Digging Deeper: Researching the Fire--Using Facebook to find "Knoxville's" 1st Motorized Fire Truck

For all its ills, social media--Facebook in particular--can be a very useful tool for the twentieth-first century researcher. What began in the early to mid-2000s as an exclusive social networking platform for Ivy League and other college students--today's so-called "Xennials" & the earliest "Millenials"--has since rapidly expanded to anyone with internet access who is at least 13 years of age. By the late 2000s, Baby Boomers and their parents were fast becoming active on the social medial platform as they wanted not only to connect with family and friends, but also reconnect with long, lost friends through group pages often associated with their high schools and communities. In the process, group pages devoted to communities that they had once lived or currently resided were born and these pages became portals for members to share and preserve the history of their communities through photographs, newspaper clippings, oral accounts, letters, etc., etc. Likewise, group pages devoted to a particular hobby or interest that members joined because of a subject that they were passionate about developed along the same lines. The posts on these pages not only generate a reaction in the form of a thumbs up, but also receive comments from people who have a connection to the subject matter or, better yet, have more historical information/artifacts to share to the discussion. For a historian, these posts shared on group pages can be a gold mine to discover primary sources that are not currently preserved in an archives or some historical repository, but rather are currently being shared on social media via someone sitting in front of their desktop, laptop, or mobile phone making either a post or a comment.

Since I began actively researching for the book, I have joined any and all Facebook pages that relate to the subject matter of my project--Knoxville, TN history & firefighting. My favorite pages--the ones that have been most useful--are Knoxville Tennessee History & Memories (devoted to, as the name suggests--Knoxville's history) and SPAAMFAA (The Society for the Preservation and Appreciation of Antique Motor Fire Apparatus of America), which includes very knowledgeable people who have worked in the firefighting sector whether it be as a firefighter or a mechanic, or perhaps are enthusiasts who have purchased and restored vintage firefighting apparatus. There are additional pages devoted to Knoxville history and more particularly hand and steam fire engines that are also very useful; however, these two Facebook group pages have been very useful and both boast over 20,000 members. That does not necessarily translate into 20,000 experts on the subject matter of their respective pages; most members join simply to read the posts and learn something rather than engage and share content themselves. But among these members, there are indeed experts, those who have firsthand knowledge of the subject matter. Some are very passionate about a particular subject. For instance, they know everything about every mile of railroad track in and around Knoxville or they know the inner workings of American LaFrance fire trucks. Perhaps they are connected to a first family of Tennessee and have a stash of personal papers and other trinkets or treasures from generations of their ancestors locked away in boxes in the attic. Though they may live far away in another state, on the opposite coast, or even another continent, that knowledge, that rich history, is waiting to be shared if researchers reach out and make contact with these valuable conduits of history who are but a mouse click away.

Now, for an example of how one of these Facebook group pages helped me discover an image of "Knoxville's" first motorized fire truck (you will soon discover why Knoxville is placed in quotes), let me begin with the following photograph (see below) that was shared with me by the great-granddaughter of James C. McIntosh, Jr., the fire chief during Knoxville's Million Dollar Fire. I will, in an informal or casual manner, work through the process by which I analyze a historical photograph.

Engine Co. 4 on Gay Street (L to R: George A. Leach, Driver; Capt. James C. McIntosh;
Lt. James Huffaker; William W. Henry; unknown; Joseph Mack Hickey

First, I am immediately curious as to the specific time, location, and model of fire truck in this photograph. The image was shared with me without any additional information except that the gentleman seated next to the driver (second from left) was James C. McIntosh.

So, what next? Now comes the flood of questions to answer of this particular photograph. From my own knowledge of Knoxville history and as a student of history, I am immediately drawn to identifying the specific time and location of the image:

Time & Location: obviously an early motorized fire truck; so, has to be post-1913 when Knoxville first became motorized (I have a list of the motorized trucks from a Knoxville history of the fire department, which I have corroborated with the City Council Meeting Minutes since I quickly discovered some discrepancies with the list that was compiled by a former firefighter).

American flags on truck; so, could be a parade.

Banner on side of truck (looking at a higher resolution scan of the photo) indicates a campaign to sale war bonds. Thus, since the image was taken during a war bonds sale and considering the vehicle's design, more likely age of the WWI rather than WWII era, I will assume the photograph was taken during WWI in the 1910s (noting that the war took place between 1914-18 but United States military involvement in the war was 1917-18); however, I need to look at more details to nail down the time for certain.

For example, the business in the background will help identify location and a search of Knoxville's city directories will help narrow the time. Working on the assumption that this could be WWI era, I immediately went to check the city directories for 1914-1918. Looking up "L.B. Trotter," I found a similar name for a clothing store located at 207 Gay Street (matches the address in the picture!) in 1916--the business was located at the 207 address from 1912-1916; however, the business is no longer listed in the 1917 and subsequent city directories. It appears L.B. Trotter went out of business either after the 1916 city directory was printed or sometime in 1917.

So now I know the location = 200 block of the west side of Gay Street and that the time period is certainly within the WWI era. Because L.B. Trotter was closed at some point in either late 1916 or sometime in 1917, that does not mean that the photo is certainly before 1917 as the signage could still remain above the store before a new business entered.

A little more research before reaching out for help on social media. I decided to search for WWI parades and Knoxville had a few indeed. There were a couple big parades to celebrate Armistice Day and to welcome the soldiers home; however, these came at the end of the war. Would a bond sale be needed after the war? Wouldn't think so, right? I went to look for parades held during the WWI itself, when Knoxville sent its soldiers off to war. I quickly zeroed in on September 7, 1917, the only parade that I could find during the war and a day in which thousands of Knoxvillians turned out to say goodbye to the men of the Third Tennessee Infantry, an East Tennessee regiment of 900 strong headed off for combat service in France. As the troops marched to the railway station a band played, flags waved, and cheering crowds lined the streets. Among the festivities, the fire department's new fleet of trucks were adorned with flags and, SIGNIFICANT, the firemen of each station rode atop their apparatus.

