John D. Brewer - Executive Director Pension history of the St. Louis Fire Department is long and enumerated in the texts of the State of Missouri and the City of St. Louis going back into the late 1800s. As early as 1843, St. Louis Firefighters, which were all volunteer at the time, established a Firemen’s Fund. This fund was supported solely by dues and donations which assisted injured firefighters while recovering. (Fund, The Firemen's, 1914)