The Waterbury Democrat., 1935-04-20
HEADQUARTERS"


 HEADQUARTERS"
 The old Ire headquarters erected originally on the cor- ner of Leavenworth street and Harrison avenue, but moved intact to Kendrick avenue some years ago has been tick eted for oblivion. If the mere passing of its physical presence can be truly described in that manner. It's owners. the Citi- zens & Manufacturers National Bank have decided that 1t would be cheaper to rage it than continue to pay taxes. With its passing the memories of yesterday are stirred. It was an institution in the daily life of Waterburians.
 Back in the days when the site of the present massive structure of the bank was just a baseball lot for the kids of the city, the flremen in the old Leavenworth street house took a great interest in their sandlot proteges. The late Patsy Croce was particularly friend of the kiddics. Patsy was a member of the old chemical company and perhaps the first local young man of Italian cxtrac- ton to become & fireman. His family is still prominently known in the Brooklyn section of the city. He met his death when the chemical auto crash ed into the rear of the old aerial ladder truck of the former Scovill street station. The crash took place at the in- tersection of East Main and Spring streets.
 ROLL CALL
 Patsy was good fireman and a great friend of the kids, and 50 were many of the grad- uates of the "Old Homestead" Glancing back a score of years when autos were replacing the horse drawn apparatus the old headquarters included in it's roster such prominent mem- bers of the present day as Cap tain Thomas Wilton of the Baldwin street house. Captain stephen Bloomfield of present headquarters. Captain Charles Booth of "out east" station. Lieutenant Michael Flaherty. aide to the present chief; Cap tain Martin Campion. drillmas- ter, Lieutenant Charlie Bock- with, Lieutenant Walter John son, "Joe" Woods, and Mau- rice Harmon. Back in that period also were Tom" Cronan, driver to the late Chief Samuel c. Snagg and successor to Eddie Grace. Patsy Sydes and Eddie Butler. Captain Wilton and Tom" Cronan were the strong men of the department. The former Captain John Kamack was also ono of the boys who came up in the rank.
 LOUIE"
 In the old headquarters Fire Marshal Denny Lahey, now "Lahey By Name". earned the soubriquet of "The Boy Commissioner" As a former newspaperman MT Lahey was at various times court report CT, City Hall man and fire and police reporter. The board of safety of those days met on the third floor of the old station. In the opposite room were Charlie Ahearn's collection of qucer-looking gadgets and bat teries designated as "The Gamewell System of Fire Tele- graph" And inc d en "a ly Charlie" in the performance of his duties drove about the city In a carriage drawn by Louie" Incidentally Louie" was the faithful steed that raced to hundreds of fires with Chief Snagg.
 Associated with the present superintendent of fire alarms was the late Captain John Mitchell, who escaped death at the old City Hall fire in 1912. when the aerial ladder from which he was directing a stream of hose did a "back fiIp' and landed the fireman into a net of electric wires.
 YOU'RE CHIEF'
 What memories come troop ing back talking about the old headquarters. It was in that building also that the late Chief Henry H. Hettman back in 1914 was called into the of- flee of the veteran Chief Snagg and greeted with the remark