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| CLICK here for daily flag status |
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FRIDAY, MARCH 20, 2015
Website is updated every Friday - Important interim updates will be posted when necessary
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| CLICK to monitor HFD radio |
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Celebrating 36 Years
Hamden Professional Firefighters Association
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| Local 2687 I.A.F.F.
Charter Members
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March 19, 1979
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In early 1979, non-management uniformed employees of the Hamden Fire Department voted overwhelmingly to join the International Association of Fire Fighters. On March 19th, the IAFF certified the Charter of the Hamden Professional Firefighters Association and it became the IAFF's 2687th local.
Of the 78 members whose names appear on the Charter, twenty-seven have passed away. Batt. Chief Donald E. LaBanca is the lone charter member still on the job as of this 36th anniversary. And rumor has it that Don is retiring soon.
The Hamden Paid Firemen's Sick Benefit Association was organized in 1948 to provide benefits for firefighters who were out sick or injured. All department members belonged. When collective bargaining was permited for public safety employees in the late 1960s, the HPFSBA became the bargaining unit for non-management Hamden firefighters. However all management employees, including the Chief, the Fire Marshal, all four D/C Shift Commanders and the D/C Training Officer, remained members the HPFSBA. For obvious reasons, this eventually became a problem.
In mid-1978, the short-lived Hamden Firefighters Association became the official bargaining unit until the Hamden Professional Firefighters Association was formed the following year. In 1982, all five Deputy Chiefs and the Fire Marshal successfully petitioned to join the Local, leaving the Fire Chief as the only management employee. This gave rise to the creation of the position of Assistant Chief (now Deputy Chief), which was filled by Walt Macdowall, whose name appears at the top of the 1979 Charter.
The Hamden Paid Firemen's Sick Benefit Association remained a separate benefits organization until December 1995, when it officially disbanded.
Posted 3/20/13
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Local 2687 Officers - Class of 1979
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The Hamden Professional Firefighters Association, Local 2687 of the I.A.F.F. was only a few months old when it sponsored a 1950s rock and roll fundraiser show on Saturday, November 10, 1979 in the Hamden High School gymnasium. The scan below from the program shows the first generation of Local 2687 officers, who were all members of the fundrasing committee.
Note the neckties that were worn with work uniforms when arriving for and departing from work, as well as when on watch.
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| Rick Kenyon and Jack Mordecai were elected negotiators. |
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Happy #36 to our active brothers and sister of Local 2687!
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CIRCLE THE DATE
HFRA Spring Meeting
Wednesday, April 8th, Noon
Hamden Elks' Lodge, 175 School Street
Report on the Pension Plan
Anything for the Good of the Assn.
Menu: 1/2 lb. pre-cooked Hamburgers; your choice of any two sides of french fries, onion rings and cole slaw; five different kinds of cheese; sauteed onions. Bacon, lettuce, tomato and raw onions available - $8.00
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Rescue & Haz-Mat, 1954 Style
The Hamden Chronicle
Thursday, March 21, 1954
The firefighter pictured below in the 1954 version of a "proximity suit" was Bill Bossoli. The outfit was actually made of asbestos, which might protect a firefighter from flame but not from the bad stuff associated with what it was actually made of.
Despite donning something 61 years ago that today is considered a bona fide hazardous material, Bill Bossoli is an active 95-year old Hamdenite - 96 in May! Richie Lostritto, pictured to the right of Bill, is a regular active member of the HFRA. Bill and Richie both joined the department in September 1950. Bill left the department in 1956. Richie retired in 1985 as Supt. of Alarms & Apparatus.
Paul Leddy went on to serve as Chief of the Department from 1960 until his retirement in 1984. Paul Rosadina also retired in 1984, at the rank of Commander (B/C). Chief Leddy passed in 1994; Cmdr. Rosadina in 2003.
Posted 3/20/15
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| Article courtesy of the family of Sid Trower; photo courtesy of D/C Gary Merwede |
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| April 26, 2011 - Bill Bossoli, Joe Rahl and Richie Lostritto at the Company 5 Centennnial Reunion. |
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| Hamden Fire Retirees Association, Inc. |
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| CLICK here for daily flag status |
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FRIDAY, MARCH 27, 2015
Website is updated every Friday - Important interim updates will be posted when necessary
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| CLICK to monitor HFD radio |
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Treadwell Office Park
295 Treadwell Street
Saturday, March 30, 1991
Platoon 4 had just finished the night shift; Platoon 2 was starting its second day of three. On this day before Easter Sunday 1991, the alarm came in right after 0800 roll call. Within minutes it went to a second, then third alarm.
