Posts Tagged Robert J. Quinn FIre Academy

Chicago Fire Department history

Excerpts from wbez.org:

Chicago’s De Koven Street has only one address. The Chicago Fire Academy, located at 558 W. De Koven St., is a sharp-looking, mid-century modern building, wrapped in part by bright orange brick. It was once the home of a cow who was — for more than a century — blamed for starting the Great Chicago Fire of 1871.

The Chicago Fire Academy building opened in 1961, but the site’s notoriety extends back to Oct. 8, 1871, when Patrick and Catherine O’Leary’s cow was mistakenly believed to have started the fire that swept across more than three square miles of Chicago, destroying 18,000 buildings, killing some 300 people, and leaving 100,000 homeless.

The cow and Mrs. O’Leary were officially exonerated by the Chicago City Council 20 years ago, and there are several theories now about how the fire started. A drunken neighbor might have been in the O’Leary’s barn and started the fire accidentally. Or, as it’s more commonly believed, a summerlong drought and a very hot October evening might have ignited several brush fires. But the romantic story of the O’Leary cow took hold.

After the fire in October 1871, the O’Learys moved to 51st and Halsted streets. The city of Chicago bought the site on De Koven Street in 1928 for $36,000 and planned to build a memorial. 

In 1954, the city transferred the building to a land clearance agency that was acquiring property to build an expressway, which now crosses two blocks west of there. After the expressway was constructed, the unused land transferred back to the city.

In the late 1950s, a plan got rolling to build a new fire academy on the O’Leary site — a plan that dripped with irony from the beginning.

One of the reasons the 1871 fire got out of control and burned so much of the city is that the fire department was inadequate in numbers and was worn out from fighting other fires, including one the day before the big one. So training firefighters on the site where the fire purportedly started was sort of an audacious move.

City architect Paul Gerhardt Jr. designed the fire academy. He took over the post from his father, also named Paul, and held it for 38 years. He designed public buildings all over the city, including fire stations on 42nd Street and South Green Street; police stations in Jefferson Park, the West Loop, and Lincoln Square; a branch library on Belmont Avenue in Lakeview; and the original administration building for Midway Airport.  The fire academy is currently one of the city’s sharpest mid-century buildings, but it’s often overlooked because of its once-isolated site.

On the northwest corner of the site, at Taylor and Jefferson streets, the building is a five-story cube of bright orange brick, with a line of clerestory windows along the top of the fire-training wing. Inside those brick walls is an artificial streetscape of fire escapes, windows, and chimneys that are used for mock firefighting exercises. On the southeast side is a three-story wing for offices and classrooms. This wing is wrapped in windows with horizontal sun shades projecting off them.

In July, Mayor Rahm Emanuel announced plans to replace both the Quinn Fire Academy and a West Loop police training facility with a new $95 million combined training center on 30 acres near Chicago Avenue and Pulaski Road. The new training center is supposed to be complete in the year 2020, and the city hasn’t announced plans for the two facilities it will replace. 

As we approach the 146th anniversary of the fire on Sunday, the question is: How much longer will this building be an ironic monument to a massive fire that the city couldn’t beat?

thanks Austin

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Chicago Fire Department Lodd Firefighter Juan Bucio (more)

Excerpts from the ChicagoSunTimes.com:

Family and colleagues gathered in The Robert J. Quinn Fire Academy on Tuesday to honor the life of Juan Bucio, the Chicago Fire Department diver who died May 28 searching for a missing man who had fallen off a boat in the Chicago River.

The building where firefighters and paramedics sharpen their skills also serves as a solemn place of reflection for firefighters and family. Along a wall in the academy is a case that memorializes the fallen firefighters and paramedics with their badges and nameplates.

The mayor joined Chicago Fire Commissioner José A. Santiago, Bucio’s two sons and the diver’s brother in unveiling badge number 5115 in the wall of honor display case as Amazing Grace echoed through the building.

