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The history of Stottville Volunteer Fire Co. No 2 The
fire company was formed with the name Hargreaves Fire Company on July 22, 1924 with 38 charter members. The name came from the company’s first honorary
member - William Hargreaves. It wasn’t until April 12, 1949 that Stottville Volunteer Fire Co. No. 2 was
adopted as the company’s official name. The first officers were: President
William Herberg Secretary-Treasurer Clayton Clum Trustees Clint Euiler, John Soder and Vincent Hermance Captain
Charles Hessenthaler First Lt. Pierce Davis Second Lt. Charles Barton
The
fire company joined the newly formed Columbia County Firemen’s Association on April 9, 19 26, with the first delegate being Roy Stolip and Arthur Brown. The first pumping apparatus was a manual pump mounted on a portable tank wagon. The equipment
was placed into service on July 1,
1926 and stationed at the Stottville Garage. The unit was towed to fire scenes by members’ cars. In 1927, the position of fire chief was created and the first chief was Charles Hessenthaler,
who was elected on Oct. 7, 1927. William Herberg became the company’s first delegate to the Stockport Board
of Fire Commissioners when the board was created on Jan. 12, 1929. Herberg was likewise named the board’s first chairman.
The first purchase of the newly formed board was six rubber coats and six rubber boots to aid firefighters in battling
blazes. A parcel of land on Atlantic Ave. that currently houses the Stockport Town Hall was
purchased from Henrietta Purdy on July 31,
19 29 and the first Stottville fire house was constructed. The fire house was officially opened on July 1, 19 31. First motorized
equipment Stottville’s
first motorized fire truck -- an American La France 500-gallon-per-minute pumper -- was purchased for $5,972.65 on April 11, 1936. The unit was placed into service three months
later on July 13, 1936.
One
of the first mutual aid pacts in Columbia
County was signed in 1941, with Stottville, Stockport, Greenport and Hudson all agreeing to provide mutual aid support
to each other. Later that year, the Columbia County Firemen’s Association Convention was hosted in Stottville, with Kenneth Gardner serving
as chairman of the association. Mr. Gardner served as chairman of the association again in 1949,
when the convention returned to Stottville. Auxiliary
The Stottville Fire Company Auxiliary was formed on Nov. 24, 19 41 with Mrs. James O’Shea being tapped to serve
as its first president. The other officers were: Vice President
Mrs. R. Schermerhorn Sec. Mrs. Kenneth Gardner Treasurer:
Mrs. Walter Wolfe Historian: Mrs. Fred Foster
Blood
bank
Stottville firefighters decided to join the Columbia County Chief’s Blood
Bank on Feb. 26, 19 55, with member
Gus Tootell serving as blood bank secretary from 1956 till its disbandment in 1967. Equipment
evolution
The company added its second truck, a 1,300-gallon tanker with 150-gallon-per-minute
rotary pump, in August, 1956. It was quickly joined on May 17, 1962 with a 750-gallon-per-minute maxim pumper truck, which
replaced the 1936 pumper.
To make room for the two trucks, the company in 1960 added a second bay to the firehouse.
“Firsts”
Stottville Fire Company was the first in the have an emergency vehicle, when such a truck was placed into sevice
on Sept. 18, 1964. It was replaced in 1967 with a 1968 with a step-van, which later was replaced in 1978 by a 1970 Custom
Ford Rescue Truck, which was one of the first expanded trucks in the county.
Stottville
achieved another first in 1970 with the purchase of 4” hose. The company was the first in New York State to order such
a large diameter hose. To accommodate it, the company became one of the first in the country to order a double-reel pumper,
which, using hydraulics, would lay and pickup the hose.
Ward LaFrance -- which had no history
of constructing such apparatus -- was awarded the contract for the truck and after several designs and redesigns, the truck,
with a 1,500-gallon-per-minute capacity -- was placed into service on Feb. 8, 1974. The truck remained in service until 2003.
A 1947 American LaFrance, 100-foot aerial ladder was purchase from the city of Hudson in 1976 and
placed in service on April 1, 1977. The truck remained in service until the mid-1990s when it was replaced by an aerial tower
truck purchased from Cooperstown .
An even new, 1978 aerial tower truck was placed into service in 2003 after its purchase from a Long Island fire company.
Facing many calls for vehicle accidents, the company decided in 1987 to purchase the Jaws of Life
extrication tool. An air bag extrication tool was purchased in the mid-1990s to supplement the Jaws and provide the company
with two separate means of extricating victims of car accidents.
After 29 years of service,
the company replaced the 1962 pumper with a brand new 1,250-gallon, 1500-gallon-per-minute on Sept. 12, 1991. The pumper was
dedicated on Nov. 3, 1993 to 67-year Charter Member John S. Wolfe.
In 1993, the company purchased
a 1987 Ford ambulance to provide adequate
space to store the company; first responder emergency medical service team.
The purchase brought
to five the number of trucks the company maintained. The year 2003 was a major year of apparatus change for the fire company. Besides the aerial tower truck, the company also placed into service a 1989 rescue truck, purchased from
East Lyme Conn. , which replaced the 1970 rescue truck. A 2003 Ferrara was also placed into service,
replacing the 1974 Ward LaFrance. The new truck contains a reel that accommodates more than 2,000 feet of 5” hose, as
well as a 750-gallon tank , a 2,000-gallon-per-minute pump and five attack lines.
“Home”
In 1971, it was evident that the company was out-growing the 40-year-old firehouse. Land was purchased from Al and Margaret
May on Sept. 7, 1973 and a new, four-bay firehouse was constructed and opened on June 17, 1974. An addition was constructed
in 1998, providing a fifth bay, as well as storage area for personal firefighting equipment.
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| L & B Mill Fire, August 3 and 4, 1994 |
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