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With its establishment in 1857, the St. Louis Fire Department has seen more than 150 deaths in the line of duty. The biggest killer? Heart attacks. But the fires, collapsing buildings, traffic crashes and even homicides also have killed firefighters while working.

The 1910s saw the most firefighter deaths with 25. The fewest were in the 1870s with six. 

One firefighter, who died in 1849, was included in this list for his lasting legacy in St. Louis, even though he died before the official St. Louis Fire Department was established. 

This information comes from archived news reports from the Post-Dispatch and St. Louis Fire Department Curator Bob Pauly. Some deaths were not reported in the Post-Dispatch, but are still noted here.

This list has been updated to add Albert Hofstetter, Frank R. Tiff and John D. Miller who were originally omitted, and correct a few name spellings on older deaths, as well as a date of a death in 1904.

St. Louis Fire Chief Dennis Jenkerson, right, presents newly graduated firefighter Ben Polson with his badge during graduation ceremonies on July 9, 2021. Polson was killed while fighting a house fire in St. Louis on Thursday, January 13, 2022 — the first St. Louis firefighter to die in a fire in 20 years.

Photo by Bill Greenblatt, courtesy of St. Louis Fire Department

Firefighter Benjamin Polson, 33, was killed when a burning home's roof and top story collapsed. 

Polson had been a firefighter since November 2019. He held an MBA and had completed law school. His father is retired St. Louis fire Capt. James Polson, and Benjamin Polson waited years on a waiting list to attend the St. Louis Fire Academy.

The fire was in a vacant home at 5971 Cote Brilliante Avenue, in the Wells-Goodfellow neighborhood.

Rodney L. Heard, left, is shown next to his helmet and hear, displayed next to his casket during his memorial service at New Spring Church in Bellefontaine Neighbors on Monday, June 28, 2021. Photo of Heard courtesy the St. Louis Fire Department; photo from the funeral by David Carson of the Post-Dispatch.

Firefighter Rodney L. Heard Sr., 56, died of COVID-19 after spending several weeks in the hospital.

Heard joined the department in 1999, and was a soft-spoken man with a big heart, friends said at his funeral.

He was married to Melissa “Lisa” Heard for over two decades and the two had six children and 29 grandchildren.

St. Louis Fire Capt. John Kemper. Photo courtesy of the St. Louis Fire Department.

In the morning of July 5, 2017, Capt. John Kemper, 59, was injured while fighting a structural fire in the 3600 block of Pennsylvania Avenue. He was released from the hospital July 7, but died at home a few days later on July 12. 

High temperatures around 90 on the day of the fire made for bad conditions, and the department had received 335 calls in the 24-hour period that had started on the Fourth of July. Of those calls, there were 14 fires.

A fire department spokesman called Kemper a comedian who had a "unique personality." Kemper had been a member of the St. Louis Fire Department for 24 years. He was one of four firefighters to be injured in the fire that day.

He is survived by his wife, daughter and two grandsons.

St. Louis firefighter Jeffery Hudson

Jeffery Hudson, an 18-year veteran of the St. Louis Fire Department, died Dec. 12, 2012, after returning from an early morning call. Hudson appeared to have died in his sleep.

Hudson had moved around companies in his time at the department, but his final was with Truck Company #36. 

After the news of his death spread, flags were lowered to half-mast and firefighters wore special mourning bands on their badges.

St. Louis firefighter Leonard Riggins was shot and killed while off duty, Wednesday Nov. 5, 2008 while attempting to help who he thought was a car crash victim, but it was a carjacker.

Leonard Riggins Sr., 52, was returning home in his uniform when he came across a car wreck on the evening of Nov. 5, 2008. When he got on the scene, he was shot by carjacker Christopher L. Brandon. Riggins was taken to the hospital with gunshot wounds in his chest. He died later that night. 

Riggins was a 15-year veteran of the St. Louis Fire Department. He left behind a wife and two sons. Supplying uniforms and equipment and overseeing flag details at parades and funerals were just some of his duties at the department. He was also a minister, a role that helped him counsel the other firefighters during hard times. Riggins was referred to as the department's "godfather."

Brandon fled on Nov. 5 in Riggins' fire department car, but was intercepted by police when he crashed the vehicle. He was killed by police in an exchange of gunfire.

Derek Martin (left) and Robert Morrison

Capt. Derek Martin and Capt. Robert Morrison, both 38, were killed in a fire at the Gravois Refrigeration Co. on May 3, 2002. Both men’s oxygen tanks were low, and they are suspected to have been disoriented by the smoke. Rescue workers found them, and the men were taken to the hospital, where they died of smoke inhalation and burns. 

