History of the Chippewa Township Fire Department

Photo Courtesy of the Joel E.Strasser Collection

The Fire Department in Doylestown and Chippewa Township began modestly prior to 1874 when the village procured fire hooks and ladders and constructed a well for use by a bucket brigade. The hooks and ladders were apparently stored at three different buildings. Several cisterns also provided water for firefighting in the village. The first building dedicated to fire fighting use was constructed in 1890 at what is now approximately 129 N. Portage St. A fire bell located at this building could be rung by anyone wishing to summon help in fighting fires. When the needy citizen would ring the bell, all available personnel, including high school students would leave whatever they were doing to help with the bucket brigade. The station also housed a hand-operated pump. That original bell is now on display at station 1 along with a Firefighter Memorial.

The first fire chief, Albert Hummel, was appointed in 1898. Henry Roth succeeded him in 1908. Roth began the tradition that the fire department would double as the village band. In 1922, an important era began when Carl P. Whitman was appointed fire chief. He remained in that position until 1978 when poor health forced him to retire. A gifted musician, Chief Whitman expanded the role of the fire department as the village band, a combination of roles that continued until World War 2. When Chief Whitman resigned, he was replaced by Paul Mong until 1987. In 1988 the current Chief, Tom Barnes, assumes that position.

In 1949, Chippewa Township passed a levy to purchase a new truck. In 1955, the fire station on West Marion St. was dedicated. Although it provided four bays, office and kitchen space, the village and township gradually outgrew this facility. A particular problem was the lack of parking spaces for responding firefighters who often had to leave their vehicles in the middle of the street or at neighboring businesses. In 1965, in order to deal with parts of the township that required long distance telephoning and were removed from the station in the village; Station 2 was constructed on Hatfield Rd. In 1982, a fire levy raised the money to build a modern station on Gates St. on property sold to the township by the Paul Dannemiller Family. That station, first occupied in January 1984, continues to provide a modern facility for village and township needs.

A siren located at the station eventually replaced the original fire bell that summoned firefighters, but siren was often hard to hear, especially as the village and township began to expand and the distance between homes and station became greater. Firefighters and their family members often use the telephone to contact each other. Finally in 1972, monitors and pagers were purchased for efficiency for the fire fighters, and firefighters association bought extras form their treasury. The monitor gave one loud tone followed by an announcement to indicate that an alarm had been sounded. Later, the monitors were supplemented with hand-held radios for better communications if a fire or emergency calls.

A Ladies Auxiliary was first established in 1942 to provide food, drinks and support to fire personnel, especially during extended fires. Later, when women were added to the fire department as firefighters, the "Ladies" was eventually dropped from the name. For many years the wives and daughters of fire fighters gave hours of volunteer service to the community, but in 1999, as more spouses had entered the workforce and fewer were available to help with fire support, the organization suspended operation.

For many years, the Monbarren Family provided ambulance and emergency services for Doylestown and Chippewa Township. Firefighters often served as emergency medical help. In 1973, the Emergency Medical Training program began and Bob Purdy, Ray Ferreira, Ray Nuss, Jim Keller, John Niehaus, Tom Barnes and Paul Stanley became the first firefighter - EMT's in the department. Dave Monbarren and Jerry Sulentich became special firemen - EMT's. Today all members of the department must become EMT's, and several have gone further to become Paramedics.

Today, the department continues to provide full-time EMT service and responds to all fire calls. The number of call has increased six-fold in the last 15 years. Today's Officers include Interim Chief Lenny Broome, Asst. Chief Doug Hughes, Captain Craig Hollis and Lieutenants: Dave Eisenhauer, Bob Rote, Tom Taray and Matt Youngblood, Maintenance Officer Dave Paridon and Inspector/ Investigator Paul Mong. The department also boasts 40 dedicated fire-fighting personnel.

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