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January 5, 2018


January 4, 1983:  Treadwell Industrial Park
January 6, 1958:  Youthful Driver Lucky to be Alive
January 6, 1988:  Youthful Firefighter Baptized by Fire
1951:  Jesswig Drive
2017:  Jesswig Drive
HFRA Winter Meeting Announcement

January 12, 2018


HFRA Meeting Agenda
January 13, 1918:  Hamden Plains Methodist Church
January 12, 1968:  Broadway and Ives Street
January 9, 2008:  28 Turnor Avenue

January 19, 2018


$50K Earmarked to Rehab West Woods Schoolhouse
     for Fire Museum
January 15, 1963:  Sick Benefit Assn. Elects New
     Officers
O'Hare and Davin Sweeping Up at 3's
January 23, 1958:  Co. 5 Revitalized
January 22, 1948:  Shorter Hours for Firefighters

January 26, 2018


"Get well soon, Rev!"
January 27, 1905:  Upper Axle Works Burns
Out-of-town Ladder Truck Has Hamden Connection
Spark Time: Plainville's Diamond-T Ladder Truck
Ice Build-up on Connecticut River

February 2, 2018


February 3, 1978:  Daw Packing Company
May 30, 1969 - Bob Slater (Camera Shy)
January 30, 2018: YALE Bus Erupts
January 31, 1993:  End of an Era
Spark Time: Mill Plain's Ward-LaFrance pumper
     (Danbury)
Last Week's Hamden Connection Answered

February 9, 2018


"A Slice of History" - Putnam Avenue Fire Bell
February 12, 1953:  Country Club Pharmacy
Don Buchele in the "Crown Vic"
Spark Time: Guilford's F.C. Spencer Hook & Ladder
     Co. 1's Mack

February 16, 2018


February 13, 194?:  Whitney and Santa Fe
"Fire Safety and Prevention" demo at SCSU
February 20, 1918:  Safety Car under construction
     at Dixwell and Putnam
December 13, 1968:  Whitney and Day Spring "Wash
     Down"
Connecticut Vanguards - New from Eric Lehman
February 13, 1949:  Whitney and Santa Fe

February 23, 2018


February 24, 1973:  Tanker Disaster on Glenbrook
     Avenue
O'Callaghan Named Elks' Firefighter of the Year
February 23, 1978:  Female Candidates on Civil Service
     List
Spark Time: Darien Volunteer Fire Department's Early
     1930s Ahrens-Fox

March 2, 2018


2018 L2687 Retirement Dinner-Dance Poster
Summer 1970:  Hamden's New 100' Aerial at Maxim
     Factory
Hamden's One and Only Ferrara
March 1, 1861:  Whitney Gun Factory Explosion on the
     Eve of Civil War
Hamden's 1930 Maxim 600 g.p.m. - Fresh scans of old
     negatives

March 9, 2018


110 Years of Ladder Trucks
March 12, 1908:  Hamden's First Ladder Truck
     Placed in Service
1987:  Dep. Marshal Bob Westervelt
"Car 40, 10-1" - 1975 Ford LTD
HPD Officer Mark Gery (1968-2018)

March 16, 2018


Hamden and the Gamewell Alarm System
1998:  The end of Gamewell in Hamden
March 2, 1998:  Wheeler's Garage, 2695 State Street
March 14, 2002: Hazmat Training in chronicled in
     the Chronicle
St. Patrick's Day at 4's
August 21, 1954:  Woodbury's Seagrave "Suburbanite"


March 23, 2018


March 25, 1998:  19 Larkspur Lane - House Fire
March 25, 2005:  New Lt., Capt., and Batt. Chief
     sworn in
Remembering George Patten (1938-2003)
March 19, 2010:  Another Mountain Rescue

March 30, 2018


LODD:  Trooper First Class Kevin M. Miller
March 30, 1968:  Children's Center, 1400 Whitney
     Avenue
1955:  Branford's 1928 Maxim at the Children's Center
     Fair
1953:  Communion Breakfast at Mt. Carmel
     Congregational Church
1983:  Ff. Carl Backus, Ff. John O'Dea, Ff. Paul
     Reutenauer and Ff. Clark Hurlburt Cited
2000-2003:  Three HFD "Snapshots in Time"
LODD:  FDNY Firefighter Michael Davidson

