"National Fallen Firefighters Foundation Beaux arts editions."

Includes index.

Written by experts, historians, fire chiefs, and officers, the book features a collection of 500 contemporary and vintage photographs along with first-hand accounts of courage in the face of danger; essays on urban and wildland firefighting; a look at training, trucks, and apparatus; and an overview of the history of U.S. fire departments, beginning with Ben Franklin's Union Fire Company in Philadelphia in 1736. Also included is information on volunteering, search and rescue, emergency medical services, and response to terrorism.