Before Fire Brigades: The Strange History of Fighting Fires

Send us Fan Mail 💬 Firefighting hasn’t always meant red engines and professional crews. For centuries, fighting fires was much more chaotic. Even by the outbreak of the Second World War, Britain still had more than a thousand separate local authority fire brigades. ⚡In this episode, curator of Fireground Museum in Rochdale, Bob Bonner, takes us on a tour through the history of firefighting, explaining how it evolved into the service we know today. From insurance fire brigades, to legendary figures like Alfred Tozer and the story of the unsung heroes of the Blitz. Visit Fireground Museum: https://www.fireground.org.uk/  Don't miss an episode - subscribe now: https://podfollow.com/what-we-did-before About the podcast: What We Did Before is a podcast exploring the history of everyday life, from how we kept food fresh before fridges, to how we survived without shoes and what came before AI. About your host: Ollie Guillou is an award-winning podcast producer and broadcaster. He's co-founder of OG Podcasts, working with the likes of New Scientist, Dr Karan and Lessons From Our Mothers. Connect with Ollie: Website: www.ogpodcasts.co.uk  LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ollie-guillou  Email: [email protected] Image credit: James Braidwood Statue: Secret Pilgrim from England, CC BY-SA 2.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0 via Wikimedia Commons Gallet helmet: Triplerv, CC BY-SA 3.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0 via Wikimedia Commons Support the show