Fire brigades have long been associated with dogs and Oxford was no exception with a lovable and friendly one called ‘Joe’, writes John Lowe.

It may be that during long hours of duty, firemen appreciated the companionship provided by pets.

We know that Joe did exist as he is shown in the photograph above taken on Christmas Day 1893 outside the original New Inn Hall Street station.

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He was reputed to be “a powerful beast of the Alsatian type”.

These were the days, of course, before mechanical fire engines – it was when steam-powered machines were drawn by horses.

Joe lived in the fire station in the 1890s and was reputed, in the event of a fire call, to have carried messages to the firemen and roused the horses.

It is said he also knew where the volunteer firemen lived and that when there was a fire call, he would run to their houses and bark to alert them.

According to another contemporary account, in the event of a fire, “he would bark his head off at the horses and would get to a fire even if it meant breaking his chain and leaping the stable door”.

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His large leather collar, which is on display at the present Rewley Road fire station, lends support to these remarkable claims, as it has an engraved silver plate attached which states:

‘Stop me not when on the jog,

For I am “Joe” the Fireman’s dog’

OVFB.

OVFB are the initials of the Oxford Volunteer Fire Brigade, which served the city from 1870 to 1938.

Oxford Mail: In the 1893 picture above, the firemen, left to right, are S King (on ladder), H West, G Russell, A Shuter, J Castle, E Hunt with Joe the dog, J Green, T Forrest and right of the Merry Christmas sign, J Couldrey, F Coleman, H Cross, R Naab, H Giles and H Horser (on ladder).

There seems to be no doubt as to Joe’s popularity and fame as an Oxford character - he was well known to the people of the city as well as the firemen.

The fire station in George Street closed in 1971 and firefighters transferred to Rewley Road.

The building is now shared by Arts at the Old Fire Station and Crisis Skylight Oxford, a charity.

Staff offer support to help people through their experience of homelessness. All the services are free.

For more information visit crisis.org.uk/get-help/oxford/services/how-we-can-help-you-at-crisis-skylight-oxford

John Lowe, who has written today’s story, served as a firefighter in the Oxford City and Oxfordshire brigades for more than 30 years, starting in 1970.

He is currently writing a book on the history of the Oxford fire brigade.

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About the author 

Andy is the Trade and Tourism reporter for the Oxford Mail and you can sign up to his newsletters for free here. 

He joined the team more than 20 years ago and he covers community news across Oxfordshire.

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