Firefighter historians refurbish Cedar Rapids artifacts damaged in 2008 flood

CEDAR RAPIDS - You won't find fire poles in most new fire stations.

Between safety concerns and larger apparatus, the poles of firefighter lore just aren't very practical any more. Yet just inside the front door of the Cedar Rapids Fire Department's Central Station is a bright, brass fire pole.

While not actually functional, the pole - which was part of the fire department's original central station - instead serves as a bridge to the fire department's history in the city.

That history was nearly lost in the Flood of 2008 when mud, water, and debris inundated the previous central station and nearly destroyed decades of fire department memorabilia, equipment, and artifacts.

Thanks to the efforts of a current firefighter and a dedicated team of retired fire department personnel, much of those items nearly destroyed in the flood have been cleaned up, cataloged and put on display at the new central station.

'We don't want to lose that history,” said Lyle Theisen, a retired Cedar Rapids firefighter.

Don Lacy, a retired firefighter and 30 year veteran of the department can still remember working out of the 'old, old” central station, which was located at 427 First St. SE and was in operation from 1918 to 1985. Lacy said that's where many of the old department artifacts - equipment, alarm boxes, and other memorabilia - were kept.

'It was stored in a closet,” Lacy recalled.

When the central station was moved to 222 Third St. NW in 1985, much of that collection was put on display. At the time, the CRFD boasted the largest collection of fire marks west of the Mississippi. Before the days of municipal fire departments, fire marks were metal plaques displayed on insured buildings that served as a guide to the insurance companies' fire brigades.

Brigades only would fight fires at buildings they insured or would charge the owners of buildings insured by other companies to put out those fires.

When the flood struck in June 2008, the central station was one of the hardest-hit city buildings. After the flood receded and clean up began, current firefighter Bill Claassen and Lacy went to see what they could recover from the department's museum.

'There was probably six inches of mud at central,” Claassen said.

Much of what they recovered went home with Claassen and Lacy as there was no where else to store it at the time.

'We took it, cleaned it, and kept it,” Claassen said.

Cedar Rapids public safety spokesman Greg Buelow said the restoration team went through 'painstaking” research to catalog each piece of equipment or artifact, determine what it was and what era it came from. They scanned photos and researched the biggest fires in the department's history.

The fruits of their hard work is now on display at the new central station.

The restoration crew credits assistance from an intern who taught them how to catalog, and the History Center, which also provided them with assistance.

'They've been great partners,” Lacy said.

For Theisen, their handwork comes with a sense of pride in honoring the firefighters who came before them, 'to give them that honor and respect, to know they're not forgotten.”

Anyone with CRFD memorabilia to donate is asked to call the central station at (319) 286-5200.