Irish emigrees formed first fire companies in Schuylkill
POTTSVILLE — Given the oppressive conditions under which they lived and worked, it's hard to imagine how 19th Century Irish immigrants had time to volunteer as firefighters.
Yet they did, according to firefighting historians Michael J. Kitsock and Michael R. Glore.
In 'Irish Firefighting Heritage of Schuylkill County,' they showed that immigrants from the old sod played a crucial role in forming some of the county's earliest fire companies.
The logo on this Phoenix Fire Co. No. 2, Shenandoah, fire truck features the flags of America and Ireland. RON DEVLIN/STAFF PHOTO
The social hall at Humane Fire Company No. 1 in Pottsville was filled to capacity recently when Kitsock and Glore presented an hour-long slide show focusing on Irish firefighting heritage.
Sponsored by the Schuylkill County Historical Society, the event was held in Humane in anticipation of a large turnout.
Kitsock and Glore, authors of several books on firefighting, moderated the presentation. Their work includes 'Pottsville Firefighting' and 'Reading Firefighting.' Their newest book, 'The Great Memorial Day Fire of 1945 and Other Schuylkill County Disasters,' was published last month.
Between 1820 and 1860, one in three immigrants to America were from Ireland. Following the Great Potato Famine in Ireland from 1845 to 1852, an estimated 500,000 Irish emigrated to America. In all, by 1875 some 6 million Irish settled in the U.S.
An estimated 500,000 people emigrated from Ireland to America after the potato famine of 1845.
The migration from Ireland coincided with the rise of anthracite coal, and many came to Schuylkill County to work in the mines. It's said that Irish miners went to work when it was dark, worked all day in the dark and emerged from underground when it was dark.
Kitsock borrowed a line from Tennessee Ernie Ford's 'Sixteen Tons' to illustrate the plight of Irish miners: 'St. Peter don't you call me 'cause I can't go, I owe my soul to the company store.'
The Schuylkill Hydraulians in Pottsville, now Phoenix Hook & Ladder, was the first 'Irish' fire company in Schuylkill County, the authors' research showed. It was founded in 1829, the same year D. G. Yuengling founded the Eagle Brewery in Pottsville. It celebrates its 196th anniversary this year.
Irish firefighters had a hand in the formation of Humane Steam Fire Company No 1, Mahanoy City, in 1867. A Gaelic inscription on its logo, a 4-leaf clover, reads 'Na Eireannach At Sabhail,' roughly translated 'The Irish are Safe.'
The Independent Hose Company in Minersville, formed in 1869; and Citizens' Fire Company, Palo Alto, formed in 1884, both had Irish roots.
A crew from Phoenix Fire Company No. 2, Shenandoah, arrived for the presentation in, naturally, a green firetruck. A plaque in its firehouse honoring World War II veterans, painted by Leo Ploppert, has numerous Irish surnames like Brennan, O'Brien and McDonald.
Phoenix No 2 was founded in 1885, the same year a devastating fire swept through 400 homes in a mostly Irish neighborhood in Shenandoah.
Irish surnames are common on a plaque in Phoenix Fire Co. No. 2, Shenandoah.
Other fire companies with a hint of green in their ancestry included Rescue Hook & Ladder, Saint Clair; East End Fire Company, Tamaqua; Clover Hose Company, Hecksherville, and Rangers Hose Company, Girardville.
Joseph Wayne, a lifelong member of Rangers Hose, said the presentation was a fitting tribute to Irish firefighting heritage.
Proprietor of the Hibernian House, Wayne is a great-grandson of John 'Black Jack' Kehoe, alleged leader of the Molly Maguires. Wayne served as president of Ancient Order of Hibernians John Kehoe Division No. 1 in Girardville.
'My first cousin, Jackie McDonald, was fire chief at Rangers,' he said. 'It's a well-run fire company.'
Kitsock, president of the Schuylkill Historical Fire Society, said Irish immigrants had to struggle to gain acceptance in their adopted country.
'They had to prove themselves,' he said. 'Their mettle enabled them to do the hardest jobs, and devote time to forming fire companies and fighting fires.'
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