Listen free for 30 days
-
Company Eight
- Narrated by: Matthew Pearl
- Length: 1 hr and 25 mins
Failed to add items
Add to Cart failed.
Add to Wish List failed.
Remove from wish list failed.
Follow podcast failed
Unfollow podcast failed
Company Eight
Buy Now for $8.71
No default payment method selected.
We are sorry. We are not allowed to sell this product with the selected payment method
Publisher's Summary
In the annals of American firefighting, the early 1800s were a dark time. Volunteer fire companies operated less as public servants and more as rival gangs: defying city regulations, extorting money from victims, sabotaging other companies to put out fires first, or letting them burn out of pure spite. Willard Sears, a Boston builder and abolitionist, set out to change all that with a vision for a fire company that would bring professionalism to a field laced with corruption and violence. He gathered a ragtag group to follow him under the banner of Company Eight. Ultimately, Sears' quest would pit him against the most powerful forces in the city, in a battle that would shape the future of firefighting in America. Writer Matthew Pearl delves into historical archives to bring to life, for the first time, a true story of courage and persistence.