So Others Might Live

385 Pages·2003·22.48 MB·English

by  Terry Golway

S o O T H E R S M I G H T L I V E
Also by Terry Golway
FULL OF GRACE:
AN ORAL BIOGRAPHY OF JOHN C A R D I N A L O ' C O N N O R
FOR THE CAUSE OF LIBERTY:
A THOUSAND YEARS OF I R E L A N D ' S HEROES
THE IRISH IN AMERICA (with Michael Coffey)
IRISH REBEL:
JOHN DEVOY AND AMERICA'S FIGHT
FOR I R E L A N D ' S FREEDOM
So OTHERS
MIGHT LIVE
A History of
New York's Bravest
THE FDNY FROM
17OO TO THE PRESENT
Terry Golway
BASIC
A M E M B E R O P T H E P E R S E U S B O O K S G R O U P
BOOKS N E W Y O R K
Copyright © 2002 by Terry Golway
Hardcover first published in 2002 by Basic Books,
A Member of the Perseus Books Group
Paperback edition first published in 2003 by Basic Books
All rights reserved. Printed in the United States of America. No part of this book
may be reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission except
in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews. For
information, address Basic Books, 387 Park Avenue South, New York, NY 10016
Illustration credits: © Bettmann/CORBIS, pages xvi, 15, 72, 77, 95, 105, 111,
139, 166, 172, 183, 227, 238, 260; © Bob Crist/ CORBIS, page 335; ©
CORBIS, pages 27, 329; © CORBIS-Sygma, pages 287, 314; Courtesy Mand Fire
Department Library., pages 31, 92, 198, 247; Courtesy New York City Fire Museum,
pages 32, 82, 163, 204, 273; Courtesy FDNY Photo Unit, pages 3, 8, 123, 140,
187, 206, 209, 212, 225, 254, 267, 292, 303, 308; © Ed Eckstein/CORBIS,
page 280; © Medford Historical Society Collection /CORBIS, page 108; © Hulton-
Deutsch Collection /CORBIS, pages 175, 195; © Museum of the City of New
York/CORBIS, pages 44, 51, 134, 182; © Paul Colanglo/'CORBIS, page 319; ©
Sean Cassidy, page 295; © Steven Scher, pages xvi, 39, 218, 229, 233, 251, 262,
277; Terry Golway, page 345
Designed by Lovedog Studio
A CIP catalog record of this book is available from the
Library of Congress
ISBN 0-465-02740-7 (hc); ISBN 0-465-02741-5
03 04 05 / 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
For my father, firefighter Tom Golway,
and my mother, Mary Golway; my godfather,
firefighter Frank Tomaselli; my in-laws,
Firefighter Neil Duggan and Peggy Duggan;
and the families of firefighters everywhere.
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C O N T EN T S
A C K N O W L E D G M E N T S IX
P R O L O G U E XIII
CHAPTER 1
S E P T E M B E R 1O, 2OO1
CHAPTER 2
"DISCREET, SOBER MEN" 11
CHAPTER 3
A N A T I O N A L C A L A M I T Y 37
CHAPTER 4
GANGS, FEUDS, AND POLITICS
CHAPTER 5
W AR AND R E V O L U T I O N 99
CONTENTS
CHAPTER 6
"A D U T Y , NOT A PASTIME" 121
CHAPTER 7
V E R T I C A L CITY 155
CHAPTER 8
A M E R I C A N COLOSSUS 185
CHAPTER 9
THE WAR YEARS 217
CHAPTER 1O
A BATTLE FOR I N C L U S I O N 257
CHAPTER 1 1
A NEW W O R L D 283
CHAPTER 12
SEPTEMBER 11, 2OO1 3O1
CHAPTER 13
GOING HOME 323
EPILO G U E 337
NOTES 347
SOURCES 357
IND E X 361
CONTENTS
A C K N O W L E D G M E N T S
My FATHER spent more than thirty years protecting New Yorkers
from fire. My mother protected us when he worked his night tours. I
owe both of them my love and thanks.
My childhood memories are filled with images of firefighters sitting
around our kitchen table or flipping burgers in the backyard. They
laughed a lot, and told great stories. I wouldn't blame them for any of
my personal or professional flaws, but I'll thank them and their loved
ones for providing me with role models, an appreciation of life and
whatever work ethic I might have. Thanks, then, to my godfather, Frank
Tomaselli, to my late uncle, Walter Golway, and the gang from Engine
162 and Truck 82, especially Donald and Stella Holton, Tom and
Madeline Canterino, Donald and Diane Dillon and Charlie Bruns. I sup-
pose it comes as no surprise that I married into another firefighting ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
family: So thanks, too, to Neil and Peggy Duggan.
Everybody who agreed to be interviewed for this book has my
IX!
thanks. I owe a special debt to Ed Staines, who was so generous with his
time, his contacts and his personal files. John Fox led me to a handful of
terrific interviews. Susan Blake put aside a night's worth of studying for