Edward Wade Wilson Jr.

Edward Wade Wilson Jr. (1925–2019) was Kansas City’s first — and to date only — African American Fire Chief, a nearly 46-year KCFD veteran who began his career at the segregated Fire Station No. 11 and, as chief, led the department through two of its defining disasters: the 1981 Hyatt Regency walkway collapse and the 1988 Highway 71 explosion.

Biography

Early life

Wilson was born in Parsons, Kansas in 1925 and moved to Kansas City as an elementary-school-age child. He attended R.T. Coles and Lincoln High Schools, graduating in 1943.¹

Joining the KCFD

Wilson joined KCFD as a cadet immediately after high school in 1943, beginning his career at Fire Station No. 11, then still an all-Black company. He left briefly to serve in the U.S. Army in Germany during World War II before rejoining the department.¹²

Rise through the ranks

Wilson became a fire motor operator and then, at age 23, a Captain — “no one so young had previously achieved that rank,” per his profile.¹ He was promoted to Battalion Chief in 1960 and Deputy Chief in 1975.¹

Fire Chief (1980–1989)

Wilson became Fire Chief in 1980, the first African American to hold the position in KCFD’s history. As chief, he led the department’s response to two of Kansas City’s worst disasters: the Hyatt Regency skywalk collapse of July 17, 1981, and the Highway 71 ammonium nitrate explosion of November 29, 1988, which killed six KCFD firefighters.¹ He retired in 1989 after a career spanning nearly 46 years.¹

Later years

After retiring from KCFD, Wilson worked as an insurance investigator and later for The Kansas City Star.¹ He died in October 2019.¹

Defining contributions to Kansas City

1. First African American Fire Chief in KCFD history — to date, the only one.
2. Youngest Captain in department history at the time of his promotion, age 23.
3. Led KCFD’s institutional response through two of the city’s deadliest disasters.

Sites in KC associated with this person

• Fire Station No. 11 — where he began his career in 1943

Sources

Footnotes

1. African American Heritage Trail of Kansas City (AAHTKC) — “Edward Wade Wilson Jr.” https://aahtkc.org/edward-wade-wilson-jr ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴ ↩⁵ ↩⁶ ↩⁷ ↩⁸

2. Kansas City Black History — “Edward Wade Wilson Jr.” https://kcblackhistory.org/articles/edward-wade-wilson-jr ↩