Posts Tagged ‘fire dog’

When James MacMurray left his position as herdsmen of a large New Jersey stock farm in 1893 to become a member of the New York Fire Department, he brought along his constant companion, Robert Bruce, a well-trained black and tan “sheep dog.” The two-year-old collie was trained to herd sheep, so he had a lot to learn about herding fire horses in city traffic. His training paid off in a big way…

Although their names were omitted from the payrolls, the fire dogs of the Metropolitan Fire Department played some very important roles in nineteenth-century New York City.