Both men were posthumously made captains. Martin left behind a wife and three children. Morrison is survived by his wife and two children. Morrison and Martin were the first firefighters to die in the line of duty in 25 years.

In a 2006 wrongful death lawsuit with Survivair, the company that manufactured the oxygen tanks, the Morrison family settled with the company for between $2 and $5 million. In 2007, the Martin family was awarded $27 million in the same lawsuit. They said the company acted “beyond negligence” for selling equipment it should have known was dangerous. 

Howard Crider, 42, was hauling hose at a house fire on Nov. 24, 1977, when he suffered a heart attack and died. It was Thanksgiving Day.

He had been with the department for 16 years. He was survived by his wife Marceline and six children. One of his sons, Jim Crider, grew up to become a firefighter as well. 

Edward Diehl, 57, was working with the sandbagging crew to stop the flooding of the River Des Peres on April 3, 1973. He collapsed and was taken to the hospital where he was pronounced dead. He is suspected to have died from a heart attack.  

St. Louis had faced serious flooding that week from the Mississippi and Missouri rivers. Flood damage in all of Missouri ended up totaling over $34 million. His death was the city's third from flood-related causes that week.

Volunteer firefighters from the Santa Fe Fire Protection District in Bartelso, Ill. unload flowers from the funeral of fellow firefighter Timothy P. Jansen during his burial at St. Cecilia Cemetery on Thursday, Dec. 6, 2012. Jansen was killed when a firetruck backed over him at the scene of a Clinton County fire Sunday night. Hundreds of area firefighters attended the services for Jansen, who is survived by a wife and two daughters. Photo by Robert Cohen, rcohen@post-dispatch.com

Capt. Elby Blankenship, 48, was leading his company against a fire in an abandoned building on Aug. 15, 1971. No one was inside when the roof collapsed, but when a wall went down, the entire building caved in and Blankenship was pinned beneath the rubble. His colleagues dug him out, and he was rushed to the hospital where he was pronounced dead. 

No others were harmed in the fire. Officials said the fire was likely caused by arson. 

Although his body was carried in a hearse, an empty casket was symbolically placed on a firetruck during the motorcade to the cemetery after his funeral.

He had been with the St. Louis Fire Department for 22 years. He was survived by his wife Ruby and four sons. 

The St. Louis Fire Department was stretched thin on Nov. 4, 1970, as three fires, caused by accidents and arson, began around the city. Russell Shannon, 54, was sent to one of the fires that day in a residential area. He was helping to unload hose when he collapsed and was taken to the hospital. He was pronounced dead of a suspected heart attack. 

Shannon had been apart of the department for more than 27 years. He left behind a wife and three children. 

The three-alarm fire ended up spanning three buildings in total. The other two fires that day were arsons in abandoned buildings. 

John D. Miller, 42, died after a fall in an engine house. The accident happened in July 1968; he died Dec. 21 of pneumonia after suffering a brain injury.

Frank R. Tiff was the fire department's battalion chief assigned to Lambert airport's unit. He died at 57 after a heart attack.

Capt. Albert T. Hofstetter. Courtesy of family

While fighting a fire at a Steak 'n' Shake restaurant, Capt. Albert T. Hofstetter was overcome by smoke. Other firemen carried him out of the building, and he was pronounced dead at a hospital.

Three other firefighters were injured in the blaze at 6622 Chippewa.

Hofstetter had been a fire fighter with the department for four years. He left a wife and two children.

A grain-dust explosion ripped through the Ralston Purina feed mill south of downtown on Jan. 10, 1962. The resulting fire was one of the biggest ever in St. Louis, with temperatures in the single digits hampering firefighting efforts. Firefighters battled the blaze overnight as temperatures dropped to minus 7. Post-Dispatch file photo

The cold Wednesday of Jan. 10, 1962, was suddenly interrupted by a grain-dust explosion at the Ralston Purina factory just south of downtown. The fire, which ended up being one of the largest fires in St. Louis history, burned for over 20 hours, causing about $1 million in damage.

Capt. Roy Simpson, 55, died of a heart attack while trying to extinguish the fire. One factory worker was killed and 40 were injured.

The temperature was around 4 degrees, causing the water to freeze when it hit the buildings. It took nearly a week and 29 million gallons of water to stop the flames. 

Around 9:30 p.m. on Feb. 22, 1960, several firefighters, including Arthur Fette, 62, Clifton Lorbert, 36, and William Grieser Jr., 36, were almost done extinguishing a fire and expecting to go home soon. The fire was out, but they continued to hose off the smoldering debris for safe measure. Suddenly, all three floors of the building came crashing down, burying Fette, Lorbert and Grieser in the rubble.

