What is "stirrup pump"

n. a small hand-operated pump; the stirrup-shaped base was placed in a bucket of water, a small hose could direct a stream onto small fires

n. a hand-operated reciprocating pump; used in fighting fires

A stirrup pump is a portable water pump used to extinguish or control small fires. It is operated by hand. The operator places a foot on a stirrup-like bracket at the bottom of the pump to hold the pump steady.

Topaz Utah 1946

Engraving from the mid-17th Century fire museum in Salem at Lake Constance, Germany

Farm and Garden Annual
A Currie & Co, Milwaukee, Wis.