January
01 – First practical fire engine tested, Cincinnati (OH), 1853
February
10 – First fire extinguisher patent issued to Alanson Crane, 1863
13 – First state-level insurance regulatory act passes, Massachusetts, 1799
20 – First US chartered fire insurance company, Philadelphia (PA), 1768
28 – First joint stock fire insurance company, Philadelphia (PA), 1810
March
01 – Weeks Law authorizes cooperation in forest fire protection, 1911
02 – US Food and Drug Administration bans carbon tetrachloride fire extinguishers, 1970
17 – First fire prevention legislation passed, Cambridge (MA), 1631
18 – Sparky the Fire Dog is born, 1951
19 – Insurance companies form committee to design what will become the National Fire Protection Association, New York (NY), 1896
27 - First steam fire engine’s public test by designer P. Hodge, New York (NY), 1841
29 - First state law banning public use of fireworks passes, Michigan, 1929
April
01 – First salaried fire department established, Cincinnati (OH), 1853
09 – First meeting of the National Board of Fire Underwriters, 1866
17 – First municipal law on fire escapes from tenements passes, New York (NY), 1860
21 – First fire house pole installed, New York, 1878
24 – First alarm received from first fire box alarm system, Boston (MA), 1851
May
04 – National Commission on Fire Prevention and Control publishes America Burning, 1973
18 – National Fire Protection Association Standard 19B requires self-contained breathing apparatus use during fire fighting, 1971
19 – First US patent on an automatic fire alarm system issued, 1857
25 – First ad for fire insurance agent, Philadelphia (PA), 1721
30 – First rubber-lined cotton web fire hose patented by J. Boyd, Boston (MA), 1821
June
10 – First forest fire lookout tower staffed, Squaw Mountain (ME), 1905
16 – First NFPA Committee on Life Safety is appointed, 1913
July
01 – First mechanical water tower built, New York (NY), 1879
18 – Ionization detector patented, E. Meili & W. Jaeger, Berne, Switzerland, 1947
26 – Americans with Disabilities Act passes, greatly affecting safety codes, 1990
August
05 – Tests leading to home detector standards, 1975
11 – First sprinkler head patented by H.S. Parmelee, 1874
13 – National Safety Council incorporated by Congress, 1953
18 – First Volunteer Fire Fighter Recognition Day is held, 1984
September
04 – First fog nozzle is patented, 1894
14 – First use of gooseneck piping for fire engines, Boston (MA), 1815
17 – First sprinkler system patented by P.W. Pratt, 1872
28 – First fireboats arrive in the US, New York (NY) 1800
October
02 – First national Fire Prevention Week proclaimed by President Warren Harding, 1922
07 – First Fire Fighters Memorial Sunday is held, 1979
09 – First Fire Prevention Day, 1911
20 – International Association of Fire Chiefs founded, Baltimore (MD), 1873
29 – Federal Fire Prevention and Control Act of 1974 creates the US Fire Administration, 1974
November
06 – National Fire Protection Association is founded, Boston (MA), 1896
08 – First recorded use is made of mechanical water tower, New York (NY), 1879
13 – National Fireman’s Journal publishes first issue, 1877
17 – Learn Not to Burn Foundation is incorporated, Quincy (MA), 1986
December
Researching December identified no significant events.