Cmdr. (B/C) Tom Doherty was subbing for Platoon 2 Cmdr. Joe McDermott, who had taken ill on the job the previous day trick. Every career fire company in Hamden ended up at the fire, along with Volunteer Co. 8 and Cheshire's Haz-Mat unit, which re-filled SCBAs when the cascade system on Hamden's Rescue 3 ran dry.
Eight years earlier the entire top floor of another building in the complex was also destroyed by fire.
Shirley Mangler took lots of amazing action photos throughout the incident, many of which can be viewed by clicking the photo link further down this page.
Posted 3/27/15
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| The Hamden Chronicle, April 4, 1991 (Artiicle courtesy of Gil Spencer; photo by Shirley Mangler) |
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The owner of the brand new rack-bodied truck seen behind Engine 2 was very grateful to Lt. Clark Hurlburt for the rather unorthodox way he got that truck out of the building.
With fire impinging and eventually consuming much of the garage, the electric overhead door would not operate. Clark managed to get the truck started and drove it straight through the overhead door, saving the day for the truck and its owner.
Throughout history, some personnel have been known to do the same thing with fire apparatus.
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Treadwell Office Park Fire - March 30, 1991
Box Alarm: Engine 2, Engine 1, Rescue 2, Truck 1 and Car 3
2nd Alarm: Engine 3, Engine 4, Rescue 1
3rd Alarm: Engine 5, Engine 9, Vol. Co. 8
Additional Units: Engine 8, Car 1, Car 5 (Marshal), Car 7 (Supt.), EMS Officer, CP 2 (Civil Preparedness), and Cheshire's Haz-Mat Unit; North Haven F.D. covered Station 3
E4 - reverse lay from 295 Treadwell to hydrant at Bagley and Treadwell
E9 - reverse lay from 295 Treadwell to hydrant at Dawes and Treadwell.
E5 - "pieced in" E9's lay which came up short.
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Shirley Mangler: An HFD Treasure
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An avid photographer, Shirley Mangler is married to one of Hamden's longest serving career firefighters, Harold Mangler. From the mid-1980s until the 2000s, Shirley documented many Hamden Fire Department activities, including some notable fires and several memorable training sessions. Many of Shirley's photos have been published in local newspapers.
Helping us to "preserve our past," Shirley has generously donated a large number of her images to the HFRA archives to be shared with and enjoyed by devotees of the Hamden Fire Department and the fire service in general.
The photos Shirley took of the million dollar fire that struck the Treadwell Office Park in March 1991 are among her finest. Sixty-five of them are displayed in a slide show that can be viewed on a separate page by clicking on the photo below. Thank you, Shirley!
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When 108 non-management department members opted to join the IAFF in early 1979, the names of these thirty original Local 2687 members were missing from the local's charter, issued March 19, 1979.
The reason for the omissions is not known, but this list corrects the record.
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Rope Tricks Behind Station 3 - 1982
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| Ffs. Mike Ambriscoe and Carl Backus |
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| Dep. Chief Training Officer John Tramontano |
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| Ff. Brian Forsyth |
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The three photos above were among hundreds of slides donated to the HFRA several years ago by former Chief John Tramontano. When he was the department's training officer, Chief Tramontano began the practice of photographing various drills in detail. The resulting slide shows were used as training aids in future training sessions and for public education activities. These photos, taken in the rear parking area of Station 3 in the summer of 1982, show some of the younger members of Platoon 3 training in mountain rescue techniques.
Originally posted 12/31/10
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Station 4 Alarm Room - October 31, 1981
When visiting the credit union in the town hall basement (remember?), retired Deputy Chiefs Joe Hromadka (in hat) and Ken Harrington often stopped in at Station 4. They are pictured here in the Alarm Room less than three weeks before fire dispatch operations were moved to the new Central Communications in the old Miller Library (now demolished). Ff. Jim Koutopolos is in the doorway at left.
In April 1942, Dep. Chief Hromadka became one of two shift commanders when the department was reorganized under career officers. He served until his 1972 retirement. Dep. Chief Ken Harrington joined the department in 1949. He was promoted to Lieutenant in 1963, Captain in 1970 and Deputy Chief Training Officer in 1974. He retired in 1980. Joe Hromadka passed away in 1986 and Ken Harrington two years later.
Reposted 3/27/15
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| By coincidence, these photos were taken on the first anniversary of Dep. Dhief Harrington's last day on the job. |
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