The following is a list of heads of the Chicago Fire Department in Chicago,

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolita ...

United States. This includes heads of the original iteration of

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

's fire department, a

volunteer Volunteering is a voluntary act of an individual or group freely giving time and labor for community service. Many volunteers are specifically trained in the areas they work, such as medicine, education, or emergency rescue. Others serve ...

force which preceded the establishment of the current, professional, fire department in 1858. Currently the executive of the

Chicago Fire Department The Chicago Fire Department (CFD) provides fire suppression, rescue services, Hazardous Materials Response services and emergency medical response services to the city of Chicago, Illinois, United States, under the jurisdiction of the Mayor of Chi ...

is referred to as the "fire commissioner". Before this, the head of the department was known as the "chief engineer". The current head, holding the position of "fire commissioner", is Annette Nance Holt, appointed by mayor

Lori Lightfoot Lori Elaine Lightfoot (born August 4, 1962) is an American attorney and politician serving since 2019 as the 56th mayor of Chicago. She is a member of the Democratic Party. Before becoming mayor, Lightfoot worked in private legal practice as ...

in 2021.

History

Currently, the head of the Chicago Fire Department is appointed by the

mayor of Chicago The mayor of Chicago is the chief executive of city government in Chicago, Illinois, the third-largest city in the United States. The mayor is responsible for the administration and management of various city departments, submits proposals and r ...

, and confirmed by the

Chicago City Council The Chicago City Council is the legislative branch of the government of the City of Chicago in Illinois. It consists of 50 alderpersons elected from 50 wards to serve four-year terms. The council is gaveled into session regularly, usually mont ...

. Originally, the leader of the Chicago Fire Department was known as chief engineer. This position was created by an ordinance passed by the then-village of Chicago's board of trustees in November 1835. In December 1835, Chicago's board of trustees appointed its president Hirman Hugunin to be the inaugural occupant of this position. In 1837, when Chicago was incorporated as a city, its charter had the position be one which was elected annually by the city's voters. If an election saw no candidates, thus failing to produce an occupant of the office, the

Chicago Common Council The Chicago City Council is the legislative branch of the government of the City of Chicago in Illinois. It consists of 50 alderpersons elected from 50 wards to serve four-year terms. The council is gaveled into session regularly, usually mont ...

(as the Chicago City Council was known as the time) would appoint one. This position originally oversaw a

volunteer fire department A volunteer fire department (VFD) is a fire department of volunteers who perform fire suppression and other related emergency services for a local jurisdiction. Volunteer and retained (on-call) firefighters are expected to be on call to respond t ...

, until the modern iteration of the Chicago Fire Department was established by city ordinance on August 2, 1858. In 1927, the title of chief engineer was replaced with the new title of fire commissioner.

List of heads of the Chicago Fire Department

Chief Engineers (1835–1927)

Fire Commissioners (1927–present)

Notes

Hirman Hugunin and George E Snow's tenures predate the incorporation of Chicago as a city. While no mayor was serving at the time they were High Constable,

John H. Kinzie John Harris Kinzie (July 7, 1803 – June 19, 1865) was a prominent figure in Chicago politics during the 19th century. He served as the president of the Board of Trustees of Chicago when it was still a town and thrice unsuccessfully ran for Chic ...

was Town President

References