The men were still alive at first as their colleagues attempted to rescue them. After several hours under the rubble, however, the firefighters stopped responding. Two Catholic priest made their way through the debris to give them their last rites. Around 3:30 a.m., the rescuers were finally able to remove the bodies from the wreckage. 

Eleven others were injured in the fire. The owner of the building was arrested with suspected arson after firefighters found gasoline on the stairs and the odor of gasoline in the house. 

The family of the victims were each awarded pensions and $4,000 from the Fireman's Relief Association.

• Capt. Frank Georgeton, 55, was fighting a four-alarm fire on Nov. 18, 1958, when a 2,400-volt power line fell on top of him. Other firefighters moved him away from the live wire with a pole and took him to the hospital, but he was already dead. 

• Oliver A. Helbig Sr., 63, collapsed and died of a suspected heart attack while fighting a residential fire on Sept. 4, 1957. 

• Frank Rychlink, 40, was found dead on the second floor of a cocktail lounge and restaurant on July 1, 1957. He died of asphyxiation while searching the floor for any occupants. Five others were injured in the fire. 

• Capt. James J. Flanagan, 51, was directing his men carrying hose at the St. Louis Candle and Wax Co. on Dec. 30, 1956 ,when he began to feel ill. He was taken to the hospital where he died. 

• Capt. Albert Card, 46, died of a heart attack Jan. 23, 1956, shortly after returning from fighting a four-hour fire at the S.S. Fort Gage, a riverboat in the Mississippi River. He was being treated for a heart condition before he died. 

• William Nation, 36, Capt. Frank Jones, 56, Robert Geisler, 58, and John Craig, 59, died in a traffic accident Sept. 18, 1955, after Orville E. Freeze hit their firetruck with his tractor-trailer. Freeze was charged with four counts of manslaughter and careless driving. This was the worst crash in the history of the department at the time.

• Capt. Edwin Westhermann, 60, died suddenly while helping remove water from a building on July 22, 1953. He had been under treatment for high blood pressure. 

• Pvt. Clarence Paschang, 25, Pvt. William Grady, 37, and Pvt. Bernard Crump, 29, were killed in a collision of a hook and ladder truck and a pumper on July 9, 1952. Both fire vehicles were responding to an alarm when they collided in an intersection. The entire crew of both companies were either killed or injured. 

• Battalion Chief Frank Fahey died on May 3, 1952. 

• Capt. Raymond Blake, 45, was found dead Nov. 4, 1950, in an alley a block and a half away from a fire he'd been fighting. It appeared he had collapsed from a heart attack. 

Fire Chief Joseph W. Morgan tries on a sample of a plastic fire helmet in April 1942. Because metal was restricted for defense production during World War II, the department couldn't buy any more helmets made of aluminum. (Post-Dispatch)

As the fire alarm rang on March 20, 1943, Chief Joseph W. Morgan led his company to the five-story Goodwill Industries building to fight a blaze. The crew began spraying the flames with water when a bystander approached Morgan and said a wall looked to be wobbling. Morgan rushed in the building to tell other firefighters to escape when the wall crumbled on top of him, giving him a severe head injury. He was rushed to the hospital but did not survive.

Morgan was 52 years old. He left behind a wife and three children.

He joined the department in 1913. To this day, he is still the only chief to ever die in the line of duty since the St. Louis Fire Department was established in 1857. 

Firefighters, reporters and a police officer flee the collapse of the Goodwill Industries building, 713 Howard Street, during a fire on the morning of March 20, 1943. Fire Chief Joseph W. Morgan was standing on the second floor of the building's exterior fire escape when it collapsed, burying him in rubble and killing him. Morgan had gone up the escape to order firefighters to leave the building. (Arthur Witman/Post-Dispatch)

Firefighters were killed in pumper accident on June 4, 1946

• Ernest Fark, 54, died during a residential fire on Dec. 10, 1949. Firefighters in the home with him said wires with burned installation caused a flash near Fark moments before he collapsed. He was taken to the hospital where he was pronounced dead. 

• Battalion Chief Edwin Alber, 52, died while directing his company in a blaze on Dec. 9, 1949. He collapsed in the first room of the two-story building. The room was smoky and he was not wearing a gas mask. He had been with the department for 23 years. 

•  Henry Lebbing collapsed after stepping off the pumper truck at a fire on Jan. 28, 1948. He was taken to the hospital where he was pronounced dead. 

