The Archive is also for "YOU"... the visitor. My hope is that it will increase your knowledge of the history of Los Angeles and its Fire Department.

The purpose of the Archive is to collect and present, in a simple format, the history of the LAFD. I want the archive to be interesting and informative. To know ones history is to better understand the present and better prepare for the future.

The Archive includes hundreds of photos, newspaper articles, reports, records, maps, and much more. The archive is not now and never will be complete. I have been working on it for almost twenty years and I still have a mountain of material to enter. Many of the files are incomplete.

REQUEST FOR MATERIAL
Please help me add material to the Archive. Relevant material; photos, articles, stories, maps, drawings- anything relevant to the LAFD is welcome. The Archive has unlimited storage capacity. Contact me via the contact list below.

SOURCES
All sources are listed where known. Please contact me to add or correct the sources.

THE PHOTOS
My idea of an archive came about as a method to inventory and store dozens of photos left me by my Grandfather, T.F. Schneider, one of the founders and also one of the original Fire Captains on the Los Angeles County Fire Department. HTML, the computer language for the internet, allowed  me to post the photos on pages and add text.  It took some time but eventually the loose collection of old photos with the scribbled notes on the back sides began to take form.   At the same time my cousin Paul, a Los Angeles County Fire Department Captain, found a large collection of LAFD photos in a storage container in their Fire Department Museum collection.   These photos were given to the L.A. County Museum years ago by a widow of a LAFD fireman.  The collection was assembled in the early 1950's by firemen including my Grandfather from both the City and County fire departments, the Box 15 Club and three firemen's widows including Mrs. R. J. Scott. I reference this collection as 
'THE LAFD PHOTO ALBUM COLLECTION'  and it is included in the archive in its' entirety.

My cousin Paul also introduced me to Walt Pittman, a WWII B-17 tail gunner, a Box 15 Club member and Fire Buff extraordinar.  Walt spent over six years in the Los Angeles City archives researching through LAFD journals.  His work is evident throughout the archive including several beautiful drawings. Walt's son is a mechanic at the LAFD Shops.

DISCLAIMER
The Archive claims no ownership of the items presented. Permission from many of the writers and photographers has been obtained where known. However contacting everyone has been impossible so far. Being a Non-Profit enterprise I am hoping that the articles and photos so far presented can remain here for the benefit of the collection as a whole without copyright problems. There are no funds available to purchase or pay license. If there is a problem with any item in the Archive please contact me and I will do my best to beg your permission to keep it or the item will be removed. It is not the intent of LAFIRE to use any item against the wishes of its legal owner.