Measures for Progress: A History of the National Bureau of Standards

The Baltimore fire of 1904. The turn of the century was still an age of kerosene lamps
and wooden cities, except in the business districts which were largely of "fire-proof'
brick and stone. But there were wooden stables and sheds behind the buildings, and
the structures themselves were filled with highly combustible partitions and furnish-
ings, and there was actually little that was fireproof in their construction.
Despite progress, as late as 1964 firefighters in at least one county adjacent to
Baltimore were confronted with two types of hydrants in use, one with the national
standard thread and the other with the Baltimore steamer thread. Although they had
adaptors, the firemen were asking that fireplugs be coated with colored fluorescent
paint, to distinguish the two threads at night and reduce delay in hooking up. The
Baltimore Evening Sun, Oct. 1, 1964, p. D2.
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