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Chicago FD LODD Firefighter Daniel Capuano, 12-14-15 (more)

Excerpts from dnainfo.com:

Julie Capuano remembered visiting her late husband Daniel, more than a decade ago when he was a training at the Robert J. Quinn Fire Academy. Capuano pulled his then pregnant wife aside to show her the Wall of Fallen Heroes. Inside the display case at 558 W. DeKoven St. are hundreds of badges of fallen firemen.

Daniel Capuano’s badge was added to that wall Wednesday afternoon (6/22/16) in a ceremony honoring the fallen firefighter from Mount Greenwood. Capuano, 42, died Dec. 14 while working a warehouse fire at 92nd Street and Baltimore Avenue. He fell two stories down an unmarked elevator shaft.

“I never thought we’d be here,” Julie Capuano said. “It’s heartbreaking to see his name.”

He left behind Julie, and their three children — Amanda, Andrew and Nicholas. Later that afternoon Amanda and Nicholas placed a brick engraved with their father’s name at the Chicago Fire Department Fallen Firefighter/Paramedic Memorial Park along the lakefront at 2300 S. Ft. Dearborn Dr.

Seeing the names on the wall, Julie Capuano remembered her husband attending the funerals of some of men whose badges are now placed beside his own. She found several prayer cards belonging to these fallen co-workers recently when going through his things.

“It’s a great honor for him to be on that wall with all those other guys,” she said.

thanks Dan

All of the posts about the LODD of Chicago FD Firefighter Daniel Capuano can be viewed HERE

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Post Office to be named in memory of Fallen CFD Captain Herbie Johnson

 

Captain Herbert Johnson Post Office Dedication

Previous post can be found HERE

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Post Office to be named in memory of Fallen CFD Captain Herbie Johnson

The Chicago Tribune has an article about the status of a measure to rename a post office in memory of CFD Captain Herbie Johnson:

Congressman Dan Lipinski (IL-3) has announced that the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee has approved the Herbie Johnson Post Office bill, HR 3085. The bill would rename the post office in Chicago’s Mount Greenwood community after longtime Chicago Fire Captain Herbert “Herbie” Johnson. The 54-year-old died two years ago while fighting a house fire on the city’s South Side.

“Captain Johnson heroically served area residents for over 32 years, paying the ultimate price protecting the neighborhoods he loved,” Rep. Lipinski said. “This bill not only honors him, but all first responders who bravely put their lives on the line every day for people they don’t even know. This bill insures that Johnson, his family and the sacrifices of all first responders will not be forgotten by future generations.”
Over the years, Johnson taught over one thousand recruits as an instructor at the Robert J. Quinn Fire Academy. After the terrorist attacks on 9-11, he volunteered with the rescue efforts in New York City. In 2007, he received the state’s highest award for firefighters, the Illinois Medal of Honor, for rescuing several children from a burning apartment.

Congressman Lipinski’s bill would designate the Mount Greenwood Post Office, at 3349 West 111th Street in Chicago, the “Captain Herbert Johnson Memorial Post Office Building.”

thanks Dan

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Images from the Quinn Fire Academy

Images from Tim Olk of the CFD academy class at the Robert J. Quinn Fire Academy, 5-2-14. (part 3)

 

fire department training instructor stokes fire

Tim Olk photo

fire department training instructor stokes fire

Tim Olk photo

fire department training instructor stokes fire

Tim Olk photo

fire department training instructor stokes fire

Tim Olk photo

Firefighter live-fire training

Tim Olk photo

firefighters after training

Tim Olk photo

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Images from the Quinn Fire Academy

Images from Tim Olk of the CFD academy class at the Robert J. Quinn Fire Academy, 5-2-14. (part 2)

fire department recruit class photo

Tim Olk photo

fire department recruits with instructor

Tim Olk photo

Quinn Fire Academy in Chicago

Tim Olk photo

fire department recruit with instructor

Tim Olk photo

fireman on ladder with American flag

Tim Olk photo

fire department training tower

Tim Olk photo

Robert J. Quinn Fire Academy in Chicago

Tim Olk photo

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Images from the Quinn Fire Academy