• Battalion Chief Edward Johnson, 56, died of a skull injury Oct. 19, 1947, when his department vehicle crashed into a bus. Three people on the bus and the driver of the department vehicle were injured. Johnson and the driver were not on an official run, but were thought to have been responding to a burglary alarm on a police scanner, thinking there could be a fire as well. 

• Ralph McCall and two other firefighters were taken to the hospital after being overcome with smoke and fumes at a fire on Sept. 8, 1947. He died later that night at the hospital. The other men survived. 

•  John Biggins and Thomas Anderson died in a collision June 4, 1946, when a bus crashed into the firetruck. Biggins, 32, and Anderson, 34, were thrown from the back of the truck.

• Capt. Ervin Schleifstein, 48, died of a heart attack while instructing his company at a hotel fire on Jan. 27, 1946. Three other people were killed in the fire. 

• John Bartold, 57, collapsed and died Nov. 20, 1945, while tending a pumper at a steel plant fire. He had suffered a heart attack. 

• Capt. Daniel Hacker, 59, was opening the doors of a burning building on Feb. 23, 1945, when a thick cloud of smoke enveloped him. He collapsed and did not regain consciousness as his fellow firefighters tried to revive him. He had been a captain for 23 years.

• Capt. David O'Connell, 49, was on the third floor of a burning mattress store on April 26, 1944, when he was overcome by smoke and collapsed. He was taken to the hospital where he died. 

• Joseph Guentert, 68, was fighting a fire on a coal truck when the gasoline line suddenly flared. He and two other firefighters were badly burned and taken to the hospital. The others recovered from their injuries, but Guentert died the next day on Sept. 17, 1942. 

• James Simpson and Abraham Lynn were killed in the same fire on May 29, 1940, after being crushed by a collapsing wall and ceiling. Simpson, 40, died at the scene, while Lynn, 48, was taken to the hospital where he died the next day. 

Fire at the Lauer Furniture Co. on Dec. 22, 1938

• William Eckert, 37, was rolling up hose in the street after extinguishing a fire on Dec. 16, 1939, when a car struck him. He in the ambulance on the way to the hospital. The driver said he saw the firetruck but not Eckert because he was bent over the hose. 

• John Flynn lost his life on Nov. 29, 1939. 

• Jacob Hummel, 42, died shortly after returning to the firehouse from fighting a small fire on Jan. 16, 1939. He had suffered a heart attack. 

• Sylvester Dace, 52, collapsed as he was dragging hose from a truck at a fire on Dec. 22, 1938. He was taken to the hospital where he died from a heart attack. 

• Henry Bowers, 55, suffered a heart attack at the wheel of a firetruck on April 26, 1938. As they were pulling up to the scene, the firefighter sitting beside Bowers noticed him slumped over the wheel. That firefighter proceeded to slam on the brakes, and Bowers was taken to the hospital where he was pronounced dead. 

• Steve Trzecki, 42, died in a collision on the way to a fire on Oct. 25, 1937. He suffered internal injuries and fractures to his hip and pelvis. 

• District Chief Frank Dunsford, 64, was riding to a fire in a department vehicle on April 3, 1937 when a pumper truck struck the car on its side. The vehicle hit a nearby wall, and Dunsford and the driver were thrown from the car. Both were taken to the hospital where Dunsford died.

• Elmer Taber, 29, was attempting to collapse a two-story wall of a burning building inward when instead it fell outward. He was crushed under the debris. He died at the hospital the next day on Feb. 9, 1937. 

• Robert Hamilton, 44, died at the hospital Jan. 14, 1937, after being overcome by smoke at a fire. He is believed to have suffered a heart attack induced by smoke and exertion. 

• Fred Lauth, 50, collapsed while working at a pump near a fire on Jan. 16, 1936. He was taken to the hospital where he died. He had been complaining of illness earlier that day. 

• Capt. Frank Kussman, 57, died while fighting a fire on Jan. 4, 1936. He was directing his company on the second floor of a burning building when he collapsed. 

• Melvin Kamer, 38, was directing a stream of water at a fire in the basement of a building on Oct. 7, 1935, when a piece of the first floor collapsed, blocking his escape. The water continued to pour, and Kamer eventually drowned. Water had to be siphoned from the basement in order to recover his body. 

• John Dressel, 34, died at the hospital of skull fractures and internal injuries Feb. 6 1935, after a collision with their firetruck and a coal truck. Dressel was the passenger in the firetruck, which was traveling at high speeds when it crashed. 

• Capt. John Gavin, 57, died from a heart attack at the hospital on April 19, 1933. He was moving furniture out of the way to allow firefighters to enter the building when he collapsed. 

• Harry Knichel died on March 11, 1932. 

