11 September 2008 - Celebrations as the Father of Firefighting is Unveiled
Following a determined campaign, the ‘Father of Firefighting’ was last Friday appointed a worthy place overlooking the centre of the city and the ancestors of the people he laboured to protect 184 years ago.
The ceremony was opened by the Lord Provost, George Grubb, and the statue was officially and publically unveiled by Professor Sir Timothy O’Shea, Principal of the University of Edinburgh, whilst Chief Fire Officer Brian Allaway provided the vote of thanks.
The event drew in substantial crowds, with the general public, members of the Braidwood family and others with significant links to the Fire Service witnessing the prolific event. Highlights included modern and vintage fire engines with Firefighters clad in historic uniforms, horses, ten violinists from James Braidwood’s own school – the Royal High School in Edinburgh, and the unveiling itself, featuring a turntable ladder fire appliance as a prop. Later Councillor Mike Bridgman, Convener of Lothian and Borders Fire and Rescue Board, welcomed invited guests to a civic reception hosted by the Lord Provost.
The man who has led the group of campaigners to this superb outcome for over three years is 93-year-old former Edinburgh Firemaster Dr Frank Rushbrook. Dr Rushbrook was a Firefighter for 33 years and Firemaster between 1961 and 1970.
Chief Fire Officer for Lothian and Borders, Brian Allaway said; “I am delighted with the success of the unveiling of the statue at Friday’s event. After years of campaigning and planning, it is tremendous that the Father of Firefighting has been honoured in this way.
“I am also pleased that through working together with Edinburgh Council and other partners, the outcome is positive, both for the man without whom this would not have taken place, Dr Frank Rushbrook, and for everyone involved in and interested in the history and future of Firefighting.”
Braidwood attended the Royal High School in Edinburgh, and went on to become a quantity surveyor. However, after two devastating fires destroyed much of the Old Town and damaged the Tron Kirk in the centre of Edinburgh, he was employed at the age of 24 to establish the world's first municipal fire service. Later he established the London Fire Brigade and lost his life whilst fighting the great fire of Tooley Street in 1861, aged 61 years.
Funding for the statue was acquired through various channels, primarily from Dr Rushbrook and other campaigners’ fundraising efforts and private donations, plus Lothian and Borders Fire and Rescue Service, Edinburgh Council’s Pensions and Trusts committee and the Surplus Fire Fund, which was set up from charitable donations by wealthy city people after the Great Fire of Edinburgh in 1824.
Councillor Mike Bridgman, Convener of Lothian and Borders Fire and Rescue Board said of the placing of the statue, “I am delighted that the City has been able to honour James Braidwood, the Firemaster of the first municipal Fire Brigade in the British Isles and probably the world. His statue has a prestigious position and it is fitting that this place is linked so strongly to Braidwood's life, as it is close to the site of his original fire station headquarters on the High Street and his home which overlooked Parliament Square.”
The seven-foot bronze statue was crafted by Kenny Mackay, who was also responsible for the admired sculpture of Donald Dewar in Glasgow.
Enquiries: Nicole Carter, Lothian and Borders Fire and Rescue Service
Tel. 0131 228 2401
|
Home |