Front page of the Knoxville Journal and Tribune, Sept. 8, 1913 noting 40,000 Knoxvillians turned out to send the Third Tennessee Infantry off to France.

Ernest E. Burtt's front page cartoon depicting the Third Tennessee's send off
Knoxville Journal and Tribune, September 7, 1917 

Discovering make and model of the fire truck: Now, feeling solidly confident on location of the photograph and fairly good about its date, I was ready to seek out expert help identifying the particular model of fire truck in the image. As I previously mentioned, I had a list of fire trucks in Knoxville's motor pool as of September 7, 1917. Therefore, I posted the above photograph on the SPAAMFAA (The Society for the Preservation and Appreciation of Antique Motor Fire Apparatus of America) Facebook page and asked if anyone could help identify the model and year. Within minutes I began receiving comments on my post and private messages from not only fire truck enthusiasts, but also people who had worked for American LaFrance, one of the nation's largest companies that built fire trucks. Soon, a retired American LaFrance employee, who is currently affiliated with the North Charleston Fire Museum in South Carolina, had the answer (it was also corroborated by other members on the page in quick succession). He informed me that the truck in the photograph was an American LaFrance, Type 10 Triple Combination Pumper with its characteristic 4-cylinder engine, short hood, and flat fenders. It came complete with gas headlamps, hooks, ladders, chemicals, and a 40-gallon water tank capable of pumping 500 gallons of water per minute and attaining a speed of 60 miles per hour. This particular model was the only one servicing Knoxville before the city fathers began purchasing the then new, American LaFrance 6-cylinder Type 12 that they would buy in bulk in 1917 as the department became fully motorized and new stations were hastily built to accommodate a rapidly expanding city thanks to the 1917 annexations.



American LaFrance Type 10 Triple Combination Pumper

American LaFrance
Knoxville notecard

This was rather exciting news because my research and the list of Knoxville's earliest fire trucks confirms that Knoxville has had only one Type 10 fire truck in its history. So, this must be a photograph of "Knoxville's" first motorized fire truck? Additional information was shared with me in the form of notecards compiled by an American LaFrace historian that includes the various apparatus ordered by Knoxville along with their registration numbers and shipment dates. With the shipment date of January 11, 1913 for the Type 10, I could cross check with Knoxville's newspapers--Daily Journal and Tribune and Sentinel--to find any articles of the truck's arrival and testing. Sure enough, I found articles noting its arrival on the evening of January 16, 1913 and first public test six days later. But what struck me from the articles is that I learned that the fire truck was not meant for Knoxville's Fire Department. Rather, it was destined for Park City, in what is now East Knoxville.

Park City was its own community that in 1913 stood on the outskirts of Knoxville's city limits. They had their own government and fire department and had placed the order for the Type 10 truck with American LaFrance. Thus, Park City's Fire Department became motorized a full year before Knoxville would purchase its first motor fire engine for its fire department. But the Type 10 fire truck would see action in Knoxville between 1913-17 as both departments often sent their firefighters and apparatus to help assist in fires. In 1917, Knoxville's city limits expanded significantly as a result of annexations that included Park City.


Knoxville Daily Journal and Tribune (January 18, 1913)

The annexations of 1917 help explain how Knoxville came to acquire the Type 10 truck originally owned by Park City. Prior to 1917, Knoxville owned 3 motorized fire trucks, 2 of which were stationed at the main headquarters at Commerce Ave. and one at Central Market Fire Hall at Emory Park (Engine Company #3). On May 15, 1917, as recorded in his diary, Knoxville's fire chief Sam B. Boyd made the decision to pull the Type 10 fire truck from Park City and bring it to Engine Company #4, located in East Knoxville at the corner of Clinch and Lithgoe Streets, so as to strategically locate the motorized fire trucks in central locations within Knoxville while the city fathers placed orders with American LaFrance for additional Type 12 trucks to cover the rapidly expanding city. In turn, Boyd ordered Knoxville's second newest steamer, the 1904 J.T. McTeer, which had been stationed with Captain McIntosh's Engine Company #4, to be sent to Park City. Though temporarily returned to the horse drawn steam era, Park City's fire department would soon receive one of the brand new Type 12 trucks.


Knoxville's 1904 steamer J.T. McTeer (American LaFrance 750 GPM, Serial 500) 
stationed at Engine Co. 4 in East Knoxville c. Oct. 1911-May 1917

Thus, I have drawn the conclusion that the American LaFrance Type 10 fire truck had been acquired by the Knoxville Fire Department for Engine Co. 4's use nearly four months before the company, as pictured in the photograph, paraded the truck on Gay Street on September 7, 1917 to send off East Tennessee's doughboys to fight in France during World War I.

Now, who are the men pictured in the photograph? I was able to identify the gentlemen in the photograph from a retired Knoxville firefighter who collected and preserved the department's history. Within that collection, were numerous photographs of Engine Company 4 with identifications of the firefighters, including a copy of the photograph shared with me by James C. McIntosh's great-granddaughter. I was able to determine for certainty looking at several photographs that the names listed for the individuals appeared to match up according to whoever had originally identified the firefighters in the images.

Lots of pieces in a jigsaw puzzle to assemble, indeed; however, social media can be a useful tool in helping piece that puzzle together.

I will be periodically sharing more of these stories of interesting finds from the course of my research in forthcoming "Digging Deeper: Researching the Fire" blogs.