Chicago Fire has been running through employees lately. There were multiple

medics in season 12, and Deadline confirmed that a new Firehouse 51 chief is going to be

joining in season 13. It’s very much a transitional period for the show, which is why we have decided to look back.

Despite these changes, there are still several 51 firefighters who have been around since before the show started. The veterans, the old-timers, and mentors to those who are coming in. Their veneration within the show is clear. What’s less clear, however, is which character has spent the most time at 51.

Wallace Boden used to be the longest-tenured member
The technical answer is technical only because it’s a character who is no longer part of 51. We’re of course talking about Wallace Boden (Eamonn Walker). The character has spent over three decades as part of the firehouse, first as a firefighter/EMT candidate, then as chief.

Boden goes so far back with 51, in fact, that he even worked alongside the fathers of some of the men he’s worked with since. He knew Benny Severide (Treat Williams), the late father of Kelly (Taylor Kinney), as well as Henry Mills, the father of Peter Mills (Charlie Barnett).

The issue with giving Boden the title, of course, is that the character left Firehouse 51 at the end of season 12. He’s still a part of the show, but his promotion means that he will be featured in a reduced role, and will only intermittently be showing up to the firehouse.

Herrmann has taken over the mantle ahead of season 13
This means that the true title holder, at least, at the moment, is Christopher Herrmann (David Eigenberg). The character has put out fires for slightly less time than Boden, which is probably why Boden wanted to give him the role of chief.

As we previously stated, though, Chicago Fire writers decided to go in a different direction, and bring in someone from the outside to serve as the new chief. Be that is may, the new guy has nothing on the beloved owner of Molly’s Pub.