Following September 11, the New York City Fire Museum finally began to get the kind of public attention -- and attendance -- it had long deserved on the merits of its collection, which stretches all the way back into the colonial period and traces the development of the firefighting system to the present day, from the now-comical "bucket brigades" through streetside pumps, shiny brass poles and tank-like fire engines. The museum is set within a retired 1904 firehouse, the former home of Fire Company No. 30, and is often enthusiastically if unofficially staffed by working and retired firefighters, eager to share stories and shoot the bull. Memorials and tributes to the many firefighters who perished on 9/11(tragically, nearly half the department) are now a permanent feature of the museum.