(Engine 216s old quarters still stands today.)
The old firehouse was mentioned in the best-selling novel, "A Tree Grows in Brooklyn", which was later made into a classic movie. Engine 16 was intergrated into the FDNY on Jan. 1, 1898. On October 1, 1899, Engine 16 was renumbered to Engine 116. Fourteen years later, on January 1,1913, Engine co. 116 was renumbered Engine Co. 216, as it is known today. During the 125 years only one member's life was lost, that of Capt. William Baldwin, the first member of the Brooklyn Fire Department to be killed in the line of duty. Capt. Baldwin was killed by the falling walls of the Otto Huber Brewery on Jan. 14, 1880. A striking monument stands over the grave where Captain Baldwin was laid to rest in Evergreen Cemetary in Bushwick, Brooklyn.
Captain Baldwin walked the floors of this building, think about that.