Byron M. Davis

Introduction

Byron M. Davis was born on August 7, 1898, according to Camden Fire Department records. He appears to have been living in Philadelphia in 1918, as a Byron M. Davis registered for the draft there.

On November 22, 1920 the Camden Fire Department hired six Black fire fighters, the first blacks to serve since the 1880s. They were Walter W. Carter, Leroy Hatchett, Charles Cooke, George Johnson, Roscoe Tribbett and Benjamin Walters, who were hired when the Department was reintegrated. Three others were appointed, but did not begin serving until 1921, Byron Davis, Alfred E. Greene, and Louis Stevens. All of these firefighters served with Engine Company 1 at 409 Pine Street.

Byron Davis does not appear in the Camden City Directories for 1924, 1927, and 1929, which simply means that he had not responded to the inquiry of the company that published the Directories. Fire Department records indicate that he was living at 348 Atlantic Avenue in 1931. The 1940 Camden City Directory shows him living at 730 Walnut Street. The 1943 edition show him staying at 907 Pine Street.

Byron Davis was still serving with the Camden Fire Department at Engine Company 1 when the 1947 Camden City Directory was compiled. He was then living at 304 Pine Street. No wife is indicated in either of the three directories.

As of this writing, in May of 2011, it is not known what became of Byron Davis after 1947. Byron Davis does not appear in the 1956 or 1959 New Jersey Bell Telephone Directories, nor does he appear in the Social Security Death Index.