Article 32 August/September 2011
My hobby during the past few years has been collecting old ambulance photos (some have called it my obsession). Many of the collected photos originated from the Crestline and Ambucraft archives. Other photos came from private collections and from various archives and museums throughout Canada. Photos were also sent to me by ambulance historians in The Netherlands and I received many photos of American ambulances from a photo sharing group led by Steve Loftin of Oklahoma. I have met many interesting people throughout the collection process and I am grateful to all who generously shared their old ambulance photos with me. To date, the collection numbers more than four thousand pre-1980 ambulance photos.
The next phase of my project was publishing a book featuring some of the old photos I had found. The book is now finished - it's an eclectic collection of photos featuring ambulances of various makes, types and vintage together with a bit of historic information and my own personal observations. Some photos are black and white, others are colour; some are professional photographer quality, others definately not. Some photos feature restored ambulances; most of the photos present ambulances when they were still working. The book has 250 pages, of which 157 feature Canadian ambulances, 54 are of ambulances from the United States and 20 pages feature ambulances from other countries. The title of my new book is EMS Classics - A Collection of Ambulance Photos.
My hope is that EMS old-timers who buy the book will recall the vehicles they started their careers in, while the younger generation in EMS will hopefully learn and appreciate something about the past. If you are interested in ambulance/EMS history, I am certain you will enjoy the book. Available online at www.EMSclassics.com. Proceeds go to the Canadian Paramedic Benevolent Society.
Copyright 2011 Peter Adsten
