Photos found of London's first public firefighters

"These pictures offer a fascinating look at the first publicly funded firefighters responsible for protecting London. The formal portraits show firefighters and officers posed in uniform, often holding or displaying their distinctive brass helmets."

"Many of the first firefighters of the newly formed Metropolitan Fire Brigade were drawn from existing organisations, including the private London Fire Engine Establishment and the Royal Society for the Protection of Life from Fire."

"John Cliff Bridges joined the MFB from the LFEE, where he had already spent 29 years as a firefighter. He served a further 11 years with the MFB and retired in 1877 with the rank of superintendent."

Curators at the London Fire Brigade discovered a series of portrait photographs of the first public firefighters during an inventory of the historic collection. Established by the Metropolitan Fire Brigade Act of 1865, the London Fire Brigade began its journey in 1904. The previously uncatalogued images depict firefighters in uniform, often with their brass helmets. Cross-referencing with staff records reveals the identities of these early firefighters, including John Cliff Bridges, who served for decades and retired as a superintendent in 1877.

Read at www.bbc.com