The N.Y. Fire Department Medal (formerly known as James Gordon Bennett medal and renamed Chief Peter J. Ganci medal in 2020) is awarded for valor above and beyond the call of duty. It is considered one of the highest honors in the New York City Fire Department and akin to a Medal of Honor for the fire service.
A Short History of the N.Y. Fire Department
The New York City Fire Department (FDNY) has a long and storied history, dating back to the early 18th century.
Let’s quickly go through the history of the New York City Fire Department. In 1648, New Amsterdam (which later became New York City) established its first fire prevention regulations, requiring that all chimneys be made of stone or brick, and, in 1731, the first volunteer fire company (the “Union Volunteer Fire Company”) was formed. The first official fire department, though, was established in 1798 by the New York City Common Council. In 1898, the five boroughs of New York City (Manhattan, Brooklyn, Queens, the Bronx, and Staten Island) were consolidated into a single city, and the FDNY became the official fire department for the entire city.
Today, the FDNY is one of the largest and most respected fire departments in the world, with over 10,000 uniformed firefighters and more than 200 firehouses serving the five boroughs of New York City.
The Chief Peter J. Ganci Medal (Formerly James Gordon Bennett)
For 150 years, the New York City Department’s highest honor was the James Gordon Bennett Medal, which was given to firefighters who had shown valor above and beyond the call of duty.
This medal was not named after a firefighter but a public servant who gave the award to men who had saved his upstate home from a blaze in 1869. However, after his racist and segregationist views on the New York Herald (of which he was publisher), the medal changed its name to that of Chief Peter J. Ganci.
Ganci was the highest-ranking uniformed member of the New York Fire Department to be killed in the September 11 terror attacks of 2001.
