Blogger’s note on an update: This post was updated on 10/14/2025. In an effort to further correct the long-standing confusion about which firehouse Sam Haskins was assigned to as a call man at the time of his death (my research found most current accounts mistakenly state it was located in Boyle Heights), I’ve now included images of a map, a newspaper article, and a page from the L.A. City Directory – all published in the 1890s – to help clarify this part of Haskins’ amazing story.
The first part of this post by Boyle Heights Historical Society Advisory Board member Rudy Martinez introduced us to Samuel (Sam) Haskins, a native of Virginia who came to Los Angeles in the early 1880s and became involved in the political world of the city’s small but active black community. In June 1892, Haskins became a call man (meaning he was on-call on an as-needed basis) with the Los Angeles Fire Department and was the first black firefighter in the department’s history. Now, we pick up the story of Haskins and thank Rudy for his excellent contribution. – Paul R. Spitzzeri
On Tuesday, November 19, 1895, at approximately 6:00 p.m., the alarm sounded at Los Angeles Fire Department (LAFD) Engine Company No. 2, located at 412 North Main Street [editor’s note: this is now a parking lot at the historic Plaza area next to the Pico House, Merced Theater and Masonic Lodge and just north of U.S, 101], where Sam Haskins was assigned as a call-man, meaning he was on-duty as needed.
While doing research for this blog post, I discovered that many recent accounts correctly note that Haskins responded with the crew from Engine Co. No. 2, but most of these accounts also mistakenly state the firehouse was located in Boyle Heights at the time. At the end of this blog post, I’ve included some images of a Sanborn map, a newspaper article, and a listing from the L.A. City directory to help update and clarify this misunderstanding.
Responding to the alarm, the station crew immediately took their positions on the horse-drawn carriage and rode south down Main Street. Haskins took a standing position on a running board at the rear, next to a shovel and a box of coal, which was behind a large and heavy steam pumper that was fixed at the center of the carriage.
A small coal-fed fire was always kept burning inside the burn box of the steamer’s boiler so that it could achieve enough pressure to operate the pump and draw water from a hydrant to feed the hose line.
LAFD historians surmise that Haskins’ position was that of a “stoker,” a task that required strength and coordination. Hanging on to the carriage with one hand while racing down the rough-hewn streets, a stoker’s responsibility was to maintain the fire in the burn box by using his foot to close and reopen the burn box and using his free hand to add shovels of coal.
Traveling no further than about two blocks from the station, however, the rig might have hit a particularly deep rut in the road. At this point, Haskins lost his balance and fell between the boiler and the rear wheel, which led to his body being badly mangled.
According to the Los Angeles Times edition of the next day, the 20th, after the rig came to a quick stop, the wheel had to be removed first. This took about ten minutes and only then could Haskins be freed, with his terrible injuries clearly visible to the growing crowd of onlookers. He was taken back to the station, where, after a few agonizing minutes, he died.
Most of the city’s newspapers reported the story about this tragic event that next day. While highlighting the details of the agonizing manner of his death, these accounts also described Haskins as the “colored politician” and the “the Herculean colored fireman,” noting that he “had many friends among the white as well as the colored population.”
One newspaper even recalled the time Haskins saved the life of police officer Valencia [see the first part of this post from last week.] Poignantly, LAFD Chief Walter S. Moore simply said, “The deceased was more than five years past connected with the department and was a faithful and industrious fireman.” [note the reference here to Haskins’ association with the LAFD going back to at least 1890, though his assignment as a call man was two years after that.]
Haskins was buried in the segregated area of Evergreen Cemetery in Boyle Heights on November 22. Marching to the cemetery from downtown, the funeral cortege, led by a band, was attended by both the chief and assistant chief of the LAFD, and a detail of thirty full-time firemen.
The Times reported that there were “profuse floral offerings, including a wreath from the Fire Commissioners and a star from the police department, with the services conducted by Rev. John A. B. Wilson, pastor of the First Methodist Church.” With no mention of family members, Haskins was simply described as a “bachelor” or “unmarried.” His gravesite, though, was left unmarked.
As mentioned earlier about the often-repeated location error of Engine Co. No. 2 at the time of Haskins’ death in 1895, below are some images that help clarify the fact that Boyle Heights did indeed house Engine Co. No. 2, but not until January 1896, two months after the death of Sam Haskins.
While Haskins was a call man for Engine Co. 2, located at 412 N. Main Street at the time of his death in 1895, Boyle Heights housed only one company during that time, Engine Co. No. 6. Both companies, with their addresses, are listed on page 26 in the 1895 Los Angeles City Directory.
Below is an image of a Sanborn map from 1890. The map shows the location of Engine Co. No. 6 in Boyle Heights, located on Virginia Avenue (now 2nd Street), just east of Boyle Avenue. On the image to the left, tract 255, is the location of what is Mariachi Plaza today.
Engine Co. No. 2, formerly on Main Street, was actually relocated to a newly built Boyle Heights engine house structure that opened in 1896 at 2123 E. 1st Street, on the corner where the Hollenbeck Community Police Station stands today. The structure that housed Engine Co. No. 6 on Virginia Street (2nd St.) was permanently closed, and the engine company was relocated to 9th and Broadway in downtown. Below is an 1896 L.A. Times article, and a photo of the new Boyle Heights engine house on the northwest corner of 1st and Chicago Streets.
The third part of this very interesting post on a pioneering figure in the early Los Angeles black community and the Los Angeles Fire Department will conclude next week, so be sure to check back then. – Paul R. Spizzeri