Waldo Gentry - Do You Want To See Where The Colored Fireman Work?

I spoke with Waldo in his home in West Philadelphia. In his first story Waldo talks about visiting Engine 11 as a child and beginning training as a fireman in Philadelphia on December 1, 1950.

The Philadelphia Fire Department was segregated from 1919 - 1952. African-American firemen were assigned to Engine 11 on South Street. Waldo is one of five surviving firefighters who worked at Engine 11 before it was desegregated in 1952.

Here a few more Engine 11 photos

Google Maps: Engine 11

Comments

[auroraz7]

This is a wonderful clip, and looks like the entryway to a rich, fascinating story. Question: will you at any point be providing narrative (e.g. text) describing the context, what the interview is all about, etc? I think that would make these great clips even better.

Thanks for doing this. It's important, and it's fun. A rare but quite perfect combo.