Locust Fire Department Early History

Random history. Locust Fire Department in Stanly County. Reprinted from the booklet Locust, N.C. – Centennial Celebration – 1869-1969, via Digital, NC. Download original. Original Text The idea for a fire department originated with the Locust Lions Club, under the direction of President Pete Burleson. The club raised the first $500 of the goal of …

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Burlington and Graham Fire Alarm Box Locations – 1920-21

Updated with some tips on using the DigitalNC site, for browsing, reading, and downloading city directories. Scroll to bottom. Random history. Fire alarm box locations in the towns of Burlington and Graham, as printed in the Burlington, Graham and Haw River, N.C. City Directory, 1920-21. It’s one of hundreds available from DigitalNC. Interested in the history …

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Seagate Fire Department – Vintage Apparatus, Corporate Dissolution

More random history. The Seagate (also spelled Sea Gate) Volunteer Fire Department in New Hanover County, outside Wilmington, was formed in 1940 to protect of the fishing community to help protect along Bradley Creek and Greenville Sound. The first apparatus was a 1931 automobile with three drums mounted on the back and a fan belt-powered pump. The …

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Legal History of 87 South Volunteer Fire Department

Random history, found in the articles of disillusion of the 87 South Volunteer Fire Department, Inc., that operated in Alamance County from 1983 to 2005, until its corporation merged with Eli Whitney Fire Department.  Background The 87 South VFD (87SVFD) was incorporated February 1, 1983. The initiative for forming the fire department corporation came from …

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Vintage Brochure – Zebulon Rescue Squad GMC/Murphy Crash Truck

For your Friday enjoyment, here’s a vintage brochure from Murphy Body Works in Wilson, NC. Advertised is a low-profile, light-duty rescue truck that they built for Zebulon Rescue Squad. The chassis was a 1975-76 GMC Sierra and it replaced a 1954 GMC panel van and ex-Raleigh Rescue Squad vehicle. It served until 1995, when replaced with a …

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101 Years of Raleigh Tillers

The Raleigh Fire Department’s newest tiller was delivered this week, a 2017 Pierce Arrow XT, 1500/200/100′. See prior posting about the delivery. It also marks 101 years of tractor-drawn fire apparatus in the Capital City. Let’s look back at each rig, and its history.  Click to enlarge, then scroll down to read details: Photo credits include …

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Remembering the Bessemer Fire Department in Greensboro

One of the earliest “suburban” fire departments in North Carolina was Bessemer VFD in Greensboro. We’ve blogged about them before, but let’s take a deeper dive. They were organized in 1942, upon the completion of a sanitary district, which added water lines and fire hydrants. By all accounts, they were not equipped for fighting fires …

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Introducing Northern Wake Fire Department

Family Tree See this family tree infographic: jpg | pdf | blog posting Overview July 1 At midnight, Stony Hill Fire Chief A.C. Rich gave the final broadcast of the Stony Hill Rural Fire Department, as they signed off effect at 00:00 hours, and began operation as part of the new Northern Wake Fire Department. …

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