A gold heroism medal awarded to a Milwaukee firefighter 110 years ago has been determined to be worth over $100,000.

The solid gold 22-karat Carnegie medal is one of three awarded to firefighters who took part in a 1906 maritime/tunneling rescue under the Milwaukee River. The firefighters awarded the rescue were Assistant Chief Lawrence A. Hanlon, Capt. Peter Lancaster and fire boat Capt. Harris G. Giddings.

The medal in question was Hanlon's, and his medal has been in the hands of the Milwaukee Fire Historical Society for decades. Wanting to know the authenticity and makeup of the medal, retired firefighter and a society board member Allan Zehm brought the medal to an appraisal fair in Brookfield.

"We're not going to sell it, but we had to get some idea what this thing is worth," he said. "We're talking about maybe having a replica made and keeping the original in a safety deposit box."

The medals themselves originate from the Carnegie Hero Fund, which was established by steel industry magnate Andrew Carnegie in 1904 to recognize acts of courage by Americans and Canadians. The medals themselves were discontinued in 1923 and a mere 19 were awarded.

Eric Zahren, executive director of the Carnegie Hero Fund Commission in Pittsburgh, said he was impressed that the medal has surfaced in such good condition after all this time. "The gold medals are extremely rare," he said. "It's not often that they pop up anywhere."

A periodical from the time said that the incident involved a tunnel collapse 70 feet below the surface of the Milwaukee River. As the tunnel filled with water and sand, the fire crew reached Jacob Flejter (erroneously spelled on the medal as Flyter). When Flejter was offered whiskey, he politely declined, telling rescue workers that he promised his mother that he'd lay off the booze.

Rescuer Hanlon was originally ordered not to go in and rescue Flejter by the Mayor. Disobeying orders, Hanlon is said to have told the mayor, "Mr. Mayor, if you were down there, you'd probably like to have somebody try to get you out."

To read the complete articles, see:
Stingl: Firefighter hero medal stuns appraiser(www.jsonline.com/story/news/columnists/jim-stingl/2016/10/18/stingl-firefighter-hero-medal-stuns-appraiser/92356210/)
Bravery medal given to three firefighters in 1906 stuns appraiser(www.firefightingnews.com/bravery-medal-given-three-firefighters-1906-stuns-appraiser/)