Prior to 1865, the New York City Fire Department was staffed by volunteers.
On March 30, 1865 the New York State legislature passed a law organizing the Metropolitan Fire Department as a paid firefighting force that took control of all the powers and authority of the volunteer department, as well as all the assets such as the fire trucks, equipment, and buildings.
[1] After a lawsuit contesting the constitutionality of the law was dismissed by the New York Court of Appeals,[2] it immediately started to operate.
[3][4] During the remainder of the 19th century, the number of commissioners was periodically changed by the New York State legislature, until a single commissioner was put in charge of the FDNY when Manhattan and the Bronx consolidated with Brooklyn, Queens, and Staten Island to form The City of New York on January 1, 1898.
During this period, the commissioners elected their own president who ran the commission meetings,[5] and treasurer, who was the fiscal officer and responsible for reporting the department's finances to the mayor and the Board of Aldermen.