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Antique Fire Apparatus Muster

Title:Antique Fire Apparatus Muster
Date & Time:Sat May 18, 2024 9:00 AM - 2:00 PM
Location:Friendship Firehouse Museum, 107 S. Alfred St. (Map This)
Event Details:Join us Saturday, May 18 in front of Friendship Firehouse Museum at 107 South Alfred Street for a muster of antique, hand-drawn firefighting apparatus. Participating vehicles will include 19th-century suction fire engines and hose reel carriages. Suction engines, invented in the early 19th century, drew water from wells, hydrants, and other sources through a hose, and provided a powerful and constant stream of water. The first hoses were typically made in 50-foot lengths, and only a few pieces could be carried on the fire engine itself, so additional vehicles were created specifically to carry extra lengths of hose.

Fire was a constant danger in a town of mostly wooden buildings, where open flames provided heat, light, and cooking. The Friendship, Sun, Relief, Hydraulion, and Star volunteer fire companies served the community faithfully, particularly during enormous blazes in 1827, 1855, and 1871.

Friendship Firehouse Museum’s historic firefighting vehicles includes the Prettyman Hose Reel Carriage, built in Alexandria in 1858 by coachmaker, and Friendship Fire Company member, Robert Prettyman. It was ornately decorated and fitted with two large bells to sound the alarm as the vehicle bounced through Alexandria’s streets. Thanks to fundraising efforts led by the Friendship Veterans Fire Engine Association, the Prettyman hose carriage recently underwent much needed conservation, returning to Friendship Firehouse in 2022.

Over 15 additional hose reel carriages and suction engines from throughout the region will be on display outside of the Friendship Firehouse Museum on the 100 block of South Alfred Street. Friendship & Firefighting in Alexandria is sponsored by the Friendship Veterans Fire Engine Association and the Office of Historic Alexandria. Admission is free.
Fees:Free
Audience:Anyone may attend
Tags:Friendship Firehouse Museum, Museums, Old & Historic Alexandria, Old Town


For event details visit http://www.alexandriava.gov/c/57455
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