Fireman at City Hall LR-1

The nomadic Knoxville Firefighters Memorial, erected in 1905, has stood in at least four places around downtown. Originally, the memorial stood on Main Street outside the Knox County Courthouse before moving to Emory Park, adjacent to Fire Station #3. After that firehall was closed in the 1940s, the memorial moved to a spot in front of City Hall at the intersection of Western and Henley Street (Lincoln Memorial University’s law school now occupies that site.) However, when it went on display at City Hall, a new lantern was fabricated and added to the fireman’s right hand, as you can see here. An electrical cord allowed the light to shine at night. When the memorial was later moved across the street, where it now stands in front of the downtown fire station on Summit Hill, the lantern was removed.  This photograph, from the Knoxville Fire Department’s 1975 annual, which contains a fascinating short history of the Knoxville department, was shared by Cindy and Mark Proteau.