Kingsville Fire Department History

 

Prior to 1918, in case of fire, a gun was fired to alert the neighbors. All would turn to the aid of the unfortunate and carry everything to safety. In 1918, a group of six men gathered to form a fire department for the benefit of Kingsville Township. Frank Bowdler, Ray Brown, Harry Eastman, Roy King, Earle Vanderburg, and Corey Whelpley decided to keep a pail of water in their place of business to take with them to the fire scene. This would the heart of a bucket brigade. Some time later these men aquired fire extingushers that had a capacity of two and a half gallons of water and were mounted on carts. Now these men were more mobile and could fight fires that were too far away to go afoot.

Many social gatherings were held and the contributions received were used to purchase a fire truck. The truck was a Model T Ford and soon put into use. The story is told that one evening the call came to go to the Ashtabula County Home, a large brick and wood structure with many exposures. Aware of the dangers involved the men hurried to the scene some two miles away. When they arrived on the scene, they asked where the fire was and were told "There ain't no fire, I just wanted to know how long it would take to get here if I needed you." It hasn't been recorded for posterity what then transpired, but I am sure that the elapsed time was not a subject of the conversation.

In 1928 the first fire hall was built and a Buick and Chevrolet truck of 1928-1929 vintage soon replaced the old Model T. One truck was a tanker and the other a chemical truck. It's equipment was comprised of two large cylinders that would be pressurized at the fire by a soda-acid solution. This equipment served as first line equipment through the war years until 1949. In 1949 a modern fire truck, a Ford chassis with a Howe body, was purchased by the Township Trustees. It was obvious that the fire hall was going to stretch at the seems soon. The old fire hall had to be rearranged a little to house this big new fire truck.

After World War II, with the return of young men from service, a new wave of interest arose in the fire service. Under the guidance of Claude W. Hawn, who was elected Chief in 1946, plans were made to ask the residents to support a levy to purchase a new pumper. In 1949 a 1948 Ford with a Howe fire apparatus body was received. In 1954 an agreement was reached for a County Wide Mutual Aid Pact.

In 1961, a year that marked the beginnings of change, with a new Chief Charles L. Hawn after the retirement of his father Claude Hawn who had served the Township for 15 years. Kingsville incorporated it's first fire department for the protection and security of it's residents. Since that time many things have been accomplished due to the continued good public relations of the department, the willingness of the Township Trustees to provide, and the pride the community takes in their department. Land was purchased, buildings razed, and in 1965 Kingsville had a new 1800 square foot four-bay apparatus room attached to the completely renovated old fire hall.

 

 

After many years of planning and procrastinating the fire bell which hung behind the old station was mounted atop a monument. The monument was built to be a perpetual reminder of the men serving Kingsville as firemen in the "Past, Present and Future."

Dedication of the Fire Bell Monument
July 4, 1969

"It is rather fitting on this day that we take a few minutes to dedicate the new monument in our park. This is dedicated to the members of the Kingsville Volunteer Fire Department, past present and future.

It was 193 years ago the the Independence of our country came into being. We associate with that day the Liberty Bell. While the Liberty Bell sounded forth the call of freedom, our bell and the signals that followed sound forth the call of need. Some sixty-one years ago the Kingsville Fire Department came into existence. There have been many over the years who have answered the call of the bell or siren. The progress in the years that followed have been many, from the few hand extinguishers of the first members, to the old Model T Ford which was kept in the basement of the Town Hall, to the two Chevys I first remember, to our present trucks and equipment."

- Chief Charles Hawn