First Female Firefighter in the United States

Little is known about Molly Williams, the first female firefighter in the United States. She was an enslaved person who was owned by a wealthy merchant. His name was Benjamin Aymar. He was financially successful due to the success of his family’s business known as Aymar & Co. Aymar and his family lived in an impressive New York City residence. It was located at 42 Greenwich St., and Molly William lived with his family. Her job was to take care of his eight children.

New York City Fire Department

Aymar was known for being able-bodied as well as industrious. He was part of the New York City volunteer firefighting group that was still in its infancy. These volunteers consisted of many rough-looking men who were prepared to fight a New York city fire during the day or at any moment in the night. Most of the men who volunteered were from the surrounding neighborhoods and all of them had something to lose. It was common for a wealthy merchant to have his business destroyed by even a small fire. The biggest concern of the community was all the warehouses located along the docks in Lower Manhattan.

Molly and Aymar

Aymar was very dedicated to being a firefighter. He refused to give up being taken care of by someone even when he worked his unpaid shifts at his New York City firehouse. To make certain he was taken care of properly, Aymar brought Molly Williams with him to attend to things. Every time he reported for a shift at the Oceanus Engine Co. 11 firehouse, Molly would be with Aymar and ready to do what was asked of her. If no fires were occurring, Aymar would spend time talking and playing games with the other volunteers. Molly would be busy cleaning the firehouse and cooking for the firefighting crew. It is said she did an excellent job keeping everything at the firehouse clean. She even took care of the heavy water pumper that the volunteers had to pull by hand. Williams did all this, and she was 71 years old.Firefighting Knowledge

Molly spent many hours around the firehouse with Aymar. She learned how to use all of the firefighting equipment. Molly amazed the men because she could help move the huge water pumper that had to be pulled by drag ropes when it was full of water. It took many strong men to accomplish this and Molly would help. Several of the men believed she was as good as any of the men when it came to pulling the water pumper or operating the firefighting equipment.

Success

There was a serious blizzard one day during the winter of 1818. A major fire started burning out of control in the city. Molly was asked to go with the volunteers to fight the fire. They didn’t have enough men due to a recent outbreak of cholera. Molly was given the opportunity to prove she was equal to any of the volunteers when it came to firefighting. Wearing her calico dress and checked apron, she helped move the pumper full of water. It is said she did it with as much speed and strength as any man who was trying to haul it that day. This was a cold and challenging situation. Molly performed well and the fire was extinguished with her help. She impressed the other volunteer firefighters with her efforts. After being an important part of putting out the 1818 fire, the volunteer firefighters of Oceanus 11 made Molly Williams an unofficial member of their firefighting crew. She was soon referred to as Volunteer No. 11 at the firehouse.

Book

There is a well-known book written about Molly William’s time as a firefighter. It is called “Molly, by Golly!: The Legend of Molly Williams, America's First Female Firefighter.” The book is based on historic pictures and records of Moly Williams. It also includes the views of firefighting experts.

Men in Molly’s Life

Molly was often defined by the men around her as was customary during her time. Molly’s husband went on to be a successful businessman after opening a tobacco shop. He was able to purchase his and Molly’s freedom. Her son became a dedicated abolitionist and priest. Benjamin Aymar passed away in 1875 at the age of 84.

Legacy

There was not another female firefighter part of the New York Fire Department for 146 years after Molly Williams. This only happened because a woman named Brenda Berkman and a group of 40 women filed a discrimination lawsuit against the New York Fire Department. The women won the lawsuit. After the success of this lawsuit, women became firefighters in fire stations all over the United States.