Mills County, Iowa

Silver City Community History
1879 - 1979

VOLUNTEER FIRE AND AMBULANCE

SILVER CITY VOLUNTEER FIRE DEPARTMENT

There was in the early days the usual volunteer bucket brigades and later the fire hose company. This inadequate equipment, but the best available at the time, was no doubt responsible for the several very disastrous fires of the town.

The first notice we could find of an organized Fire Company was in the Silver City Times of February 3, 1898 which listed the following officers: President, M.E.Huffaker; Vice President, Charles Mears; Foreman, R.W. Clipson; Assistant Foreman, Charles Joseph; Secretary, John Pullman; Treasurer, A.P. Reeve. Just how long this fire company lasted is not certain and of course its means of fighting fires was the old fire hose and hose cart familiar to many of the older residents of today.

In the Silver City Times of July 21, 1910, we find a Fire Company organized with the following officers and members: President, Mayor M.E. Huffaker; Secretary, A.P. Reeve; Chief, Frank Pullman; and other members: C.W. Sawyer, John Coons, F.W. Anderson, Roy McCurdy, John Tucker, J.R. Kurtz, Clark Reeve and Frank Rommel. In the September 8, 1910 issue of “The Times” the town council decided to buy a new chemical Fire Engine for $675. This chemical fire engine had been demonstrated here earlier and an earlier vote August 12, 1910 had rejected the engine, however, this later vote carried as follows: Yeas Flanagan, Reeve, Taylor, Pullman; Nays — Burrows.

This engine has two large cylinders, each holding 35 gallons of chemical mixture (water, soda and acid). It takes about five minutes to empty a cylinder, after which the other one is put in use. While one cylinder is being used the other is being filled. The issues of February 23, 1911 carried a copy of the constitution and by-laws of the Silver City Fire Company. These were also printed in booklet form and distributed in the town. The next mention of the Fire Company was January 19, 1922 when the following officers were listed: Chief, J.R. Kurtz; Assistant Chief, R.P. Gait; Secretary-Treasurer, P.M. Flammant.

In 1926 a new and larger chemical engine was bought and on January 14, 1926, a “New fire siren had been ordered — one that will make a screeching noise.” The officers of the Fire Company were: Chief, W.A. Poilitt; Assistant Chief, C.O. Johnson; Secretary-Treasurer, C.A. Maddocks. On March 3, 1926, the new fire siren was tried out and a test run of the fire wagon was made. In 1948 a drive was made to buy a new up-to-date fire engine. The Fire Company sold chances on a jeep, got contributions from many, both rural and town citizens, and held an evening’s entertainment in the school gym. The officers at this time were: Chief, Kenneth McMahan; Assistant Chief, Kenneth Carlson; Secretary­Treasurer, C.V. Moore. Other citizens who have been fire chief through the years are: George Carlson, Harvey Deitchler, Walter Fender, Elton F. Landon, Bob Childs and Dr. C.O. Johnson.

Since the publication of the original Silver City history in 1954, the Silver City Volunteer Fire Department has changed and added several pieces of equipment to provide more and better fire protection for the citizens of this community and the surrounding area.

The fire engine described above in our earlier history is still in service and in excellent condition. In 1964, the department purchased a 1961 GMC 1500-gallon tanker and it has provided the extra water needed at serious fires. In 1967, a step van was purchased as an equipment and personnel carrier and has since been sold to make room for the latest truck purchased in 1975, when the department ordered a 4-wheel drive GMC to be equipped as a fast attack brush fire vehicle; being lighter and smaller and having 4-wheel drive allowed this truck to fight fires where the weight and size of the earlier vehicles were prevented from going.

With newer vehicles, equipment and valuable training from the Iowa State University Fire Service Education Program the S.C.V.F.D. has expanded its knowledge and abilities to provide the area with a fire service it can justly be proud of.

Since the writing of the first history there have only been three fire chiefs — Kenneth McMahan, Richard RoenfeId and the present, Rex Burgoin. In this, our town’s one hundredth year, it is only fitting that in this section we honor the one man whose dedication and desire to honestly help the community in which he lives, who for nearly a third of the town’s hundred years was the Fire Chief of this department. Through three decades his efforts have succeeded in providing a decent fire service for Silver City and the surrounding area. The Silver City Volunteer Fire Department wishes to thank former Fire Chief, Kenneth McMahan for his 30 years of dedication to this department.

SILVER CITY AMBULANCE

In February of 1970, a group of interested citizens met to discuss the need of ambulance service for this area. After due consideration of all parties present, it was decided to purchase a used ambulance. Also set up were first aid classes that consisted of 26 hours of training. Those taking and completing training were: Bill Hunt, John Click, James Jedlicka, Harold Damewood, Kenneth McMahan, Rex Burgoin, Gloria Burgoin, Gerald Jones, Gerald Stogdill, Lenora Stogdill, Ida Black, Gordon Elwood, George Marshall, Jr., Jerry Ord, Lucille Ord, Richard Hoffman, Robert Fisher, Robert Schoening and Jim Boyer.

1970 was a busy year for the volunteers, not only were they busy with classes; but they found time to build the 24x28 building that houses the unit today. In August of 1970, the Service was officially assumed. In the spring of 1972, the group decided to replace the original 1957 Cadillac they had purchased from Treynor for $300 with a 1965 Cadillac for $1,900. This unit was then in service until October of 1976 when they purchased the new unit for $20,000, which is the one now in use. It is a 1976 Superior Modular Ambulance built on a Chevrolet chassis.

In 1974, ten members completed the Emergency Medical Technician Course. They were: Jim Boyer, Janet Fisher, Robert Fisher, Richard Hoffman, Jim Jedlicka, Gerald Jones, George Marshall, Jr., Jerry Ord, Lucille Ord, and Robert Schoening. Since then nine more members have completed the course. They are Sharon McNutt, Jim Schoening, Kathy Schoening, Lenora Stogdill, Dorothy Techau, Fred Techau, Lynda Thomas, Norman (Sammy) Thomas, and Robert Hamilton, who is now completing his. The EMT Course is 81 hours class room instruction and 20 hours in hospital training.

~submitted by Roseanna Zehner & Darlene Jacoby