M. Miller served on the fire department for many years. He first joined the fire department in 1889 and served as Chief from 1906 to 1931. In 1900, the Richmond Fire Department had three firehouses and fifteen men who worked full time. Horses were still being used and there were fifty alarm boxes. The paid firemen still depended on volunteers for extra help when there was a big fire.
Today there is very little use for volunteer helpers.
There are no fire horses and red fire trucks are used. The present paid department was established on December 5, 1872. In 1896, there were 15 men at three stations. In 1906, there were 21 men at four stations. The City of Richmond s coverage is 23.821 square miles as of February 24, 2000.