• Lt. Walter Beckman, 39, was overcome with smoke while fighting a fire on Nov. 13, 1931, on the first floor of the drug store. He was taken to the hospital and pronounced dead.  

• Michael Stritch, 35, suffered severe injuries March 20, 1931, after falling 35 feet through a hole in the roof of a burning building. He was taken to the hospital where his fellow firefighters submitted to blood transfusions in attempt to save his life but succumbed to his injuries that night.

• Capt. Frank Werminghaus, 54, was thrown from a firetruck Nov. 7, 1928, when it collided with another firetruck responding to an alarm. Werminghaus died at the hospital. 

• Lt. August Hoffman, 61, died June 29, 1927, while trying to rescue two men who had been overcome by carbon monoxide gas in a sewer excavation. Hoffman put on a gas mask and went down into the 16-foot deep trench to tie a rope to the unconscious men. His mask inhibited his sight on the way down so he removed it. He immediately fell unconscious, and was eventually taken to the hospital where he died.

• Edward Born, 35, died in a collision on April 13, 1927, when responding to a false alarm. The firetruck skid on a wet road and overturned, crushing Born. He died at the hospital. 

• Lorenzo Woods, 29, died on July 29, 1926, while trying to jump on the back of a fire truck. He missed and fell beneath the rear wheel.

• Frank Connell, 48, died June 15, 1925, after being hit by a vehicle while crossing the street to a fire. He suffered a fractured skull and died at the hospital. Timothy Shelton, the driver of the car, was arrested and said to be suffering from acute alcoholism. 

• Arthur Gray, 54, died after being thrown from a firetruck Dec. 27. 1924. The truck was on its way to a fire when it skidded on icy pavement and hit a curb, throwing Gray. He died at the hospital. 

• Fred Hippler, 48, was riding a horse-drawn vehicle on the way to a fire July 24, 1923, when he was suddenly thrown to the ground. He suffered several internal injuries and died at the hospital. The vehicle was traveling on a cobblestone street. 

• Lt. Michael Kane, Eugene Carten and John Haas died in a triple-car collision on April 17, 1922. The two automobiles did not yield to the firetruck, causing the accident. 

• Eugene Ost, 26, was crushed in a fire on July 4, 1920, when the roof collapsed, burying him and three other firefighters. He had joined the department 18 months prior after being discharged from the army.

• Joseph Wittgenstein, 26, and William Egenriether, 39, were crushed and suffocated in a fire Feb. 16, 1920. The men were in the burning building when 100 bales of water-logged istle, a type of grass used to manufacture bags, collapsed on top of them. 

• John Hade, 57, died while fueling up trucks at a fire on Jan. 29, 1920. He was the driver of a fuel truck.

The old Christian Brothers College school on Kingshighway and Easton Avenues was destroyed by a fire on Oct. 5, 1916.

A fire broke out early in the morning on Oct. 5, 1916, at the Christian Brothers College, then at Kingshighway and Easton avenues. Six firefighters, Lt. Harry Budde, Edward Kuehnert, Lt. Michael Waters, George Young, John Parshall and August Sturmfels, were in the building attempting to extinguish the flames when a wall started to crumble. It collapsed, sending the men down three stories and burying them in a pile of debris. They all died under the rubble. 

This was the second greatest loss that the St. Louis Fire Department had ever seen. Four others died in the fire: two students in the infirmary, their nurse and the night watchmen. 

• Frank Gerschke, 32, died from a skull injury on March 29, 1918. While cleaning the ceiling at the engine house, and slipped and fell off the scaffolding. 

• Martin Concannon died on Jan. 16, 1917. 

• Charles Marik, 38, was standing on the back of a firetruck on Dec. 25, 1916, when he lost his balance and fell. The truck's back wheels ran over his head, killing him. 

• John Devine lost his life in the line of duty on Sept. 3, 1916. 

• Thomas O'Connor, 55, was driving the truck on the way to a fire on Aug. 8, 1916, when he was thrown from the driver's seat and into the street. The fire alarm turned out to be false. 

• James Stevenson, 30, was sitting in a high seat on a fire truck as it was leaving the station on Dec. 18, 1915. The vehicle made a sharp turn, and Stevenson lost his balance and fell from the truck. 

• Capt. Joseph Thompson, 32, was killed in a traffic accident on May 14, 1915. The firetruck was struck by a vehicle, and Thompson was thrown, hitting his head on the street. 

• Thomas Finnegan, 50, was waiting to board a department vehicle that would take him to the fire station Jan. 18, 1915, when an automobile crashed into him, killing him. After hitting Finnegan, the 18-year-old driver also hit two young girls on their way to school, but they survived. 

