HIS first major experience with the destructive force of fire was watching helplessly as his father's cabinet-making business in the Scottish capital was razed to the ground.
Prompted to act by the devastation caused by this and other blazes in Edinburgh in the early 19th century, James Braidwood started the first municipal fire brigade in the world.
The Fire Museum in the city's Lauriston Place tells this story and is also custodian of a unique collection of artefacts related to the history of the service.
But the future of the museum that tells the compelling story of the decorated hero who became known as the father of the fire brigade is now in doubt.
The home of the Braidwood memorial collection, established in the 1960s, is under threat following the merger of the country's fire services and moves to make savings at the new single service .
The last report by the former Lothian and Borders service called for the Fire Museum to be kept, but the new Scottish Fire and Rescue Service (SFRS) – which has its headquarters in Perth – could give no firm guarantee over its long-term future.
The SFRS will be looking to make savings where possible and the sale of buildings is being considered.
A spokeswoman for the SFRS said it valued the history and traditions of the country's fire and rescue services. She said the single service will continue to protect that legacy for future generations "to see the development and evolution of the service over the years".
The museum tells the story of Braidwood's life from when he set up the Edinburgh Fire Service – the forerunner of the modern service – in 1824 to when he established the first London Fire Brigade in 1833.
Until Braidwood's brigade, only those wealthy enough to arrange their own insurance for fire could rely on help from the private firefighting firms.
The historic museum is currently staffed by volunteers and is open to the public most days. There are between 4000 and 5000 visitors a year. But current running costs for the museum are about £12,000 a year, principally for property costs.
While Alasdair Hay, the new SFRS chief officer, has said he wants to retain the museum, there are concerns it could be moved out of the capital or the collection could be split up.
Braidwood supporter and former Edinburgh Lord Provost George Grubb said there would be a push to keep the collection intact and in the city.
He also said it should be formally elevated to full national status. The museum focuses on the Lothian and Borders area but also includes exhibits from across Scotland.
Mr Grubb said: "I would be very disappointed and saddened if the collection was broken up."
Braidwood was killed in a London fire, and his reputation was such that his funeral procession was said to be the largest since that of the Duke of Wellington.
Why are you making commenting on The Herald only available to subscribers?
It should have been a safe space for informed debate, somewhere for readers to discuss issues around the biggest stories of the day, but all too often the below the line comments on most websites have become bogged down by off-topic discussions and abuse.
heraldscotland.com is tackling this problem by allowing only subscribers to comment.
We are doing this to improve the experience for our loyal readers and we believe it will reduce the ability of trolls and troublemakers, who occasionally find their way onto our site, to abuse our journalists and readers. We also hope it will help the comments section fulfil its promise as a part of Scotland's conversation with itself.
We are lucky at The Herald. We are read by an informed, educated readership who can add their knowledge and insights to our stories.
That is invaluable.
We are making the subscriber-only change to support our valued readers, who tell us they don't want the site cluttered up with irrelevant comments, untruths and abuse.
In the past, the journalist’s job was to collect and distribute information to the audience. Technology means that readers can shape a discussion. We look forward to hearing from you on heraldscotland.com
Comments & Moderation
Readers’ comments: You are personally liable for the content of any comments you upload to this website, so please act responsibly. We do not pre-moderate or monitor readers’ comments appearing on our websites, but we do post-moderate in response to complaints we receive or otherwise when a potential problem comes to our attention. You can make a complaint by using the ‘report this post’ link . We may then apply our discretion under the user terms to amend or delete comments.
Post moderation is undertaken full-time 9am-6pm on weekdays, and on a part-time basis outwith those hours.
Read the rules hereComments are closed on this article