History
Most of the early department history was researched and obtained from old newspaper articles and the historical society.
The first fires in town were fought with the bucket brigades, just as everywhere else at those times. West Side Fire Protection, organized in 1912, was the first department in town, and was housed at the St. Michael's Church. It consisted of a hand pump with hoses that would be dropped in wells or cisterns. Some findings in the papers dictate that the buckets were actually faster then the modern truck.
The Fredericktown Fire Department was organized on November 4th 1926 for the purpose of organizing a department to meet the requirements of the Missouri Inspection Bureau. The department consisted of twelve members: Roy Miller, Perry Johnson, H J Polete, Herman Schulte, Roy F Roberts, Everett Bennett, Gus Wagner, J H Andrews, Fritz Propf, Fred Polete, Maurice Parkin, and Al Thost who was voted the first of only four chiefs of the department. The other three that have served in the chief spot are Maurice Graham, Darryl Asher, and the current chief John Clark. The meetings were to be held the 2nd Monday of each month with a fire being called by a short blast on the city fire siren located on the tower above city hall.
Some of the past history is as follows:
1905 - Fire in courthouse caused by cigar in spittoon that had sawdust in bottom. After this fire all spittoons were to have ashes in bottom instead of sawdust.
1910 - Fredericktown had one of their deadliest fires with four people dying in one fire downtown when a wall collapsed on to the four.
1924 - The water work system was approved by a vote of the citizens of the town. A poll was kept to see who had voted. If someone was seen on the street that had not voted they were brought in and made to vote. One of the big fires in this year was the Whites building estimated at $75,000 to $100,000 dollars worth of damages. One theory of how the fire started is a mouse carried matches from an adjoining storeroom to the building.
1925 - During a fire downtown the Lead belt fire truck was called, driving the 28 miles from Flat River in only 50 minutes after stopping in Farmington to refill the radiator. When it was seen that the truck was not needed an automobile was sent to turn it around. The automobile met the truck but had about all it could do to get out of his way. The driver shouted but his words were wasted on the air so he trailed the truck back to town.
1927 - The volunteer fire department has recently been somewhat exasperated by interference of town boys and others during drill periods and even when called to fires. It has become the practice of some irresponsibles to dash ahead of the fire truck and out run it to the fire sometimes getting in the way and always stirring up the dust and obstructing the view. The next time it happens it will lead to the arrest of the individual. With this ordinance the department is given unquestionable right away and it is even expected that other cars on the street draw to the curb as soon as the alarm is given.
1929 - Chief Thost urges to build for fire safety. Since building an all-wood frame house is probably along way off, they need to be protected with an incombustible material.
1930 - A fire on North Main Street has a delay due to someone stealing the gas out of the fire truck.
1937 - Fire at Lonesome Pine Inn. Fire caused by an explosion of a gasoline cook stove.
1940 - The council voted to pay the fire boys before Christmas, although the Fire Department funds are depleted. Warrants will be issued and accepted by the bank. There are twelve men on the department. The chief being paid $100.00 and the other men being paid the sum of $60.00
1949 - The Democrat News suggests that the department is grossly underpaid. They stated a fund in which money was donated by business and individuals, which will be used to by coats and boots at a cost of $500.00.
19?? - A fire at Randy’s Motor Company was hampered by inadequate water supply. It took 40 to 50 minutes to make intricate connections 1200 feet away from fire.
1957 - Chief Graham advises the existing courthouse is an old building to begin with and is a natural firetrap after an inspection today. It was found they were in violation due to the lumber crates, old files and miscellaneous junk in basement.
1960 - Chief Graham asks cooperation of all citizens with the conversion to the new dial telephone system. He warns it is absolutely necessary to correctly dial the number listed for the fire department.
1985 - Gambles fire does $500,000.00 dollars of damage. It is estimated over one million gallons of water is used.
Most all of the stories from the 1920s through the 1940s make mention of the lack of water and the wind direction. The wind played havoc with roofs of other structures. It was not uncommon to have a structure fire start from the flying embers of another fire.
Some of the fire call totals were
1930 - 11 calls $8,000.00 worth of damages
1947- $1,000.00 worth of damages
1948 - 33 calls
1949 -24 calls
1950 - 10 calls
1951 - 24 calls
1952 - 43 calls $100,000.00 worth of damages this includes the Milling Company fire the largest fire in town at this time.
