Up through the early eighteen hundreds, fire helmets were a standard part of any fire fighter’s equipment. The leather fire helmet had long rear brims and curled up side brims that helped prevent water from spraying in the face and down inside the coat while fighting fires. Traditionally, the leather fire helmets contained four combs, which were ridges marked with stitched seams. Theoretically, the more ridges the fire helmet had, the stronger it was, so with time, it developed as many as twelve to sixteen seams. It wasn’t until 1836 that a new technology in fire helmets began to surface.

The Modern Day Fire Helmet

The evolvement of the modern day fire helmet began with a man named H.G. Gratacap. A man who had initially established himself by producing water-resistant, rot retardant leather luggage, Gratacap was also a volunteer fire fighter in New York City. Recognizing the need for more protective head gear, Gratacap used his knowledge in leather treatment to create a more effective leather fire helmet. Called the New Yorker, these fire fighting helmets, the first of American design, gained instant popularity. Two brothers, who operated a metal badge, buttons and insignia business under their last name, Cairns, conceived the idea of placing an identification badge in front of Gratacap’s fire helmets. The two companies merged, continuing to produce fire helmets until Gratacap retired, at which time, the Cairns brothers began creating a diversified line of fire fighting accessories.

More Innovations In Fire Helmets

Fire fighters used leather fire fighting helmets until 1920, when Cairns developed a high tech, light weight, helmet out of a revolutionary new material called aluminum. These advances continued, introducing three overlapping layers of ballistic grade Kevlar held together by ultra high temperature resin.

One of the present developments in fire fighter’s protection has been the introduction of fire helmet shields. Fire fighters need special shields for the hazards of fires. They must have adjustable hinges that can slide down and inward of fire helmets to insure that debris doesn’t get caught between the shield and fire helmet and to insure that the fire fighter isn’t blinded by spraying water.

With the introduction of Smokey the Bear and his instructions on safety, child fire fighting helmets became a popular promotional items. Originally of thin plastic, kid fire fighting helmets are now available in durable hard plastic construction, in exact replicas of their favorite fire fighting helmets. The fire fighter helmet for children is an excellent keepsake, one that marks the different eras and styles of fire fighters helmets, and might well take its place one day beside the adults used fire fighters helmets.