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 The
evolution of the present Bureau of Training began in
1869, just four years after the
New York City Fire Department was founded as a paid
force. The Board of Metropolitan Fire Commissioners,
headed by General Alexander Shaler established an "Officers
School" and wrote a "Manual of Instruction" for
the commanding officers of engine and hook and ladder
companies.
Up to that point, the "Foreman"
(Captain) of a given company was responsible for the
training of his unit. This practice continues to this
day in the form of the company drill, still an important
part of a well-rounded training program.
General Order #4 of June 7, 1883, created
a formal "School of Instruction." Chris Hoell
of the St. Louis Fire Department was hired to train
members of this department in the recently invented
Hoell Life Saving Appliance. This appliance is known
today as the scaling ladder. Second Assistant Chief
Hugh Bonner was designated "Instructor of the School."
The School of Instruction was made
up of two classes. The first was called the "Life
Saving Corps." It instructed and trained firemen
in the use of scaling ladders, ordinary ladders and
life lines. A second class covered the practical duties
of a fireman in quarters and at fires. It particularly
stressed the handling, care and use of all implements,
tools, etc., employed in extinguishing fires. The School
of Instruction was quartered with Engine Company 47
at 766 Amsterdam Avenue. An old sugar ware house at
West 158th Street and the Hudson River was used as the
First dill tower.
In 1887, the new headquarters building
was dedicated on East 67th Street The School of instruction
moved to the fifth floor of this building. A rear yard
was used as a drill ground and the rear windows were
used for Scaling ladder practice. General Order #8 of
1888 added a "Company School" to the School
of Instruction.
General Order #72 of 1911 created the
next plateau, the "Fire College." That General
Order specified that the college should consist of:
an Officers School, a School for Engineers, a Company
School and a Probationary Fireman's School. The Fire
College Board was headed by Chief of Department Edward
Croker and Deputy Chief John Kenlon.
When Engine Company 40 vacated their
quarters on West 68th Street in 1918, the Fire College
moved remaining there until 1932 when it moved to the
"Packard Building" at Queens Blvd. and Van
Dam Street. Probationary Firemen's School, however,
continued to train at 68th Street until 1963. The College,
meantime, was moved again in 1948 to Hunters Point Avenue
and 35th Street in Long Island City, to a site called
the "Shops and College Building." This is
the same building that Fleet Maintenance uses today.
Department Order No. 113 of 1960 created
the Division of Training and in 1963 a new training
center was completed on Welfare Island. All training
activities moved to this location. It was also the first
time "live fire" was used in training. until
that point simulations were with dry hoses and no fire.
The current Fire Academy on Randall's
Island was dedicated in 1975. The Division of Training
was renamed the Bureau of Training in Department Order
No. 115 of 1993, This site remains the hub of Fire Department
training to this day.
Additional information about the Bureau of Training:
Programs offered at the FDNY Fire Academy
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