The Peabody Fire Department was established in 1868, when the town changed its name from South Danvers to Peabody after one of its favorite sons: well-known philanthropist George Peabody. However, its long-standing history of being a first-class department
dates farther back to the purchase of the town's first hand engine, the Federal No. 1, in 1800, and even farther back with the formation of bucket brigades and fire clubs. Peabody's long history of being the "leather capital of the world" parallels the fire department's history, because many of the department's members worked in the...

Since the beginning of the leather industry in America, Peabody and leather have always been considered synonymous. The Civil War and Reconstruction Era brought great prosperity to the industry, and by the late 19th century, the leather industry's success was firmly established in Peabody. After the great Boston fire of 1872, many leather shops in Boston were completely destroyed, leaving Peabody's tanneries unrivaled. In 1894, Arthur C. Lawrence and his A. C. Lawrence Leather Company arrived in Peabody, employed thousands of workers, and secured the city's place in history as the largest...