The Earlville Fire Department is 100% volunteer and its fire protection district is comprised of the village of Earlville, and three townships.
The first major fire in the village of Earlville was in 1859 when four stores in the present Smith-Fay Block were destroyed. This prompted the people in the village to make a public subscription for a small hand pumper. Its tank was filled with water one pail at a time. Since no one had provided for equipment maintenance, the pumper fell into disrepair and demise -- in fact there is no record of its ever having been used at a fire.
The second major fire was more disastrous and provoked real action on the villagers part. On August 21, 1886, the entire business section of Earlville was wiped out. Beginning on the southwest corner of the main intersection, the fire swept the general area. In all, forty buildings were destroyed at a total loss of $200,000. The Earlville house on the southwest corner was the only downtown building to escape destruction.
When the village was incorporated the following year, in 1887, Ernest C. Dart was elected village clerk. Largely under his impetus a volunteer group was formed as the Earlville Fire Department. The first meeting of the Department was comprised of two companies -- The Cyclone Engine Company with 26 members and the Miller Hose Company with 20 members. After a real fight with the conservative elements, the village board was persuaded to purchase a fire bell, a hose cart, hose, and a hand fire engine. Moreover, four large cisterns were built in key areas of the village for a water supply.
The new Department held its house warming in June of 1888 with a strawberry and ice cream festival, and later in the year they fired their janitor for not hanging the lamps or cleaning the engines. In 1889 the two companies -- Cyclone Engine and Miller Hose voted "to be organized as one company for the organization of all business and share in all monies..."
The baptism under fire for the newly formed Department came during the major fires of 1890 and 1892. In the first, the entire southeast corner of the main intersection was destroyed. Eleven cellers were uncovered; loss was estimated at $60,000. In the second fire, the Opera House burned again, at a $20,000 loss. One of the difficulties encounters at both fires was the lack of water. In 1892 the major village issue was the establishment of a water system. In 1893 the village completed a water system at a cost of $30,000. Some years later the employees of the Parsons Low-Down Wagon Works built a hand drawn ladder truck complete with ladders and gave it to the Department. The Wagon Works also gave the Department a set of bobs for carrying hose in the winter.
Now that Earlville was prepared with a fire department, equipment, and a water and hydrant system, there were no major fires for almost thirty years. Peace, however was broken on Easter Sunday, 1925. A fire which started in the barn of the Sawdy Hotel spread to the hotel, the Morgan Block, the village library, and the firehouse, and all the village records. Church bells were used to summon firemen as the fire had burned the wires of the engine house siren. While water pressure was normal, so many engine companies responded that the fourteen hoses in operation could raise the water only 25 feet. The Norwich Company arrived with its combination chemical and pumper truck which greatly increased water pressure. Again Earlville had learned its lesson after a fire.
In 1926 the village board appropriated $5,000 for a Seldon Pumper. An additional $1,000 was raised by popular subscription and in 1929 a 1923 Seldon Pumper was acquired. This truck was equipped with a 500 gallon per minute pump, one thousand feet of 2 1/2 inch hose and other accessories. At the same time an electric siren was placed atop the new firehouse.
In 1927 the Earlville Fire Department joined the Madison County Fireman's Association.
In 1945 the Department received a Stephenson resuscitator on loan from the Madison County Chapter of the American Red Cross. The resuscitator was described as being the latest scientific wrinkle designed for emergency use to revive persons overcome by water, smoke, or fumes.
In 1946 a trailer pumper rated at 500 gallons per minute was added to the equipment list of the Department.
Nineteen hundred and forty-seven was a busy time for the Fire Department as three pieces of equipment were added. Through village funds the Department purchased a Bean High Pressure Fog Firefighter on a White chassis. This 1947 truck came equipped with a 430 gallon tank, 2 - 500 foot reels of 1 inch high pressure hose, 600 feet of 2 1/2 inch hose, 100 feet of 1 1/2 inch hose, one 20 lb. CO2 extinguisher, 2 asbestos rescue suits, 2 Scott air packs, first aid kit and stretcher, 24 ft. extension ladder and a 12 ft. roof ladder.
A car was donated by S. L. Baker and was completely revamped by the members of the Department for use as a squad car. This squad car was in use until 1959.
In 1948 the Fire Department also joined the Chenango County Fireman's Association as the village of Earlville lies in two counties and four townships.
On August 5, 1949, the Floyd Wells home on Poolville Road burned as 1:30 a.m. Due to the good start before the firemen arrived and the lack of water the house was a total loss, valued at $9,000. Chief Morgan urged people in the outlying districts to have ponds near their property to prevent another such disaster.
In 1951 the Mutual Aid program was set up. This program used two-way radios to connect one fire company to another. In case of a fire the control center, either Wampsville or Norwich, was notified and if help was needed the control center could blow the siren of the department from which help was needed.
In 1951 an International truck chassis was purchased by the Department and converted by the members of the Department into a tank truck to carry water. A portable light plant, consisting of four main flood lights and a portable gasoline unit was purchased.
Also in 1951 the G.L.F. grain elevator caught fire. The Department made a good stop on this structure due mainly to the use of their high pressure and fog units, thereby averting a major loss.
1951 was the year a lot of people were thinking about Civil Defense. An old school bus, donated by S.L. Baker, was converted into a Civil Defense truck equipped with a squad of trained men and two hospital beds.
In 1956 Seth Morgan donated a 1951 Hudson car and the firemen began converting it into a squad car.
In 1957 the Department had grown, equipment-wise, and needed a larger engine house. The firemen, working evenings and Sundays, built a new addition on the engine house. This saved the village many thousands of dollars, doubled the size of the engine house, and provided the village with a garage in which to store their equipment.
As the years continue to the department continues to have to evolve and acquire new equipment. This is just a quick overview of the Department. Our current fire protection district still spans two counties, the village and three townships; Town of Hamilton, Town of Lebanon, and the Town of Sherburne. We are still housed in the rebuilt firehouse attatched to the village offices. Our apparatus consists of 2 rescue pumpers, a small rescue truck, a brush/ utility truck, and a tanker.
