San Francisco Fire Department's First Official Photographer: Chet Born

San Francisco Fire Department in action, circa 1965. Photo by Chet Born.

In honor on San Francisco Fire Department's 150th Anniversary, we're spotlighting Chet Born, Photo No. 1. Born was a San Francisco firefighter and became San Francisco Fire Department (SFFD)'s first photographer in 1955. Chet Born's personal papers, scrapbooks and photographs were gifted to the San Francisco Public Library by his daughter and the collection was recently processed and opened for research.

Fire on 2400 block of Mission Street, circa 1967. Photo by Chet Born.

About the Chester (Chet) O. Born Papers 

Chester (Chet) O. Born's papers document his professional and public life from the 1940s until his death in 1973, tracing the trajectory of his career as a SFFD photographer; as well as his public life as a public speaker. The collection consists of photographs and color slides; scrapbooks; correspondence; certificates and awards; newspaper clippings and publications, the bulk of which feature or include photographs of and by Born. Most of the photographs document fires fought and rescues by SFFD between 1959 and 1973. A small number of photos are of Chet Born and other SFFD members. There are approximately 540 color slides which Born used for his public presentations. Many of the photographs are included in the scrapbooks.




About Chet Born -
Chester (Chet) O. Born was born on May 28, 1923 in San Francisco and grew up in the Sunset District on Twenty-first Avenue. Born’s interest in fire-fighting began with his neighborhood firehouse 40 Engine by getting to know the firemen and going to fire scenes to take photos. Born attended Polytechnic High School with the career ambition of “Fire Chief” noted in the Fall 1940 yearbook.

Born was appointed to the Underwriters' Fire Patrol of San Francisco on March 8, 1942 and entered the SFFD on July 1, 1943 as the Fire Patrol was merged into the SFFD by a City Charter amendment. On December 19, 1942 Born took military leave to the join the United States Marine Corps. As a Marine in World War II, Born took part in the capture of Iwo Jima in 1945. After active duty in the Pacific Theater, he returned to the department on May 8, 1946. As a young firefighter, Born took photos during his off-duty hours. His photos were first published in the San Francisco Firefighters’ Local 798 newspaper, The Inside Box. On August 30, 1951 he was granted military leave for the Korean police action, and returned to duty on September 12, 1952. He was a full-time firefighter until an injury prompted Chief William F. Murray to appoint Born as the department’s first full-time photographer in 1955. Born was formally designated as Photo One on November 7, 1960. He was appointed Inspector on September 19, 1965.

As Photo No. 1 – and the inception of SFFD's photographic unit – Born was responsible for photographing and filming Department activities. Born received numerous national and international awards of excellence for his photography and films which made him a premiere and noted fire photographer. Born was active in presenting many public relations presentations with his color slides throughout the community. During his career he was injured more than 50 times in fires and explosions. 

Chet Born taking photograph with cut wrist at Sutter & Fillmore Streets, 1964. Photo by San Francisco News Call Bulletin.

In addition to recording fires, “Photo No. 1” had other duties: Born’s photos of potentially hazardous conditions aided the Fire Prevention Bureau in their efforts to enforce fire codes; photos of rescues and accidents aided the Division of Training in their instruction of new firefighters; his work assisted Arson Inspectors in determining causes of fires. In the 1960s he responded to more than 700 incidents a year. In addition to local press, Chet provided national newspapers and magazines with many spectacular photos of SFFD at work. Along with his still cameras, he also used a 16mm film camera at major alarm fires – which was used for training.

Born retired from the SFFD on October 3, 1973. Chester O. (Chet) Born died on June 1, 1987. His Photo No. 1 helmet was donated in his memory in 1993 to the SFFD Pioneer Fire Museum.

San Francisco Fire Department in action, March 1964. Photo by Chet Born.

Resources for research on San Francisco Fire Department:

• Over 200 photographs digitized of SFFD. Come visit the Photo Desk to view the other 3,000 photographs that haven't been digitized as well as the Chet Born Papers. 
• Search the catalog for annual reports, publications and histories by and about SFFD.
• Visit the San Francisco History Center and view the San Francisco Ephemera Collection on the Fire Department.
• Use your San Francisco Public Library card to search for articles in the San Francisco Chronicle Historical database.
• Read our review of Firehouse Food in our Test Kitchen.