Fire Bucket, "5"

This nineteenth-century hand-sewn bucket, marked only with the number 5, most likely belonged to an early engine. Most fire companies were formed around small hand-pumped engines, the first of which were imported from England in the late seventeenth century. As towns grew and new companies sprang up, additional engines were purchased. Each machine came equipped with four to six buckets, which were painted to match the color scheme of the engine and numbered to correspond with the machine. This bucket belonged to Engine #5, the fifth machine to be acquired by this particular town. Engine #5 was most likely painted red, gold, and black, like this bucket. Companies took great pride in their engines, and they were usually elaborated decorated, such as with painted panels depicting Liberty, Guardian Angels, or other allegorical female figures. Because of their association with engines, the design of a company’s buckets would have been equally important.