Steam fire engines like this were not used in Charleston until 1860, as most of the water pumping equipment for battling fires was done by hydraulics prior to that. In the late 19th century, the “steamer” had been advanced to the point that it was a very effective fire-fighting tool, with ability to raw water from wells with a suction hose, and then disperse it to effective heights and distances with a propelling hose. Charleston had no underground mains until the 1880’s, and water for fighting fire was created by digging wells near intersections throughout the city. A look the the Sanborn Fire Insurance Maps of 1884 show Charleston’s downtown wells.
Steam engines were still being used well into the 20th century in Charleston, and this old apparatus is featured in the Main Fire House at 262 Meeting Street, as well as some early trucks that are part of a fascinating history of fire prevention in the city.