• George Rogers, 37, died Nov. 20, 1914, from a skull injury he received a day earlier while attempting to board an engine that was departing to a fire. 

• Charles Reichelt, 42, died Nov. 1, 1914, from injuries in an accident.

• Charles Lowe, 36, was using a hose on a ladder Aug. 5, 1914, when he fell, breaking his neck. The chief suspected that Lowe was overcome by smoke after working at the top of the ladder for over an hour when he fell. People on the ground could not see Lowe at the top of the ladder because of excessive amounts of smoke. 

• Charles Nester fell three stories to his death March 4, 1914. While carrying a hose across the roof, Nester fell through a skylight and into the burning building. 

• Capt. Martin Lynch, 38, was fighting a fire on Feb. 28, 1914, when the second story of the structure collapsed. Lynch was buried by the rubble and died at the scene. His helmet was found besides him. 

• Charles Koester died while fighting a fire in the basement of a building on Jan. 24, 1913. Koester volunteered to slide down the elevator cable to the basement to see where the fire was when he was overcome with smoke. The basement had 3 feet of water, and he fell unconscious and drowned. He was not wearing a smoke helmet. 

• Thomas Canavan, 36, died on Nov. 26, 1912. 

• George Breur, 41, was riding on the back of a firetruck Oct. 8, 1912, when he felt the truck skid over uneven pavement. He thought the truck was going to crash so he decided to jump off, but accidentally fell and his head was run over by the truck's back wheels. His death brought attention to the unfinished pavement in the outskirts of the city. 

• Lt. Benjamin Shivley lost his life on Aug. 26, 1912.  

• John Steyer was helping to move some boards around on July 5, 1912, when he stumbled backward and fell on live wire, getting electrocuted. Someone was supposed to have shut off the power to the building, but no one did. 

• Charles Schmidt died on Dec. 14, 1911. 

• Charles Offenstein, 40, was killed on Jan. 22, 1911.  

• Capt. Michael Lyons died while fighting a fire July 2, 1910, at an oil company that was started by an explosion. Lyons was buried under the building's falling walls. An employee of the company was also killed in the fire. 

• James Roland descended into the basement of a burning building on June 15, 1910, to rescue a woman. After getting the woman out, the smoke was so dense he lost his sense of direction, getting trapped. He eventually was overcome by smoke and fell unconscious. He died at the scene. 

• Nicholas Mansfield died on May 9, 1910.

• James McNulty, 27, lost his life on Feb. 25, 1910. 

• William Mayer, 48, died on Jan. 23, 1910. 

• Harry Tasche, 29, was attempting to extinguish a fire on Jan. 7, 1910, when he and four other men realized the water in the hydrants was frozen. The men placed coals around a hydrant to warm it up. In the meantime, Tasche entered the building to use chemicals to extinguish the fire when a draft blew the fire towards him. He immediately collapsed and was pronounced dead at the scene. 

Seven firefighters killed in fire on Feb. 4, 1902.

Seven firefighters met their death on Feb. 4, 1902, in the greatest loss in St. Louis Fire Department history. 

Assistant Chief August Thierry, Capt. Daniel Steele, Lt. Frank McBride, Charles Krenning, Lt. Michael Kehoe, Charles Westenhoff and William Dundon were found buried under debris of the collapsed American Tent and Awning Company building . Two of the men were on the third story when the floor fell beneath their feet. When the other five men went in to rescue their colleagues, the rest of the building crumbled on top of them.

The fire was mostly under control when the building fell. 

• Patrick Larkin, 56, died in a collision while en route to a fire on Sept. 15, 1908. A motorist failed to give the firetruck the right of way, causing the wreck. 

• Frederick Doerr died after being thrown from his buggy on March 15, 1908, on the way to a fire. Doerr had been a driver for the department for 20 years. 

• Capt. Frank Frankel, 49, was killed on Nov. 6, 1906. 

• Capt. George Wolf, 47, died on Jan. 23, 1906. 

• Philip Conway was leaving a fire on Nov. 17, 1905, when he was thrown from the driver's seat after a wheel hit a fire hydrant. He was pronounced dead at the scene. 

• James Green died of his injuries March 9, 1905, two months after sustaining them in a collision on the way to a fire on Jan. 30, 1905. He suffered internal injuries, but it seemed like his heavy coat had prevented any serious harm. He was under treatment and had gone home from the hospital, but ended up dying in his home.

• Charles Miller, 26, was driving a hose reel to a fire on Oct. 27, 1904, when the horses suddenly jerked, sending him flying into the street. The horses that ran over him in front of 300 spectators. He was taken to the hospital where he died.