Images from Tim Olk of the CFD academy class at the Robert J. Quinn Fire Academy, 5-2-14. (part 1)

fire department ceremony

Tim Olk photo

firefighter recruits at training

Tim Olk photo

firefighter recruits at training

Tim Olk photo

firefighter recruits at training

Tim Olk photo

fire chief officer with recruit

Tim Olk photo

firefighter recruits at training

Tim Olk photo

fire chief officer with recruit

Tim Olk photo

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Bill to rename the post office in memory of Captain Johnson

Congressman Daniel Lipinski has introduced a bill to rename a post office in memory of CFD Captain Herbie Johnson. From his website:

To honor a longtime Chicago firefighter who lost his life in the line of duty and to pay tribute to all first responders, U.S. Rep. Dan Lipinski (IL-3) has introduced H.R. 3085, a bill to rename the post office in Chicago’s Mount Greenwood community after Chicago Fire Capt. Herbert “Herbie” Johnson. The 32-year veteran of the Chicago Fire Department and resident of Chicago’s Morgan Park community died last year while fighting a house fire on the city’s South Side.

“Capt. Herbie Johnson, like so many of our first responders, served heroically and selflessly. His passing and the outpouring from the community where he lived and served was tremendously moving and inspiring,” Rep. Lipinski said. “My legislation to rename the Mount Greenwood Post Office makes sure that he will never be forgotten.

An outgoing, caring and dedicated public servant, Capt. Johnson was popular and well-liked throughout the Mount Greenwood, Beverly, and Morgan Park communities on Chicago’s Southwest Side. Almost every year he drove the fire truck down Western Avenue for the South Side Irish St. Patrick’s Day Parade. In 2007, he received the state’s highest award for firefighters, the Illinois Medal of Honor, for rescuing several children from a burning apartment.

On Nov. 2, 2012, Capt. Johnson died while battling flames in the attic of a two-story home in Chicago’s Englewood community. He was 54 years old. Capt. Johnson was survived by his wife of 28 years, Susan, two sons, Thomas and Michael, and a daughter, Laurie.

Following the tragedy, Rep. Lipinski’s office reached out to the family, neighborhood officials and leaders, as well as the Chicago Fire Department, to discuss commemorating Johnson’s sacrifice and the bravery displayed each day by the men and women in our police and fire departments. [The] legislation would designate the Mount Greenwood Post Office, at 3349 W. 111th St., the “Captain Herbert Johnson Memorial Post Office Building.”

Capt. Johnson came from a family of public servants. Three of his brothers are Chicago police officers. A sister is a retired Chicago police officer. Another brother is a Chicago firefighter. Capt. Johnson served in almost every Chicago neighborhood as a firefighter, but his heart belonged to the Southwest Side.

“Herbie Johnson was a great friend, an admired and respected leader in the Chicago Fire Department, and a beloved figure in our neighborhood,” said 19th Ward Ald. Matt O’Shea. “Thanks to Congressman Lipinski and this legislation, Herbie’s incredible heart, quick wit, and unique sense of humor will be in our hearts and minds forever.”

Capt. Johnson was active in many causes dear to the Chicago Fire Department. In addition to serving as a mentor to many firefighters, Johnson taught more than 1,000 recruits as an instructor at the Robert J. Quinn Fire Academy. After the terrorist attacks on Sept. 11, 2001, he volunteered with the rescue efforts in New York City. He also was known to cook for various charity events and offer his time at a camp founded by a friend for young burn victims — the “Bucks for Burn Camp.”

A copy of Rep. Lipinski’s bill and a letter of support from the International Association of Fire Fighters are attached.

 Letter from IAFF (09/16/13 01:13 PM PST)
 Legislation to rename Mount Greenwood Post Office (09/16/13 01:12 PM PST)

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2013 Chicago Fire Engine Rally & Swap Meet (pt 4)

In addition to the Ahrens Fox, several other units were flowing water at the muster. More images from Steve Redick.

Peotone Fire Protection District

Steve Redick photo

Peotone Fire Protection District

Steve Redick photo

American LaFrance Century Series engine flowing water

Steve Redick photo

Chicago Robert J. Quinn Fire Academy

Steve Redick photo

Peotone Fire Protection District

Steve Redick photo

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