Note: it only seemed fitting to lend the surname of the Washington, D.C. and later Montgomery county, Md. firefighter to the last 3 horses used to pull the wagons in D.C. before they changed to motorized vehicles. Bargagni visited the horses until they passed on.
Excerpted from the Washington Post, May 4, 1937:
Tom together with his pals Gene and Barney were the last of the horses used by the D.C. Fire Dept., all of whom were retired by 1925. These 3 were assigned to their last duty station at the old No. 8 Engine on North Carolina Ave. S.E. When retired, their pasture and barns were at Blue Plains which then was mostly farmland. Firefighters for years would come to visit them but they would still participate as a team in parades as late as 1929. As time went by they were said to always lift their head and act as though someone would soon come to put the harness on them when they heard the clanging fire bells and/or sirens somewhere in the distance. Tom was named after the late DCFD firefighter Capt. Thomas Buckley. What's sad is that today his grave location is unknown even though he had an elaborate marker and ceremony upon his death. Numerous reports of his demise were in the many D.C. newspapers that day also.
Note: barely a few miles away lies the remains of one of the 1st presidents of this country - John Hanson - under a bus parking lot. Even though there was a marker, his grave too is lost to history as well.
In a story in the Evening Star newspaper, Jan 17, 1921, it was reported that a DCFD firehorse Man O' War had been struck and killed by a streetcar while responding to a fire call. Although flowers were sent to the firehouse on his behalf, his remains were cleaned up by a contractor charged with disposing of common ordinary dead animals found randomly on the streets of D.C.
They say if you ever find yourself over at Glenwood cemetery, just a few miles north of the U.S. Capitol bldg., don't be surprised if you see a DCFD truck going by with lights and siren blaring - inside the cemetery mind you - as this is the burial place for the 1st firefighter in the DCFD to die while on duty. Rookies are said to be brought by as part of their training. But if you were to close your eyes briefly and just listen, you might hear the faint sounds of 3 white horses pulling an older vehicle behind the newer truck. It's just ole Barney, Gene, and Tom, forever on call and still out making calls...
His last known driver was James Gately FAG # 113225355
Excerpted from the Washington Post, May 4, 1937:
Tom together with his pals Gene and Barney were the last of the horses used by the D.C. Fire Dept., all of whom were retired by 1925. These 3 were assigned to their last duty station at the old No. 8 Engine on North Carolina Ave. S.E. When retired, their pasture and barns were at Blue Plains which then was mostly farmland. Firefighters for years would come to visit them but they would still participate as a team in parades as late as 1929. As time went by they were said to always lift their head and act as though someone would soon come to put the harness on them when they heard the clanging fire bells and/or sirens somewhere in the distance. Tom was named after the late DCFD firefighter Capt. Thomas Buckley. What's sad is that today his grave location is unknown even though he had an elaborate marker and ceremony upon his death. Numerous reports of his demise were in the many D.C. newspapers that day also.
Note: barely a few miles away lies the remains of one of the 1st presidents of this country - John Hanson - under a bus parking lot. Even though there was a marker, his grave too is lost to history as well.
In a story in the Evening Star newspaper, Jan 17, 1921, it was reported that a DCFD firehorse Man O' War had been struck and killed by a streetcar while responding to a fire call. Although flowers were sent to the firehouse on his behalf, his remains were cleaned up by a contractor charged with disposing of common ordinary dead animals found randomly on the streets of D.C.
They say if you ever find yourself over at Glenwood cemetery, just a few miles north of the U.S. Capitol bldg., don't be surprised if you see a DCFD truck going by with lights and siren blaring - inside the cemetery mind you - as this is the burial place for the 1st firefighter in the DCFD to die while on duty. Rookies are said to be brought by as part of their training. But if you were to close your eyes briefly and just listen, you might hear the faint sounds of 3 white horses pulling an older vehicle behind the newer truck. It's just ole Barney, Gene, and Tom, forever on call and still out making calls...
