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Opening Reception: Igniting Integration! (The Battle for Black Men to Serve in the BCFD)
September 14 @ 2:00 pm – 4:00 pm
Free
RSVP in Advance
Please join us to celebrate the opening of “Igniting Integration!” at The Peale.
This exhibition shares the little-known history of African American firefighters in Baltimore and tells the story of the challenges they faced trying to serve communities in the city. True advocacy to integrate started in 1920, but a group of 15 volunteer firefighters didn’t break their department’s color barrier until 1942. Among these 15 pioneers was Arthur “Smokestack” Hardy, world-renowned as the Father of African American firefighter history.
Stories will include how The Baltimore Urban League (BUL), the Baltimore Chapter of The NAACP, Baltimore’s faith-based community, and other civic organizations fought to have the first group of firefighters hired in order to integrate the Baltimore City Fire Department.
The African American Fire Fighters Historical Society (AAFFHS) was founded January 23, 2009, to celebrate 55 years since the first Black firefighters were hired in Baltimore City. We discovered many unique stories from various jurisdictions across the nation, calling us to fill the void of this unknown history. Our mission is to collect, preserve and disseminate historical data, and information relating to the contributions by firefighters of color, and others who have made a contribution to such history; to be used for the purpose of education, fire prevention and mentoring. AAFFHS is a 501C (3) Charitable Organization and is the only entity in the world that highlights African American fire service history on a regular basis.
Accessibility
ASL interpretation is available upon request for this event. ASL requests must be made three full business days prior to an event.
Wheelchair and Physical Building Access / The Peale has a brand new elevator! The new accessible entrance is on the left side of the building, down Watchouse alley about 100 ft. There is a keypad on the right side of the elevator door. Press the button to call the elevator. There is a door that will swing open automatically once the elevator is called so stand back. Once the door is open you can enter the elevator portico and then step/roll/dance into the elevator. When you come out of the elevator you will be in a short hallway by the bathrooms and the lobby and welcome desk is on the right. There are three floors in the Peale there is a handrail on all flights of stairs. Various and ample forms of seating is available in every room. The historic entrance has five steps and no functioning handrail.
Parking / There is a temporary drop off spot in the “no parking” zone directly in front of the Holliday St. entrance. There are multiple public paid parking lots within a two block radius of The Peale as well as street parking. There are 4 access parking spots on the 200 block of Holliday Street.
Visual Descriptions and more / For additional information about captioning, ASL, services, and more, please visit our Accessibility page.
