Local departments faced trial by fire
This hook and ladder truck manufactured by the Miller Carriage Company was once used by the Bellefontaine Fire Department before coming into possession of the Zanesfield Fire Department while the 1921 Howe fire truck is one of the earliest motorized vehicles used by the West Liberty Fire Department. Both are on display in the Logan County History Center’s tranpsortation wing. BELOW: The wreckage of the village of DeGraff is seen after a July 24, 1914, fire that destroyed the downtown area.
Every town and township in Logan County now has its own fire department and emergency medical squad or contracts for those services with nearby departments, but as history shows, some of those towns had to learn this lesson the hard way.
Natural disasters including massive windstorms or tornadoes were just as common in the 19th century as they are today and with the majority of buildings being made of wood, fires were even more likely and potentially catastrophic.
It took major fires in Bellefontaine, West Liberty and Rushsylvania and a massive twister that roared through Quincy and DeGraff to light a fire under those communities’ conversations on organizing their local “hook and ladder corps.”
Complete story and photos in Saturday’s Examiner.
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Copies of the Bellefontaine Examiner’s Logan County Bicentennial edition are available in the office of the paper at 127 E. Chillicothe Ave., Bellefontaine. The special edition with stories of the county’s milestones appeared in the March 1 newspaper.
March 1 marked the 200th anniversary of the founding of Logan County, which is being celebrated throughout the year.