City Insurance Company Fire Mark
date: label: date made
content: 1849
name: label: maker
content: unknown
notes: label: Description (Brief)
content: Beginning in the 1750s, some American insurance companies issued metal fire marks to policyholders to signify that their property was insured against fire damage. The fire marks bore the name and/or symbol of the insurer, and some included the customer’s policy number. The company or agent would then affix the mark to the policyholder’s home or business. For owners the mark served as proof of insurance and a deterrent against arson. For insurance companies the mark served as a form of advertising, and alerted volunteer firefighters that the property was insured.
label: Description (Brief)
content: This City Insurance Company of Cincinnati, Ohio issued this fire mark around 1849. The mark features a central image of an unusual rowing-type fire engine manned by six firemen. The mark has been painted red with gold trim and highly ornamental edges and painted gold text that reads “CITY INSURANCE CO/CIN.” The City Insurance Company operated from 1849 until 1857.
label: Location
content: Currently not on view
place: label: place made
content: United States: Ohio, Cincinnati
topic: label: Subject
content: Insurance
setName: label: See more items in
content: Home and Community Life: Fire Fighting and Law Enforcement
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content: Cultures & Communities
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content: Advertising
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content: Work
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content: Firefighting Collection
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content: Fire Marks
creditLine: label: Credit Line
content: Gift of CIGNA Museum and Art Collection
dataSource: label: Data Source
content: National Museum of American History
identifier: label: ID Number
content: 2005.0233.0463
label: accession number
content: 2005.0233
label: catalog number
content: 2005.0233.0463
objectType: label: Object Name
content: fire mark
physicalDescription: label: Physical Description
content: cast iron (overall material)
label: Measurements
content: overall: 9 1/2 in x 12 7/8 in; 24.13 cm x 32.7025 cm