His last known driver was James Gately FAG # 113225355
Note: it only seemed fitting to lend the surname of the Washington, D.C. and later Montgomery county, Md. firefighter to the last 3 horses used to pull the wagons in D.C. before they changed to motorized vehicles. Bargagni visited the horses until they passed on.
Excerpted from the Washington Post, May 4, 1937:
Tom together with his pals Gene and Barney were the last of the horses used by the D.C. Fire Dept., all of whom were retired by 1925. These 3 were assigned to their last duty station at the old No. 8 Engine on North Carolina Ave. S.E. When retired, their pasture and barns were at Blue Plains which then was mostly farmland. Firefighters for years would come to visit them but they would still participate as a team in parades as late as 1929. As time went by they were said to always lift their head and act as though someone would soon come to put the harness on them when they heard the clanging fire bells and/or sirens somewhere in the distance. Tom was named after the late DCFD firefighter Capt. Thomas Buckley. What's sad is that today his grave location is unknown even though he had an elaborate marker and ceremony upon his death. Numerous reports of his demise were in the many D.C. newspapers that day also.
Note: barely a few miles away lies the remains of one of the 1st presidents of this country - John Hanson - under a bus parking lot. Even though there was a marker, his grave too is lost to history as well.
In a story in the Evening Star newspaper, Jan 17, 1921, it was reported that a DCFD firehorse Man O' War had been struck and killed by a streetcar while responding to a fire call. Although flowers were sent to the firehouse on his behalf, his remains were cleaned up by a contractor charged with disposing of common ordinary dead animals found randomly on the streets of D.C.
They say if you ever find yourself over at Glenwood cemetery, just a few miles north of the U.S. Capitol bldg., don't be surprised if you see a DCFD truck going by with lights and siren blaring - inside the cemetery mind you - as this is the burial place for the 1st firefighter in the DCFD to die while on duty. Rookies are said to be brought by as part of their training. But if you were to close your eyes briefly and just listen, you might hear the faint sounds of 3 white horses pulling an older vehicle behind the newer truck. It's just ole Barney, Gene, and Tom, forever on call and still out making calls...
His last known driver was James Gately FAG # 113225355
Excerpted from the Washington Post, May 4, 1937:
Tom together with his pals Gene and Barney were the last of the horses used by the D.C. Fire Dept., all of whom were retired by 1925. These 3 were assigned to their last duty station at the old No. 8 Engine on North Carolina Ave. S.E. When retired, their pasture and barns were at Blue Plains which then was mostly farmland. Firefighters for years would come to visit them but they would still participate as a team in parades as late as 1929. As time went by they were said to always lift their head and act as though someone would soon come to put the harness on them when they heard the clanging fire bells and/or sirens somewhere in the distance. Tom was named after the late DCFD firefighter Capt. Thomas Buckley. What's sad is that today his grave location is unknown even though he had an elaborate marker and ceremony upon his death. Numerous reports of his demise were in the many D.C. newspapers that day also.
Note: barely a few miles away lies the remains of one of the 1st presidents of this country - John Hanson - under a bus parking lot. Even though there was a marker, his grave too is lost to history as well.
In a story in the Evening Star newspaper, Jan 17, 1921, it was reported that a DCFD firehorse Man O' War had been struck and killed by a streetcar while responding to a fire call. Although flowers were sent to the firehouse on his behalf, his remains were cleaned up by a contractor charged with disposing of common ordinary dead animals found randomly on the streets of D.C.
They say if you ever find yourself over at Glenwood cemetery, just a few miles north of the U.S. Capitol bldg., don't be surprised if you see a DCFD truck going by with lights and siren blaring - inside the cemetery mind you - as this is the burial place for the 1st firefighter in the DCFD to die while on duty. Rookies are said to be brought by as part of their training. But if you were to close your eyes briefly and just listen, you might hear the faint sounds of 3 white horses pulling an older vehicle behind the newer truck. It's just ole Barney, Gene, and Tom, forever on call and still out making calls...
His last known driver was James Gately FAG # 113225355
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