1953 - 40 calls of which 23 were brush. This included the Miner Lumber Company fire at $65,000 of damages.
The following is a list from 1985
First fire truck 1921 Model T, 2nd a 1925 Indiana, 3rd 1934 Dodge, 4th 1949 Mack, Fifth 1951 Ford at a price of $9,000.00, 6th 1971 Chevy $35,000.00 and 7th 1977 Ford at a cost of $65,000.00.
2002 - The department received a AFG for 82,000.00 for new turnout gear and scba’s.
2005 - The first Fredericktown Fire Department biennial Chili Cook-Off was organized and hosted. With the proceeds from the last two cook-offs we where able to purchase new extrication equipment.
2009 - The department receives notification from ISO that we are now a class four protection area. A record storm hits the area. The storm had many characteristics of a hurricane. The storm was deemed as a derecho with consistent wind speeds of around 120 mph lasting for ten minutes or more. Wide spread damage was noted throughout Fredericktown and Madison County. Power was out for many days and curfews were set for all citizens starting at dark every night.
2010 - The city council approved the funding to purchase a brand new 2010 Rosenbauer engine. The engine was purchased and received in 2010. The Fredericktown Middle School burns due to arson by some students of the school. The middle school fire sets a new record for the largest fire in the existence of the department.
2011 - A small tornado travels across Fredericktown causing minor damage throughout the community. The most notable fire of the year was a large eight unit apartment that burned in north town. The fire was knocked down in twenty minutes, but the apartment was considered a complete loss. There was no loss of life due to the heroic actions of a brave citizen who noticed smoke and fire billowing from the building. She made the call to 911 and knocked on the doors of each unit to evacuate the occupants.
2015 - The department receives a grant for the purchase of a new rescue squad totaling $125,000, an AFG grant totaling $50,000 for new gear, and an AFG grant for $90,000 fornew SCBAs.
2018 - On August 7th, 2018 Fredericktown citizens passed Prop P, a sales tax of one-half of one percent, with the purpose of providing revenues for the operation of the Public Safety (Fredericktown Police Department and Fredericktown Fire Department), including the building of a new multi-purpose facility.
2021 - A category F3 tornado travels across the northern part of the city causing major widespread damage and power outages lasting several days. Fortunately, no fatalities resulted from this event.
The first fires in town were fought with the bucket brigades, just as everywhere else at those times. West Side Fire Protection, organized in 1912, was the first department in town, and was housed at the St. Michael's Church. It consisted of a hand pump with hoses that would be dropped in wells or cisterns. Some findings in the papers dictate that the buckets were actually faster then the modern truck.
The Fredericktown Fire Department was organized on November 4th 1926 for the purpose of organizing a department to meet the requirements of the Missouri Inspection Bureau. The department consisted of twelve members: Roy Miller, Perry Johnson, H J Polete, Herman Schulte, Roy F Roberts, Everett Bennett, Gus Wagner, J H Andrews, Fritz Propf, Fred Polete, Maurice Parkin, and Al Thost who was voted the first of only four chiefs of the department. The other three that have served in the chief spot are Maurice Graham, Darryl Asher, and the current chief John Clark. The meetings were to be held the 2nd Monday of each month with a fire being called by a short blast on the city fire siren located on the tower above city hall.
Some of the past history is as follows:
1905 - Fire in courthouse caused by cigar in spittoon that had sawdust in bottom. After this fire all spittoons were to have ashes in bottom instead of sawdust.
1910 - Fredericktown had one of their deadliest fires with four people dying in one fire downtown when a wall collapsed on to the four.
1924 - The water work system was approved by a vote of the citizens of the town. A poll was kept to see who had voted. If someone was seen on the street that had not voted they were brought in and made to vote. One of the big fires in this year was the Whites building estimated at $75,000 to $100,000 dollars worth of damages. One theory of how the fire started is a mouse carried matches from an adjoining storeroom to the building.
1925 - During a fire downtown the Lead belt fire truck was called, driving the 28 miles from Flat River in only 50 minutes after stopping in Farmington to refill the radiator. When it was seen that the truck was not needed an automobile was sent to turn it around. The automobile met the truck but had about all it could do to get out of his way. The driver shouted but his words were wasted on the air so he trailed the truck back to town.