April 6, 2018


HFRA Spring Meeting
April 1948:  Hamden Plains / Pine Rock Floods
April 3, 1963:  The Office, 32 Lee Street
April 6, 1978:  Tomaselli recognized for saving explosion victims
April 7, 1988 - New Rescue 1 goes in service
April 7, 1988:  Wetmore, Gershman, and Murray at the Shop
80 Years Ago:  Hamden's First Rescue

April 13, 2018


HFRA Spring Meeting
April 15, 1968:  O'Donnell named to succeed Purce
Hamden Elks Donate Smoke and CO Detectors
Myth Refuted:  "The Baloney Shop" was never a school.
Spark Time:  Noroton's Seagrave Quad (1951 Photo)

April 20, 2018


Local 2687 Annual Dinner
April 22, 1958:  Norman Brothers Honored
1953:  Arthur Norman, HFD's first retiree
April 1983:  HFD featured in Alarm Room News
April 20, 2018:  Department conducts crash demonstration
Spark Time:  Branford's 1942 Maxim 750 GPM (factory photo)

April 27, 2018


April 22, 2018:  192 Eramo Terrace - House Fire
50 Years Ago:  HFD Raises $4,300 for MDA
Rescue 45 and other early radio designations
August 1950:  Co. 5's Maxim on the ramp
April 26, 1963:  Mt. Carmel Volunteers'
     New Haven Journal-Courier Fundraiser

May 4, 2018


May 3-4, 1978:  Fire bug plagues West Rock Ridge
March 1973:  Don Steele's 1952 Greenwich Seagrave
May 5, 1973:  Hamden Volies at New Haven Fire Training School
March 1955:  Hamden's Civil Defense Fire Auxiliary Sworn In
May 1, 1955:  1885 State Street - firefighters remove five

May 11, 2018


May 1948:  Hamden Paid Firemen's Sick Benefit Assn. Organized
     Brief History
1971:  Ladder 1 at High School - Ff. John Reilly, et. al.
May 1973:  McDermott, Laffin, and Macdowall Promoted/Sworn in
April 1988:  Platoon 2, Station 2

May 20, 2018


May 15, 2018:  TORNADO slams into Mt. Carmel and West Woods
Iconic Jonathan Dickerman House and Cider Mill Damaged
New Floor Drains at Station 9

May 25, 2018


2018 Memorial Day Invitation to March
May 25, 1988:  Davenport Residence Fire
Why Jimmy D Missed the "Big One"
Memorial Day 1988 Photo

June 1, 2018


Tornado Update:  Red Cross Reports 86 Homes Destroyed
Memorial Day 2018 Photos
Memorial Day 1998 Photo
Memorial Day 1978:
     Refinishing the wooden ground ladders
     Truck 2 in the parade
     Lieut. Eitler in line of march with three future Chiefs
June 1, 1973:  Pre-Mountain Rescue Team Mountain Rescue
June 6, 1963:  Co. 9's 1929 Seagrave Ladder Truck
1948:  Memorial Day Parade Route Outlined
1938:  Chief's daughter featured in school photo

June 8, 2018


June 8, 1968:  5th Annual Firemen's Field Day (w/ Video)
May 27, 1948:  Wintergreen Avenue Barn
1978 vs. 2018:  Ladder Maintenance
June-July 1996:  Historic Flags Fly at Station 4
1888:  38-star Flag at Hamden Historical Society flew on "the Giant"

June 15, 2018


HFRA Begins 10th Year
Firefighter Nelson Hwang Appointed to Second Inspector Slot
1975:  Dolan Meets Slater - A Prophetic Fire Station Visit
November 30, 1999:  Training off Shepard Avenue
June 19, 2010:  Walt McCall and Chan Brainard at
     SPAAMFAA Summer Muster in Colorado
June 20, 1963:  Rite Box Co. Fire, 2317 Whitney Avenue
June 15, 1978:  Station 3 Watch Desk

June 22, 2018


May 27, 2018:  Doug Yocher, former CVFD Chief, in Cheshire Parade
January 13, 1951:  Fennbrook Drive Brush Fire
Tornado Aftermath:  A Visit Well Appreciated - Tom Doherty with HFD friends
June 19, 2018:  New Haven County Emergency Plan Meeting at 8's
New Car 3 and Engine 5 Quint
Purple Dumpster Truck Tripped Up on Benham Street

