08/07/2026
On August 8, 2026, the Phillipsburg Fire Department proudly celebrates 162 years of volunteer service to the Town of Phillipsburg. Since its organization on August 8, 1864, generations of volunteer firefighters have answered the call, protecting lives and property through wars, floods, industrial growth, technological change, and countless emergencies. Today, that proud tradition continues through the dedicated members of Reliance Hose Company No. 1; Jersey Hose Company No. 2; Alert Hook & Ladder Company No. 1; Warren Chemical Engine Company No. 1; Lincoln Engine Company No. 2; and Phillipsburg Fire Company No. 1. Together, these six companies represent nearly a century and a half of continuous volunteer service and remain the guardians of a tradition built upon courage, sacrifice, and community.
Yet the story of the Phillipsburg Fire Department did not begin with the companies we know today. Long before these six companies existed, three volunteer organizations laid the foundation for organized fire protection in Phillipsburg.
The Warren Fire Company, organized on August 8, 1864, became the town’s first volunteer fire company. It was followed by the Andover Engine Company in 1867, and later the Centennial Engine Company in 1876, which restored organized fire protection after the earlier companies had disappeared. Although these organizations no longer exist, their members established the traditions, spirit of volunteerism, and commitment to public service that every Phillipsburg firefighter has inherited.
As we celebrate the department’s 162nd anniversary, it is fitting to remember these forgotten pioneers. Their history and stories are not merely chapters from the past… they are the foundation upon which today’s Phillipsburg Fire Department was built. This anniversary provides an opportunity to look back at the companies that came first and to honor the volunteers whose dedication made possible the fire department that continues to serve our community today.
The Warren Fire Company (1864–1874)
Organized firefighting in Phillipsburg began on August 8, 1864, with the formation of the Warren Fire Company. Established by thirty-seven charter members, it became the town’s first volunteer fire company and laid the foundation for what would eventually become the Phillipsburg Fire Department. Phillipsburg in the 1860s was a rapidly growing railroad and manufacturing community. New homes, factories, warehouses, hotels, and businesses were rising throughout the town, and nearly all were constructed of wood. Fire represented one of the greatest threats to both life and property. Before the organization of the Warren Fire Company, fires were fought by citizens using bucket brigades and whatever equipment could be gathered. The creation of a permanent volunteer fire company marked the first organized effort to protect the growing community.
The company adopted the motto “We Strive for the Good of All,” a phrase that reflected the civic spirit of its members and remained associated with the company throughout its existence. The original officers included President Isaac H. Hartpence; Vice President Philip R. Hagerman; Secretary Joseph McLaughlin; Assistant Secretary Thomas Lomason; Foreman of Hose Charles Nixon; Assistant Foreman James Cripps; Foreman of Engine B. VanFossen; Assistant Foreman J. Merrick; Representatives Jacob Bassett, Samuel S. Church, and George Creveling; Librarian Henry C. Beers; and Janitor G. H. Lerch.
The company entered service with a hand fire engine purchased by the Town of Phillipsburg. As the community expanded, however, members recognized that improved fire protection required more modern apparatus. The company eventually acquired a steam fire engine and hose carriage, although the purchase placed a heavy financial burden upon the organization. The Warren Fire Company’s headquarters stood on South Main Street beside the Columbia Hotel, along the Central Railroad and between the Black Bridge and Hudson Street Hill. From this location, members answered alarms throughout Phillipsburg while also responding to requests for assistance from neighboring communities.
Less than one year after its organization, the company had already established a reputation beyond Phillipsburg. On August 4, 1865, Warren firefighters responded to the catastrophic Crystal Oil Works fire in Easton. Drawing water from the Lehigh River, the company’s engine worked continuously through the night while members battled flames fueled by burning petroleum. The Easton Express praised the Warren firefighters for their determination and remarked that few fire departments in New Jersey could have surpassed their efforts. The response stands as one of the earliest documented examples of regional cooperation between neighboring fire departments, decades before formal mutual aid agreements existed. Public support for the company quickly followed.
