Fallen firefighters, including 1 from 1849, honored

KINGDOM CITY, Mo. -- A memorial wall commemorating fallen Missouri firefighters is adding three names -- including one who died 169 years ago.

The St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported St. Louis firefighters John Kemper and Wells Colton, and Jeffery Sanders of Mayview were added to the wall in Kingdom City in weekend ceremonies.

The wall, called the Sacrifice Wall, is made of black granite. It has 425 names and features a statue of a kneeling firefighter on its top. Ceremonies were scheduled Saturday night and Sunday morning.

Kemper, 59, died a week after suffering injuries battling a house fire in July. The 25-year veteran of the fire department didn't suffer any burns but was admitted to the hospital with what was believed to be a shoulder injury. He was released from the hospital but died at home.

Sanders, 55, of the Mayview Fire Protection District in western Missouri, died in June when a vehicle crashed into a firetruck.

Colton, 37, was a volunteer firefighter whose death was recently connected with the Great St. Louis Fire, which began May 17, 1849, on a steamboat and spread to more than 20 other steamers along the Mississippi River levee. The fire eventually destroyed several blocks of downtown buildings.

Colton died several days after the fire, and a retired firefighter recently connected his death to an explosion related to the fire, said Keith Smith, chairman of the Fire Fighters Memorial Foundation Board.

Information from: St. Louis Post-Dispatch, http://www.stltoday.com