• Fred Hesse and Capt. Benjamin Letson were critically injured in a collision on Feb. 10, 1903, between a firetruck and a street car. Letson died on Feb. 13 and Hesse died on Feb. 17. 

• Cornelius McCarthy, 49, was responding to a fire on Dec. 15, 1902, when the firetruck crashed into the switch of a transit company, and he was hurled into the road. He died at the scene. 

• William Wand, 25, came to the hospital on Jan. 30, 1903, after his foot was crushed and scalp was injured in a collision while responding to a fire. While there, he started to suffer from severe lock jaw. His doctor got permission from Wand's family to use a new treatment for tetanus, and injected Wand was injected with a solution containing carbolic acid every three hours. He eventually died on Feb. 15, 1903.

• Frank Fitzgerald was returning from a fire on Jan. 14, 1902, when his truck was struck by a street car. Both Fitzgerald and the horse pulling him died at the scene.  

• Edward Green and a few of his colleagues were fighting a fire on May 19, 1901, on the sixth floor of a building when smoke began to overpower them. To escape, they fled to the roof, but the fire spread there as well. They decided to use their hose as a rope and lower themselves down to a nearby ladder. Green went first but lost his hold on the rope, and he fell 75 feet to his death. 

• Lt. Thomas Kelley died on March 20, 1901. 

• Capt. John O'Brien died while fighting a fire on Sept. 21, 1900, when the roof of the building fell in on him. He died at the hospital. 

• George Seibert, 28, was on his way to a fire on May 11, 1900, when one of the horses a ran into a metal beam on a gate. Seibert was thrown from the vehicle.

• Charles Mebus was killed by a fallen roof on Feb. 4, 1900, while fighting a fire.

• Thomas Kelly had just returned to the engine house after a fire on May 9, 1899. Feeling thirsty, he drank the contents of a glass sitting on a table. He soon began to feel sick and went home, but was soon after taken to the hospital, believed to be poisoned. He said he thought there was poison in the drink that was meant for the night watchman. He died at the hospital.

• Capt. George Smith was standing on the back step on a fire engine on Jan. 4, 1899, when the step loosened and fell off, sending Smith with it. Another fire engine was following behind and could not stop before hitting Smith. He died of his injuries at the hospital. 

• Frank Foley died on Oct. 20, 1898. 

• Jeremiah Guiney lost his life on Feb. 11, 1898, from injures in a collision with a street car.

• Edward Greive was killed on Aug. 12, 1897, from injuries received in sliding down a fire house pole, according to a report in the June 23, 1898, Post-Dispatch. 

• Frank Buder, 36, died in a collision on June 23, 1897, when the fire engine took a wide turn and stuck a trolley poll. Buder had been stuck between the poll and the engine. He died at home on June 28.

• George Gottwald, 23, was using a hose on a ladder to extinguish a fire on March 16, 1897, when a nearby wall fell, hitting him. He hit another wall as he fell and landed on some debris. He died at the scene.

• Capt. John Stanton and Owen Hines had entered a burning building on Jan. 21, 1896. Hines, 32, was overcome by smoke and heat and collapsed. Soon after, the third floor of the building collapsed, causing the second floor to give way. Both Stanton and Hines, who was still unconscious, were covered in debris. Stanton, 36, died at the scene and Hines died from his injuries a month later on Feb. 26, 1896, in his home. 

• William Gannon was electrocuted by a live wire on April 18, 1894, while running to the back of a building in an alley. He immediately collapsed and died.

• August Phillips, 48, died on April 24, 1897.  

• Hugh O'Neil, 52, was walking down some stairs at the engine house on Nov. 10, 1892, when he slipped, hitting his chin on a lower step. He died on Nov. 13. 

• Capt. John Sweeney, 31, died on March 6, 1892, when the fire extinguisher he was using to fight a small fire exploded.

• Lt. Daniel Lynch, 36, lost his life on Sept. 14, 1890, while fighting a fire at a candy factory. The fire was almost under control when a wall fell on him and another firefighter. The other man got out safely, but the debris struck Lynch on the head and he died. 

• Capt. William Mullery, 36, was walking around the second story of an engine house under construction on Aug. 11, 1889. He stepped on a loose floor board, and it fell from under him, sending him down through the floor to the first story.

• Mark Hanlon fell 10 feet through an open hatchway in a fire on Oct. 18, 1888, severely damaging his spine and paralyzing him. He died of his injuries on Dec. 4, 1888. 

