If you walk into the Pennsylvania National Fire Museum in Harrisburg, you’ll find more than old fire trucks and helmets. You’ll step into a story of service, family tradition, and decades of dedication to preserving local history—thanks in large part to one man: Dave Houseal.
Houseal, the longtime historian for the Harrisburg Fire Department, has deep roots in the fire service. “I’m a third-generation firefighter with the city,” he shared in an interview on The Spark with WITF’s Asia Tabb. “I’ve been involved since I was 18. I won’t tell you how old I am now, but it’s my seventh decade.”
Houseal’s interest in the department’s past started with his father, who kept a filing cabinet full of newspaper clippings and records. “I picked up after my dad passed away,” Houseal said. “He had one file cabinet. I expanded it to four.”
That archive became the foundation for what is now the Pennsylvania National Fire Museum, housed in an 1899 firehouse. The building itself is a piece of history—one of 11 old firehouses still standing in Harrisburg.
