Firefighting Philly family honors a legacy of service

Looking at Henry Magee's family tree is like looking at the history of the Philadelphia Fire Department.

"I think [firefighting] is something that runs in the bloodline," said Magee, 66, known as "Harry," who retired from the department in 2013 and serves on the board of directors of the Fireman's Hall Museum in Old City.

The Magee family's fire legacy began in 1887, when James Magee, an illiterate Irish immigrant, joined the department as a 26-year-old hose man. He transferred several times to different stations, ending at Engine 45 in Swampoodle in 1898.

That June, as he was fighting a fire at an oil cloth factory near Second and Erie Streets, a wall collapsed, killing Magee and injuring several other firefighters.

On Friday, 118 years after the fatal blaze, dozens of Magee family members gathered with firefighters, police, and neighborhood residents at the Engine 45 station near 22nd and York Streets to honor a man whom none of them ever met, but whose legacy has lived on through several generations of firefighters.

"He was one of us," said Deputy Fire Commissioner Robert Corrigan. "He remains one of us forever in our hearts."

During the ceremony, a plaque dedicated to James Magee was unveiled on the side of the station he served. An earlier plaque at Second and Erie Streets, the location of the 1898 fire, was stolen in March and was never recovered.

"It's a testament to both the tradition and the valor and the respect that these men and women have for one another," said Frank Keel, spokesman for Philadelphia Fire Fighters and Paramedics Union Local 22.

James was just the beginning of the Magee firefighting story. His wife, Anna, was the longest-serving matron, or cleaner, in the department, working for more than 40 years, according to Fireman's Hall records. Their son Edwin joined the department in 1913, and moved to Engine 45 in 1916 during his mother's time there. Another son, Charles, also served, as did his son, Phillip.

The firefighting tradition skipped over Edwin's son and Harry's father, Edwin Jr., but Harry has fond memories of his father waking him and his siblings during the night to watch fires blazing down the road.

"We would say, 'Hey, Dad, can we go?' " Harry said. "We would all get into the car and go. It would be crazy."

Harry remembered when, in high school, he heard the fire station's alarms sounding while at a gym and immediately hopped a bus to see the action.

Harry joined the department in 1973 at Engine 9 in West Mount Airy, and began working at the museum in 1985. He said he didn't plan on becoming a firefighter, but his Uncle Phillip encouraged him to take the firefighting test. Harry said his grandson plans to take the test next month.

Harry's second cousin Phillip Magee Jr., a florist and decorator, said the family has always adhered to a "theory of service."

"I think that was the legacy that was passed down, the opportunity to serve and be a part of something larger than the Fire Department," he said.

oexstrum@philly.com @olivaexstrum