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For sale very rareoriginal late-1700s New York fire department manuscript,
in good vintage condition you can see on the picturessize about 8 x 13.5 inchesnice to have for the collectionthank you for looking and good luckfrom research:This appears to be an early American fire department personnel return—a handwritten list of engine-company foremen and the number of men serving under them. My leading attribution is New York City, probably late 1700s, but the exact year and originality remain unconfirmed.
What the document says
The heading reads approximately:
“A List of the names of the Foremen and … men belonging to the Several Fire Engines, with the Number of the Same.”
It lists 14 numbered engine companies, followed by a separate section headed “Men belonging to Ladders and hooks.”
These are crew counts, rather than payments or ages. The right column is headed “Men,” and the total at the bottom appears to be 253.
New York City is the strongest lead. The most useful name is Ahasuerus Turk. An 1885 history of New York’s volunteer fire department lists him as an assistant engineer in 1793 and 1796. Your document appears to place him with Engine 7, which could represent an earlier stage of his service. This supports the attribution, although it does not establish a precise date.
Some of the more readable entries are:
CompanyName as I read itMenEngine 4John Coe13Engine 5Daniel Ten Eyck22Engine 6Nicholas Carman or Carmer21Engine 7Ahasuerus Turk24Engine 8Henry Riker23Engine 9Charles Doughty16Engine 12John B. …, Junior—surname uncertain12Engine 13Richard Deane12Engine 14Benjamin Birdsall10
