History
Scope and Content
Access
Processing Information
Preferred Citation
Publication Rights
Language of Material:
English
Contributing Institution:
University of California, Davis, Library, University Archives
Title: University of California, Davis Fire Department Records
Creator:
University of California
Davis. Fire Department
Identifier/Call Number: AR-184
Physical Description:
7 linear feet
Date (inclusive): circa 1960-1985
Abstract: The UC Davis Fire Department provides fire
protection and emergency medical services to the UC Davis campus. It was established as a volunteer fire brigade in 1917 and
formalized in the 1950s with the hire of career staff and a full-time fire chief. The collection contains station logs,
clipping files, manuals, meeting minutes, photographs, and realia.
Physical Location: Researchers should contact Special Collections to request collections,
as many are stored offsite.
History
The UC Davis Fire Department provides fire protection and emergency medical services to the UC Davis campus. Fire
protection at the Davis campus began in 1917 with a series of hand-drawn hose carts used by a group of fire fighting
volunteers. By the late 1930s, several small fires prompted the university to expand the program. Working with City of Davis
Mayor Calvin Arthur Covell, Jr., the university formally incorporated a fire protection program on campus and purchased a
500
gallon capacity pump. By 1939, the campus had finished construction of its first fire station and had obtained "Seagrave",
a
state-of-the-art fire engine. Formal, standardized training of fire-fighting volunteers began around the same time. In 1949,
the campus fire department founded its Student Resident Fire Fighter Program: the program, one of three in the United States,
is a highly selective program that trains students in fire fighting skills. In 1955, the campus added career fire fighters
to
the staff and the first career Fire Chief was hired in 1959. A new fire station was built in 1979 on Kleiber Hall Drive and
remains in operation today.
Source:
UC Davis Fire Department: Our History. https://fire.ucdavis.edu/our-history. Last accessed 18 July 2017.
Scope and Content
The collection contains station logs, clipping files, manuals, meeting minutes, photographs, and realia. Photographs
include fire department equipment and personnel involved with training exercises as well as fighting fires.
Access
Collection is open for research.
Processing Information
Liz Phillips processed the collection with help from student assistants Robyn Lam and Julie Jeon.
Preferred Citation
[Identification of item], University of California Fire Department Records, AR-184, Department of Special Collections,
UC Davis Library, University of California, Davis.
Publication Rights
All applicable copyrights for the collection are protected under chapter 17 of the U.S. Copyright Code. Requests for
permission to publish or quote from manuscripts must be submitted in writing to the Head of Special Collections. Permission
for publication is given on behalf of the Regents of the University of California as the owner of the physical items. It is
not intended to include or imply permission of the copyright holder, which must also be obtained by the researcher.
Subjects and Indexing Terms
Universities and colleges -- Fires and fire prevention -- California -- Davis
Fire departments -- California -- Davis
University of California
Davis. Fire Department -- Archives