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Thanks to Greg Jennings for sharing more photographs from the training burns with Kentfield and Marin County FD personnel. They are posted under Departments>Former>Angel Island FD. Thanks also to John Lando, Ken Massucco, and Grant Welling for supplying many of the missing names from the group photo posted on May 18. Grant has also shared some memories which speak for themselves. I thought twice about posting the story of the sandwich. Today that prank would probably be called 'harassment' by some, but, hey, this was in the 1970's and it happened. Still missing some names in the group shot if you can help.  "Burning Down the House" is a song originally performed by the group "Talking Heads" in 1983. This week we are sharing some classic photos from roughly 35-40 years ago at a controlled structural burn at Angel Island. They were taken by photographer, historian, and retired Marin County FD Senior Captain Greg Jennings during a period of time when Greg says about 40% of the old buildings on the island were burned for removal. Controlled structural burns for training were very common in the fire service back then. Today, environmental regulations such as air quality management, and safety regulations such as prohibiting exposure to asbestos have greatly reduced these events. In Marin, major burns in the 1970's included former military bases that were being closed down, such as Hamilton Air Force Base, and Fort Cronkite. In the case of Angel Island, it had become a California State Park in several phases that began in the 1950's. This particular burn day was with the Marin County FD and the Kentfield Fire Protection District. We need help in identifying all of the people in the group photo, and in determining the year. Mail Tom at [email protected] if you can help. Thanks to Greg for sharing these great photos! Click here to go to the Angel Island page to see the burn photos:  The group photo following the training burn of the old CHP building in Corte Madera circa early 1980's. This was done to make way for the new Village Shopping Center. Photo by Tom Forster. This week we are sharing an amazing list of known historical fire apparatus in Marin County, with permission. It was researched and compiled by Chris Cavette of Fremont, California. Chris is a long-time volunteer currently serving as the Newsletter Editor of the California Chapter of the Society for the Preservation & Appreciation of Antique Motor Fire Apparatus in America, also known as SPAAMFAA. This incredible work for Marin County is only a small part of his contribution to fire history - he is doing this for the entire Western States, county by county! Help Chris complete this list - you'll note that there are some unknowns for many departments, and some FD's are missing. Chris now has our master list of known FD's. Thanks Chris!  Terra Linda FD's 1942 American La France pumper. |
AuthorOur Blog announces new site content, and gives the context of the topic and it's relationship to fire service history. Written by Bill Lellis & Paul Smith Archives
August 2022
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