(Photo left) Station 8 located at 748 Massachusetts. Ave. is one of the oldest fire houses still standing today. It is now home of our Indianapolis Local 416 Union Hall.
The History of the Emerald Society
In the beginning, the average Irishman was just poor and trying to escape their country that was being besieged. They would sell all their worldly possessions to secure an area in the hold of a ship, or become part of the ships crew doing any demeaning job to escape. When they arrived in the United States, they were often ill and almost always financially destitute.
The reality of their situation was no one wanted them, they were uneducated farmers in the midst of an industrial revolution. They were offered only menial jobs with very little pay. The Irishman could only get jobs no one else wanted often with a high mortality rate. One of the professions was being a fire fighter with little pay but a place to sleep. There dreams were beginning to develop.
It was at this time in the 1800’s that the Emerald Society began to evolve. As a group they realized that they needed to educate themselves as to the dangers of their chosen profession and became dependant on each other for there safety. Although the Society was originally established by professional firefighters of Irish heritage, today the Emerald Society membership is open to all professional firefighters regardless of family lineage or gender. Chapters exist in many large fire departments with the intent to promote goodwill and camaraderie among its members.
As a benevolent society, we will always continue to help the less fortunate and strive for a complete alliance within our membership. In the past two years we have created and given away in donations over $30,000.00. We have had our charter here in Indianapolis for fourteen years since 1994.
The Purpose of the Indianapolis Firefighters' Emerald Society
Is to provide a fraternal organization and a benevolent society for the firefighters of Marion & Surrounding Counties who share a common bond, “a firefighting related interest,” that wish to continue the fine traditions that have made firefighting what it is today. An Irish background has never been a requirement to be a member, nor is being an Indianapolis Firefighter required. Our ranks are open to all members of all Fire Departments in the Indianapolis Metro area and their families. We are listed and incorporated as the Emerald Society of Indianapolis. The Emerald Society is very proud of its openness to all members of all departments be they Firefighters, EMS-personnel, Communications, Retiree, or anyone who wants to be a member with Irish or Fire related interest. Our motto has always been that the Emerald Society is the one organization that we all can join. Our membership in the 1990’s had been about 100 and has grown to over 200 in the millennium. We need to continue to grow! We have members from virtually all fire departments in the metro area. We have a great mixture of ethnic backgrounds, religious backgrounds, with a central core of Irish Ancestry as the driving force of our activities.
The Indianapolis Firefighters Emerald Society has a Pipe and Drum unit for parades, funerals, and special events within the community. Would you like to learn to play the bagpipes or the drums? The Indianapolis Firefighters Emerald Society can teach you, free of charge. The Indianapolis Firefighters Emerald Society supports the community as a representation of goodwill through education assistance programs, sponsorships, and other events. 
The Indianapolis Firefighters Emerald Society hosts a memorial service the morning of the St Patrick's Day Parade for all firefighters and family members and a after the parade party at the Union Hall.
Indianapolis Firefighters Emerald Society provides an environment of brother and sisterhood amongst its members. It encourages members to be positive role models in the community. The organization is committed to enhancing the professionalism within the fire service and developing a close bond with the community to increase public safety. This Irish organization’s main objective is to promote friendship through family unity and involvement. We are a social group that takes no political positions in the fire department or government policy but rely on and support our Firefighters Union Local 416. We feel there is great need to bring families together and our success in this area has been overwhelming. The Emerald Society supports many activities during the year and like mentioned above, our St. Patrick’s Day Parade and Party.