2018 Summer Bulletin Board


Edward Charboneau Jr (1968 - 2018)
Gil Spencer Recovering
Bevins and Esposito - At Last!
Firefighters Rescue Kitten Trapped in Storm Drain
HFD Welcomes New Firefighter, Jason Stevens
Local 2687 Charity Golf Tournament (Announcement)
Happy Birthday, Chief Wetmore - The Big 8-0
Firefighters "Visit" Station 6 - First Time in 48 Years
Busy Wednesday Evening on Pine Rock Avenue
"Florida Cracker" Fire Department
2018 Hamden Summer Concerts (Schedule)
25th Anniversary HVFF Fireworks (with videos)
70th Anniversary - 57 Gorham Avenue Garage Fire - July 2, 1948
Apparatus Inventory - July 1948
Lieut. Frank Critchett's Last Shift - November 30, 2005
Fireworks at the Powder Farm - July 3, 1934
165 Years Ago (1853) - Hamden Irons Works Fire
65 Years Ago (1953) - Truck Mishap on Ives Street
Sen. John McCain (1936 - 2018)
Rep. Lawrence DeNardis (1938 - 2018)
New Index of Archives and Firefighting
Staff Sgt. John H. Canty, U.S. Army Air Force (1921 - 1944)

September 7, 2018


April 1979:  Three retirees honored at Firehouse Restaurant
September 2, 1948 - Bowling at Whitneyville firehouse
September 6, 1958 - Barn farn on Commissioner's property
Engine 260 Muster - Today and 35 Years ago

September 11, 2018


NEVER FORGET!

September 14, 2018


October 2002 9/11 Memorial at MSG - Part 1:
     Hamden Firefighters Among 343 Flag Bearers
9/11 Thoughts - N.H. Register article
April 2, 1969 - Bobby Slater at Station 6
August 1971 - Fooling Around with Foam at PW
2018 Engine 260 Muster Photos

September 21, 2018


2018 - Fill the Boot!
September 21, 1938 - Great New England Hurricane
"White Powder" Scare on State Street
October 2002 9/11 Memorial at MSG - Part 2:
     Hamden Firefighters Among 343 Flag Bearers

September 28, 2018


Chief Berardesca Retires
Lieut. Douglas Yocher (1938-2018)
Sanford Street Condo Fire
October 1, 1958 - Aerial Truck Demo
8" of Rain in Just a Few Hours
September 28, 1875 - New Haven Web Co. Fire
Chan Brainard 2013 Visit to HFD
October 2, 1993 - Fire Prevention Week

October 5, 2018


37th Annual National Fallen Firefighters Memorial
Chief Berardesca's Final Week
Lightning Strikes Warner St. Apt. Bldg.
1963 Fire Prevention: Leddy, Hume and Strain
Remembering Doug Yocher (1938-2018)
1950s Boys' Week Honorees w/Spencer and Ruwet

October 12, 2018


October 12 - Chief Berardesca Day in Hamden
Video: Chief's Farewell Remarks
HFRA Autumn Meeting
Chief Spencer with HQ mascot "Blackie"
9-1-1 Texting Now Available

October 19, 2018


Firefighter Milner Benham (1928-2018)
Merwede Named Acting-Chief
Capt. Burt Hillocks
FDNY's Worst Day Before 9/11 - 1966 Disaster
1954 - Station 2 Crew Rehabs the 1938 Squad

October 26, 2018


Former Hamden Mayor Craig Henrici (1953-2018)
1978 - Firefighters Lead Dual Lives
1938 - Ground Ladder Training at Putnam Avenue Station
1898 -Highwood Volunteers Assembled
1982 - Fire Prevention Demo Prep - Ed Doiron

November 2, 2018



November 9, 2018



November 16, 2018



November 23, 2018



December 1, 2018



December 7, 2018



December 14, 2018



December 21, 2018



__________

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all material on this website, including all original photos, essays, articles and commentary published herein, are Copyright © 2009-2025 by the Hamden Fire Retirees Association, Inc., and may not be copied or republished in whole or in part without prior written permission of the Hamden Fire Retirees Association, Inc.

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