In the latter half of the 17th century, the first fire insurance companies were established in England and Europe. Fire marks, which were metal plaques issued by the insurance companies and attached to insured buildings, indicated which fire company carried the primary responsibility for extinguishing a fire. A policy would not go into effect until the mark had been placed on the building, and if a policy lapsed, the mark was promptly removed.

Most of the early fire marks were made of pliable lead, which was easy to mold. A “plumber,” a worker in lead, created the marks, often including the insurance company’s name or a design chosen by the company. Some early insurance companies designed their marks to include a spot for the policy number, which was either stamped into the metal or painted. (Policy numbers on early fire marks were often the only means of identifying an address when no street names or numbers existed, such as in 17th-century London.) Later, marks were made of tinned iron, brass, ceramics, and copper. In America in the 18th century, heavy, durable marks were created in cast iron. Companies in Missouri, and especially St. Louis, crafted most of their marks in zinc, an abundant regional resource.

In many countries, after the need to identify insured buildings for purposes of fighting fires diminished, the marks often remained affixed to the buildings as pieces of decorative art and advertisements for the various companies.

The fire marks shown here are part of the Morton T. Werner Collection, a substantial collection of fire marks, fire insurance signs, and firefighting equipment and memorabilia donated to the Missouri History Museum by Mrs. Marilyn Werner in 1985.

Cary Horton is staff photographer at the Missouri History Museum.