1927 - The volunteer fire department has recently been somewhat exasperated by interference of town boys and others during drill periods and even when called to fires. It has become the practice of some irresponsibles to dash ahead of the fire truck and out run it to the fire sometimes getting in the way and always stirring up the dust and obstructing the view. The next time it happens it will lead to the arrest of the individual. With this ordinance the department is given unquestionable right away and it is even expected that other cars on the street draw to the curb as soon as the alarm is given.
1929 - Chief Thost urges to build for fire safety. Since building an all-wood frame house is probably along way off, they need to be protected with an incombustible material.
1930 - A fire on North Main Street has a delay due to someone stealing the gas out of the fire truck.
1937 - Fire at Lonesome Pine Inn. Fire caused by an explosion of a gasoline cook stove.
1940 - The council voted to pay the fire boys before Christmas, although the Fire Department funds are depleted. Warrants will be issued and accepted by the bank. There are twelve men on the department. The chief being paid $100.00 and the other men being paid the sum of $60.00
1949 - The Democrat News suggests that the department is grossly underpaid. They stated a fund in which money was donated by business and individuals, which will be used to by coats and boots at a cost of $500.00.
19?? - A fire at Randy’s Motor Company was hampered by inadequate water supply. It took 40 to 50 minutes to make intricate connections 1200 feet away from fire.
1957 - Chief Graham advises the existing courthouse is an old building to begin with and is a natural firetrap after an inspection today. It was found they were in violation due to the lumber crates, old files and miscellaneous junk in basement.
1960 - Chief Graham asks cooperation of all citizens with the conversion to the new dial telephone system. He warns it is absolutely necessary to correctly dial the number listed for the fire department.
1985 - Gambles fire does $500,000.00 dollars of damage. It is estimated over one million gallons of water is used.
Most all of the stories from the 1920s through the 1940s make mention of the lack of water and the wind direction. The wind played havoc with roofs of other structures. It was not uncommon to have a structure fire start from the flying embers of another fire.
Some of the fire call totals were
1930 - 11 calls $8,000.00 worth of damages
1947- $1,000.00 worth of damages
1948 - 33 calls
1949 -24 calls
1950 - 10 calls
1951 - 24 calls
1952 - 43 calls $100,000.00 worth of damages this includes the Milling Company fire the largest fire in town at this time.
1953 - 40 calls of which 23 were brush. This included the Miner Lumber Company fire at $65,000 of damages.
The following is a list from 1985
First fire truck 1921 Model T, 2nd a 1925 Indiana, 3rd 1934 Dodge, 4th 1949 Mack, Fifth 1951 Ford at a price of $9,000.00, 6th 1971 Chevy $35,000.00 and 7th 1977 Ford at a cost of $65,000.00.
2002 - The department received a AFG for 82,000.00 for new turnout gear and scba’s.
2005 - The first Fredericktown Fire Department biennial Chili Cook-Off was organized and hosted. With the proceeds from the last two cook-offs we where able to purchase new extrication equipment.
2009 - The department receives notification from ISO that we are now a class four protection area. A record storm hits the area. The storm had many characteristics of a hurricane. The storm was deemed as a derecho with consistent wind speeds of around 120 mph lasting for ten minutes or more. Wide spread damage was noted throughout Fredericktown and Madison County. Power was out for many days and curfews were set for all citizens starting at dark every night.
2010 - The city council approved the funding to purchase a brand new 2010 Rosenbauer engine. The engine was purchased and received in 2010. The Fredericktown Middle School burns due to arson by some students of the school. The middle school fire sets a new record for the largest fire in the existence of the department.
2011 - A small tornado travels across Fredericktown causing minor damage throughout the community. The most notable fire of the year was a large eight unit apartment that burned in north town. The fire was knocked down in twenty minutes, but the apartment was considered a complete loss. There was no loss of life due to the heroic actions of a brave citizen who noticed smoke and fire billowing from the building. She made the call to 911 and knocked on the doors of each unit to evacuate the occupants.
2015 - The department receives a grant for the purchase of a new rescue squad totaling $125,000, an AFG grant totaling $50,000 for new gear, and an AFG grant for $90,000 fornew SCBAs.
2018 - On August 7th, 2018 Fredericktown citizens passed Prop P, a sales tax of one-half of one percent, with the purpose of providing revenues for the operation of the Public Safety (Fredericktown Police Department and Fredericktown Fire Department), including the building of a new multi-purpose facility.
2021 - A category F3 tornado travels across the northern part of the city causing major widespread damage and power outages lasting several days. Fortunately, no fatalities resulted from this event.