WWW.QNS.COM RIDGEWOOD TIMES OCTOBER 17, 2019 31
BY THE OLD TIMER
EDITORIAL@RIDGEWOODTIMES.COM
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On July 25, 1896, the Ivanhoe
Park Hose Company, a volunteer
fire company, was
organized with G.H. Fischer as
foreman. There were 30 members
in the company.
The company came to be through
the help of Henry W. Meyer, a
wealthy Glendale resident who
manufactured Ivanhoe brand chewing
tobacco. He donated funds to
the volunteer firemen to help them
buy their equipment, and even had
a pumping station built for them to
ensure they had enough water to
fight fires.
Meyer built the station on part
of 54 acres of land previously part
of the Edsall Farm which he had
purchased back in August 1889.
This tract of land, which included
a large farmhouse, was bounded
by present-day streets Fresh Pond
Road on the west, Central Avenue
on the south, Catalpa Avenue on the
north and 69th Place and 70th Street
on the east.
In the years that followed, homes
would be developed on much of this
land as part of the Ivanhoe Park development,
named of course for the
tobacco company.
In October 1896, the Ivanhoe Park
Fire Company expanded to include
hook and ladder equipment. The
members then applied for admission
into the Newtown Fire Department,
a volunteer department made up of
fire units in various villages in the
township.
When they added the hook and
ladder equipment, the name of the
company was changed to the Ivanhoe
Hook and Ladder Company. On
Dec. 21, 1896, their application was
approved, and they became part of
the Newtown Fire Department, and
were designated as Ivanhoe Hook
and Ladder Company 10.
Company 10 built a firehouse on
the east side of Fresh Pond Road
(now Cypress Hills Street) and
Myrtle Avenue on a plot of land
formerly part of the Backus Family
Farm.
The Ivanhoe Hook and Ladder was
pulled by two horses. Whenever
word was received of a fire, a gong
rang out to alert nearby firemen to
report for duty. The horses were
eager to be off and running. When
they were let out of their stalls into
the stable area, the harness which
was suspended from the ceiling was
dropped onto their backs. A chain
across the stable area was then
dropped, and the horses released
from the stable. The hose was stored
on a platform on the underside of
the wagon.
The volunteer work, like traditional
firefighter duty, came with
risk. On Jan. 76, 1912, 36-year-old
Jacob Witzman, a volunteer with
Ivanhoe Hook and Ladder Company
10, suffered an injury.
He drove the team of two horses
to a fire along Fresh Pond Road
when the horses suddenly galloped
out of control.
Witzman shouted to the other
firemen on the wagon to jump to
save themselves. Before they could
do so, the horses ran into a fence at
the Long Island Rail Road crossing
at the corner of Fresh Pond Road
and Metropolitan Avenue.
Six firemen were thrown off their
wagon, but only Witzman was hurt.
He was treated at German Hospital
(today known as Wyckoff Heights
Medical Center) and was released.
In January 1913, the New York City
Fire Department, with its team of
paid firefighters, began replacing
the volunteer fire companies of
Newtown.
Seven New York City companies
would replace 13 volunteer fire
companies, and six new firehouses
were constructed. One of these
firehouses was built at the corner
of Myrtle Avenue and Witte Street
(today 66th Place). It remains in use
to this day as the headquarters of
the “Myrtle Turtles” of Engine Company
286/Ladder Company 135.
The new headquarters were
scheduled to be completed by Sept.
1, 1913, but as the projected completion
date approached, it became
obvious that the new firehouse
wouldn’t be ready. The FDNY made
arrangements to house Engine Company
286 out of the former Ivanhoe
Company 10 firehouse until the new
headquarters was ready.
Finally, on Dec. 23, 1913, the new
firehouse was ready, and Engine
286 moved in. Ladder Company 135
was established and moved in that
very same day. The ladder company
had long extension ladders designed
to reach three stories and higher.
As the Ridgewood/Glendale area
was growing, three story residential
houses became common — and
tall ladders were required in the
event of a serious fire.
Meanwhile, the former headquarters
of Ivanhoe Hook and Ladder 10
was sold to the Yale Republican Club
and re-developed.
Reprinted from the July 31, 1986,
Ridgewood Times
* * *
If you have any remembrances or
old photographs of “Our Neighborhood:
The Way It Was” that you
would like to share with our readers,
please write to the Old Timer, c/o
Ridgewood Times, 38-15 Bell Blvd.,
Bayside, NY 11361, or send an email
to editorial@ridgewoodtimes.com.
Any print photographs mailed to
us will be carefully returned to you
upon request.
OUR NEIGHBORHOOD: THE WAY IT WAS
Volunteer fi refi ghters in Glendale
and their link to FDNY history
Members of the Ivanhoe Hook and Ladder Company 10 are pictured in this early 20th century photo with their
horse-drawn wagon. Ridgewood Times archives
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