#HTE

Tradition vs Progress: The Art of the American Fire Helmet

There is an old adage in the firefighting community that the profession is 150 years of tradition unimpeded by progress. The original fire helmet, then called a fire cap, was designed in 1731 by Jacobus Turk for the Fire Department of New York in order to distinguish the department from competitors. (Scarily enough, firefighting was once privatized—just like in the movie ‘Gangs of New York.’)