For more information, contact:
. David Lewis, Curator
. Aurora Regional Fire Museum

. email: dlewisarfm@aol.com
. Phone (630) 892-1572

. www.AuroraRegionalFireMuseum.org/HandtubExpo

-----------------------------------------------------

What - The Great Midwestern Handtub Fire Enjine Exhibition & Pumping Competition
• First hand-pumed fire engine tournament in the state of Illinois since 1897
• Ten antique fire engines (all dating from the 1800s) from five states will attend this nationally sanctioned tournament
• Also to be held: friendly pumping competitions between other local fire departments and civic organizations, tours, hands-on firefighting related activities for kids, refreshments throughout the day, and an informal, family-style, pig-roast and awards banquet Saturday night.

When - Pumping begins at 11am - Saturday, June 26th, 2004

Where - the Aurora Regional Fire Museum
• Corner of New York & Broadway (Rt. 25) in downtown Aurora, IL
• Free parking will be avaliable in the METRA commuter lot on Lincoln Ave. north of Spring St.

-----------------------------------------------------

The Great Midwestern Handtub Fire Enjine Exhibition & Pumping Competition
One of the gems of the Aurora Regional Fire Museum's collection is an 1850s era Button hand-pumped fire engine. While our building was closed and undergoing a massive renovation, volunteers restored this engine back to its original appearance and operating condition. On Saturday, June 26, 2004, we will showcase both the newly completed building, and our restored hand-engine by hosting, The Great Midwestern Handtub Fire Enjine Exhibition & Pumping Competition.

On July 28, 1897, in the small town of Monmouth, Illinois, a hand-pumped fire engine shot a stream of water 182 ft, 6 inches &endash; thus winning the tournament, yet ending the era of handtub fire engine competitions in the State of Illinois &endash; until now!

The ARFM, in cooperation with Handtub Junction, and the North American Class "C" Muster Association, will host the Great Midwestern Handtub Fire Enjine Exhibition & Pumping Competition. More than ten hand-operated fire engines (from five states) are expected to attend this event that will feature static displays, a nationally sanctioned tournament, and friendly pumping competitions between other local fire departments and civic organizations.

Out-of-town teams will arrive on Friday, June 25th in time for Aurora's "Downtown Alive!" where a special display area has been arranged for fire apparatus.

The "Exhibition and Pumping Competition" will commence at 11am on Saturday, June 26, in the parking lots and street near the ARFM and Aurora's Central Fire Station. The museum will be open throughout the day. Refreshments will be available (including fresh corn, boiled using an antique steam tractor), there will be lots of hands-on firefighting related activities for kids (and kids at heart). An informal, family-style, pig-roast and awards banquet will be held following the competition.

In addition to the antique fire engines, this event will showcase community pride, good sportsmanship, and firefighter camaraderie.

-----------------------------------------------------
What is a Fire "Enjine" Muster ?
In the book, The Firemen's Muster, America's Sport, Stan Dixon writes, "MUSTER, according to Webster, is to assemble or gather. For the past one hundred and fifty years, firemen have been engaged in the practice of gathering to compete for personal pride and for the sheer enjoyment of straining to prove that their company was the best of all assembled."

Hand pumped fire engines, (often called "handtubs," or "enjines" in the olden days), required many people to operate. They were hand-pulled to fires and hand-pumped at the scene. Great pride was taken in one's fire company, and in the abilities of their engine to perform at a fire. Often rivalries between fire companies developed and competitions were held to prove their water-pumping prowess.

The first recorded fireman's muster was held in 1849 in Bath, Maine where five engines vied to pump water the furthest. Firemen's musters soon blossomed throughout New England. An average of nineteen musters a year &endash; with an average of ten engines competing at each &endash; were held in the 1850s. The muster phenomenon also spread west outside of New England, with tournaments being held in California, Illinois, Indiana, Louisiana, Michigan, New York, New Jersey, Ohio, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia, Wisconsin, and even

As volunteer firefighters were replaced by paid, municipal departments and horse-drawn steam powered fire engines, many formed retired or "veteran" firemen's associations that preserved the old hand-pumped fire engines as well as the tradition of the fireman's competitions.

Teams continue to "muster" for the same reasons they did a century and a half ago. "Company pride, personal achievement by each crew, and the honor of parading down Main Street, with brooms held high signifying a clean sweep over all competitors is still what it's all about," writes Stan Dixon.

According to the New England rules, handtubs compete by shooting a stream of water down a 300 ft long course covered with paper. Each team has an allotted time (usually fifteen minutes) to pump their best stream. The furthest drop of water hitting the paper the size of a dime is used as the official score. The size of the engine, number of crew pumping, and wind conditions, all influence the length of an engine's stream. With favorable conditions, many handtubs are capable of throwing a stream of water well over 200 feet!