Unspecified/General

Near downtown Phoenix at the historic Papago Park, the Hall of Flame Museum of Firefighting is one of the largest firefighting museums in the world. The collection was begun in 1955 by Wisconsin executive George F. Getz Jr., whose lifelong fascination with fire engines led him to collect his first apparatus in 1955 and gradually amass one of the most significant private firefighting collections in the United States. After several relocations the museum opened at its present 50,000-square-foot Papago Park site in 1974. The museum's collection comprises more than ninety restored fire apparatus dating from 1725 through the 1970s, alongside thousands of pieces of firefighting equipment, gear, badges, helmets and memorabilia from around the world. The earliest pieces include an 1725 English hand-pumper, several beautifully preserved hand-drawn pumpers from the early American republic, late-nineteenth-century horse-drawn steam pumpers and the gleaming brass-and-paint motor apparatus of the early twentieth century. The galleries are organised chronologically, taking visitors on a journey through three centuries of firefighting technology, with each piece accompanied by detailed interpretive text and many displayed alongside the kind of horse-collar, ladder or piece of brass ornamentation it once carried. A dedicated National Firefighting Hall of Heroes honours fallen firefighters and recipients of the National Medal of Valor. A junior firefighter activity area allows children to climb aboard a working fire truck, try on protective gear and learn about fire safety in a hands-on setting, while a small theatre runs short documentary films covering different aspects of firefighting history. The on-site library and archives hold thousands of historic photographs and documents that are available to researchers. Modestly priced and easily combined with nearby attractions including the Desert Botanical Garden and the Phoenix Zoo, the Hall of Flame offers visitors a focused, surprisingly engaging look at the history of one of humanity's oldest emergency services.

Type: Tourist Attraction

Address: 6101 East Van Buren Street, Phoenix, AZ, United States

Telephone: 602-275-3473

Website: hallofflame.org

Opening Date: 01/01/1974