• Capt. Bernard McKernan, Frank McDonald and Capt. Chris Hoell were buried under debris when the Bishop & Spear's peanut warehouse collapsed on Aug. 10, 1887. They were on the third floor using a hose when the building caved in, crushing the men. They all died at the scene. 

• Owen O'Donnell died on July 31, 1887, from injuries received on July 17 when trying to catch a runaway horse and wagon; he fell and the wagon ran over him.  

• Joseph "Chambers" Schimper, 40, was using a hose in a burning building on Feb. 9, 1887 when one of the walls came tumbling down on top of him. He was found under debris still alive, but quickly died after that. 

• Thomas "Kidney" Delaney, 33, was driving an engine to a fire on Sept. 10, 1883, when it hit a hole in the road and sent him flying. He died at the scene. 

• Eugene O'Gorman was riding on the back of an engine while responding to an alarm on Aug. 13, 1883, when he was thrown off and landed between the wheel and the engines boiler. He was stuck there for 20 minutes. While waiting to be released, the boiler broke, spilling hot water on him. He died from his injuries at his home the next day. 

• George Fernan died on March 19, 1882. 

• Assistant Chief John Shockey, 41, died Sept. 29, 1881, after sustaining injuries in a fire on Sept. 25. He was working to extinguish the flames when a wall fell on him, causing several internal injuries. 

• Henry Carroll, 30, was buried by debris on Dec. 24, 1880, after the burning building collapsed. It took his colleagues a day to find his body in the ruins.

• George Dauber, 36, was on his way to a fire when he was thrown from the engine. He died from his injuries a few days later on Oct. 5, 1880. 

• Michael Lynch and Edward Sanderson died on Sept. 9, 1880. Lynch, 25, and Sanderson, 27, were working on the roof of the burning building when it collapsed, sending them down 20 feet.

• Phelim Toole, 32, died while fighting a small fire on July 6, 1880, when the extinguisher he was using exploded. Toole was beloved in the department and the city for rescuing 11 people in the Southern Hotel fire in 1877. Newspapers reported 20,000 people came to his funeral. 

The ruins of the Southern Hotel at Fourth and Walnut Streets after a devastating fire on April 11, 1877. Photograph by Robert Benecke. Missouri History Museum Photographs and Prints Collections.

• Jacob Kaltenthaler died in a collision on June 30, 1879, when the fire engine hit a curb after the horses tripped, throwing him to the ground.

• William Reutz and Frederick Niessen were buried by debris when fighting a fire on April 4, 1879. The men were using hoses on an upper floor of the building when a wall came down on top of them. This caused the floor to collapse under them, and they fell to the first floor. 

• James Titsworth was driving a hose and reel truck to a fire on Aug. 16, 1878, when he was knocked from his seat while passing under a railroad bridge.

• Michael Carey fell to his death on June 14, 1877, after the fire escape on a building broke under his feet. 

• John Bridge died after being kicked by a horse on Oct. 30, 1872 while responding to a fire alarm. 

• B.W. Smith was headed towards a fire on Dec. 13, 1871, when his vehicle overturned, killing him. His death was the first in the St. Louis Fire Department since it was established in 1857. 

Captain Thomas Targee, the volunteer fireman who died fighting the devastating fire of 1849 in St. Louis. Oil on canvas by Mat Hastings, 1902. Acc. # 1902.3.1. Scan (c) Missouri Historical Society, 1999

The crew of the White Cloud, a steamboat in the Mississippi River, doused a mattress fire on May 17, 1849, thinking they had avoided a disaster. Unfortunately, they were wrong. 

Around 10 p.m., a major blaze broke out on the boat. Strong winds pushed the flames over multiple boats until 23 were on fire. It traveled onto land and consumed 430 buildings in downtown St. Louis. It was the largest fire in St. Louis history, called the Great Fire of St. Louis. 

Capt. Thomas Targee, 40, was the only firefighter to die in the fire. Desperate to stop the flames, Targee decided to create a firebreak by blowing up buildings in its path. He successfully demolished five buildings, stopping the fire from spreading, when some gunpowder prematurely exploded in his hands, killing him on the spot. The fire was finally extinguished later that night on May 18.

He left behind a wife and 10 children. His 10th child was born the day after his death but died nine days later. Although Targee is considered a hero in the St. Louis Fire Department, he was never technically a part of the department, as it wasn't officially established until 1857. 

Ruins of the Great Fire of 1849. Daguerreotype by Thomas M. Easterly, 1849. [Easterly 31]. Scan (c) Missouri Historical Society, 1999.

One firefighter was killed and two others were injured in the fire in a north St. Louis building, according to the fire department. 

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