History of Histories

• 1936 – Six-page history written by Works Progress Administration (WPA) writers.
• 1944 – Six-page historical sketch written by former Fire Chief Sherwood Brockwell and others, published as commemorative booklet at fire department event.
• 1951 – Ladies auxiliary formed. Members created scrapbooks through the 1960s, including photos and newspaper clippings.
• 1970 – City fire protection report published that included a five-page history written by local historian Elizabeth Davis Reid.
• 1970s – Newspaper clippings compiled in three-ring binders by Public Affairs for several years.
• 1984 – First commemorative history book (or “yearbook”) published, with text history written by department historian Captain B. T. Fowler from sources including research by Elizabeth Reid Murray.
• 1993 – Raleigh City Museum opened in Borden Building at Fletcher Park. First exhibit was How Fire Changed the Face of Raleigh, created by Captain Fowler.
• 2001 – First unofficial web pages on history of fire department created by former firefighter Mike Legeros. Content was seeded with history text from 1984 and forthcoming 2002 yearbooks.
• 2002 – Second yearbook published, with  text history reprinted from the 1984 yearbook with additional sections written by Captain Peter Brock.
• 2003 – “Raleigh and Wake County Firefighting” written by Mike Legeros, the first of two paperback photo history books published by Arcadia Publishing.
• 2004 – Mike Legeros started researching official records at Station 1, and city records at the City Clerk’s office.
• 2006 – Elizabeth Reid Murray Collection donated to Olivia Raney Local History Library, which included extensive historical information about the Raleigh Fire Department.
• 2007 – Third yearbook published, with historical text written by Mike Legeros, including a previous web-published text history “Birth of the Fire Department.”
• 2008 – Raleigh Fire Department Historical Society organized, led by Battalion Chief Alan Walters and Mike Legeros, now also the department’s official historian.
• 2011 – Historical society opened fire museum in modular classroom building at the training center.
• 2012 – Historical society renamed Raleigh Fire Museum.
• 2012 – Fourth yearbook published, with text history created by Mike Legeros, that incorporated and expanded the text sections from the 1984 and 2002 yearbooks, expanded the station histories from the 2007 yearbook, and added additional historical text sections.
• 2025 – Fifth yearbook published, with visual history and other historical captions and notations created by Mike Legeros, that repurposed and expanded upon content from the 2012 yearbook.

Last updated March 27, 2026