The London Salvage Corps was maintained by the fire offices of London. The corps was first formed in 1865 and began operations in March 1866. It was inspired by the Liverpool Salvage Corps which had been formed in 1842, to reduce the loss and damage caused by fires, to help mitigate the effects of fire and of fire-fighting and to salvage both premises and goods affected by fire.
History
The London Salvage Corps (LSC) had been around for as long as London's first properly organised fire brigade. The London Fire Engine Establishment had been created and maintained by the principal fire insurance offices of London. The London Fire Engine Establishment, established in 1833 under the command of Superintendent James Braidwood, had undertaken salvage work as part of its normal everyday fire extinguishing duties. Following Braidwood's death at the great Tooley Street fire in 1861, and the arrival of Captain Eyre Massey Shaw, a new fire brigade for London was required. It was created in 1866 and called the Metropolitan Fire Brigade, still with Captain Shaw as its first Chief Officer. However, the Metropolitan Fire Brigade Act 1865 was vague enough to enable the Metropolitan Board of Works, who controlled the new brigade at the time, to refuse responsibility for any salvage work without payment. The amount sought by the Metropolitan Board of Works for this service exceeded that for which an independent salvage corps could be maintained by the fire offices themselves. Therefore, it was decided at a meeting of the London Fire Engine Establishment on 22 December 1865 to establish a salvage corps independent of the Metropolitan Fire Brigade. The London Salvage Corps was founded by John Brookes Johnston of the Royal Insurance Company. The London Salvage Corps commenced operations during January 1866. The original subscribers to the London Salvage Corps were the Alliance, Atlas, Globe, Imperial, London, Protector, Royal Exchange, Sun, Union and Westminster fire offices, but membership varied subsequently.
The London Salvage Corps was maintained, and overseen by the fire offices of London. The staff of the corps, when formed, consisted of 64 salvagemen and officers. Since that time, owing to the many improvements that had taken place in the system of dealing with salvage, and the increase in the work to be done, the corps was strengthened, and the staff increased to 112 by the early 1970s. The various stations of the LSC were strategically placed, and "the Metropolis has been mapped out so that when a fire takes place it may be attended to at the earliest possible moment."
The early working staff (like its fire brigade counterparts) were mainly recruited from the navy. They consisted of the chief (salvage) officer and a superintendent, foreman and crew of men at each salvage station. The stations of the corps were initially connected by telegraph but were later connected by telephone with the fire brigade stations from whence the calls were received. In addition to the station staff, there were also salvage staff constantly employed during the daytime in inspecting docks, wharves, goods and London warehouses, with regular reports made weekly to the Insurance Committee.
Headquarters and station locations
No. 1 Station (B District) - headquarters situated at Watling Street - protected the City of London enclosed by Euston Road, Tottenham Court Road, City Road and the river Thames No. 2 Station (C District) - located on Commercial Road - covered whole of the eastern and north-eastern portion of London to the north of the Thames No. 3 Station (D District), opposite the headquarters of the Metropolitan Fire Brigade Station in Southwark Bridge Road, protected the whole of south London No. 4 station (A District), on Shaftesbury Avenue, covered the West End and Kensington This station transferred to the London Fire Brigade and became their Soho Fire Station. Following wartime bomb damage, it remained in use until 1983. No. 5 station, in Upper Street, Islington, protected the parish of Islington
A new headquarters was constructed for the London Salvage Corps at Aldersgate Street in 1960. Following the disbanding of the service in the 1980s, it transferred to the London Fire Brigade. The building was subsequently demolished and the site is now an office building