New York State Temporary State Commission on Fire Laws County Fire Protection District Map Files

Alphabetical by name of county.

The series consists of annotated county maps and related correspondence produced as a result of the work of the Temporary State Commission on Fire Laws. Chapter 500 of the Laws of 1953 created the commission to study the laws relating to volunteer firemen and to fire prevention and protection services in towns, villages, and fire districts, for the purpose of recommending appropriate revisions and codification of the laws to the Governor. To examine the nature of fire protection in the state, the commission requested that each county government submit a map showing the type of fire protection district covering each section of the county (i.e., either a fire district, a fire protection district, or a fire alarm district) and also the names of villages included, in whole or in part, within each district.

The series contains maps from 34 counties, along with correspondence relating to the completion of the maps by the counties. The records also include lists by county from the Department of Audit and Control showing the fire districts for each town and their date of establishment.

The commission provided a county highway map upon which they requested the county fire coordinators and fire advisory boards to outline the districts. They also provided another map showing only county, city, town, and village lines which could also be used. A list of then current (1953) fire and fire protection districts in the county was also provided. According to instructions, the maps generally show boundaries of fire districts in red, and fire protection districts in blue. Each district is numbered, with a separate sheet giving the names of districts and the corresponding number on the map. When an area of a district surrounds but does not include a city or village, the district is color-shaded in red or blue according to the type of district. Almost all counties used the highway maps for annotation; the bulk measure approximately 46 x 112 cm. Some smaller tracings are present (20 x 20 cm or larger) that were apparently done to provide additional information requested by the committee. Annotations are usually done in crayon. Maps are titled by county name and contain individual scale and legend information.

Maps are present for the following counties: Allegany, Broome, Cayuga, Cattaraugus, Chemung, Clinton, Columbia, Cortland, Dutchess, Delaware, Erie, Essex, Fulton, Genesee, Greene, Herkimer, Livingston, Madison, Monroe, Niagara, Oneida, Ontario, Orleans, Putnam, St. Lawrence, Schuyler, Schoharie, Steuben, Suffolk, Sullivan, Tioga, Wayne, Westchester, and Wyoming.

The correspondence folders include initial letters to the county fire coordinators, requesting action on the boundary maps and providing instructions. Attached are the reports made by the Department of Audit and Control, and follow-up questions by the committee seeking clarifications.

There are no restrictions regarding access to or use of this material.