Fire Chief John Banks and Police Chief Tracy Roles spoke in front of 30 people in the Bartlesville Area History Museum on Wednesday afternoon. The Bartlesville Area History Museum is currently holding a limited time exhibit called “Badges and Blazes: The History of Law Enforcement and Fire Departments in Washington County.”

Mueseum Coordinator Jo Crabtree enjoyed having both chiefs speak Wednesday. She agrees that Bartlesville is blessed to have good police and fire departments.

During the hour long event, Roles and Banks talked about their careers in depth and how the departments have changed over the years.

Chief Banks spoke first at the event. He brought special guests like Ike Anderson who was a former firefighter himself. Banks showed those in attendance Anderson's old fire gear that Mr. Anderson wore years ago. That led Banks to talk about how much the gear has changed over the years. When he started with the Bartlesville Fire Department, Banks said he didn't wear near as much as the firefighters wear today.

Banks later atested to how technology has changed the department. Things like Ipads help the department deal with Bartlesville's growth, Banks says.

As Banks spoke, a video of a fire at the Johnstone Sare Building in August 2009 played in the background. Occassionally Banks would take a moment to talk about what the department did to combat the blaze.

Chief Roles on the other hand talked about how he got to Bartlesville after serving as the police chief in Anadarko, Oklahoma. Roles mentioned his career up to his time as Anadarko's Police Chief. Part of his career was spent working as an undercover narcotics officer, which made life difficult for his family. He also served as a prison ward before taking the job in Anadarko. Roles says he and his family are incredibly blessed now to be in a place like Bartlesville.

When focusing on priorities for the police department, Roles said he wanted to crack down on property crimes so Bartlesville will be below the state average for crimes. Crimes in a great community like Bartlesville make no sense to Roles. Roles also fielded questions about medical marijuana and traffic concerns in Bartlesville, especially along Highway 75.

Museum Coordinator Crabtree says the Badges and Blazes exhibit in the Bartlesville Area History Museum will remain open for about a month. She says it all depends on how long it takes for the museum to compile the things for their next exhibit on Washington County's bridges.