In 1866, the ladies of Phillipsburg organized a festival that raised sufficient funds to purchase an ornate silver speaking trumpet, valued at $150, together with an additional eighty dollars to assist the company financially. During the presentation ceremony, community leaders praised the volunteer firemen for risking their lives without expectation of reward, comparing their service to that of soldiers defending their country. Accepting the presentation on behalf of the company, Thomas J. Hubbel thanked the ladies for their generosity and pledged that the gift would encourage the company to continue faithfully protecting the town.
Like most volunteer fire companies of the nineteenth century, Warren depended heavily upon public generosity to survive. Maintaining horses, harnesses, apparatus, equipment, and a paid driver required far more money than membership dues alone could provide. To raise funds, the company sponsored public entertainments, annual dances, and other social events while also operating one of the more unusual fundraising ventures of the period… a horse-drawn omnibus service that transported passengers throughout Phillipsburg. During winter months, the coaches were replaced with sleighs so the service could continue despite snow-covered streets. Income from the transportation service helped offset the expense of maintaining the horses that also pulled the company’s apparatus to fires. One such fundraising event occurred in January 1870, when the company announced its annual “Hop” at the newly completed hall of Reese, Melick & Company on Main Street. Although severe weather postponed the dance by several days, newspapers reminded citizens that proceeds would help reduce the debt owed on the company’s steam engine and horse team.
During this same period, the Town Council considered constructing a new engine house for the Warren Fire Company. In January 1870, bids were advertised and a committee was appointed to investigate building a permanent firehouse on town property. The proposal reflected growing recognition that Phillipsburg’s expanding population required improved fire protection. Unfortunately, the company’s financial difficulties continued to mount.
Although the Town of Phillipsburg had assisted in purchasing the steam fire engine, disagreements eventually arose concerning ownership of the apparatus and responsibility for its payment. The dispute escalated into litigation, leaving the company temporarily unable to use its own steam engine while the case remained before the courts. According to later department histories, the company was “practically out of service” during this period because of the injunction.
While still facing increasing debt, the members issued a public appeal through the Easton Express on September 28, 1870. Addressed “To the Citizens of Phillipsburg,” the notice explained that the company maintained three horses, employed a driver at thirteen dollars per week, and occupied a deteriorating engine house “liable to fall at any day, and is not fit to put our steamer in.” Unable to continue meeting these expenses, the company announced plans to sell nearly all of its property, including its Allerton steam fire engine, horses, wagon, hose, uniforms, furniture, library, and numerous household items. Rather than surrender, however, the company carried its case to the New Jersey Supreme Court. The court ultimately ruled in favor of the Warren Fire Company, confirming its ownership of the apparatus and allowing the steam engine to return to service. Although the legal victory restored the company’s equipment, it could not erase years of financial hardship.
The company continued protecting Phillipsburg faithfully into the early 1870s but never fully recovered from the prolonged financial strain. By about 1874, after a decade of service, the Warren Fire Company quietly disbanded for lack of sufficient support. Although its existence was brief, the Warren Fire Company established the tradition of organized volunteer firefighting in Phillipsburg. Its members demonstrated that dedicated citizens could provide effective fire protection through volunteer service, setting a standard that every company organized afterward would follow. The company’s disappearance left Phillipsburg without organized fire protection at a time when the community continued to grow. Within a year, a devastating fire would expose that vulnerability and prompt the town to invest in new firefighting equipment, ultimately leading to the organization of the Centennial Engine Company and the rebirth of organized fire protection in Phillipsburg.
The Andover Engine Company (1867–1872)
The organization of the Andover Engine Company in 1867 marked the first expansion of organized fire protection in Phillipsburg. Only three years had passed since the establishment of the Warren Fire Company, but the town’s continued growth had already demonstrated that one volunteer company could not adequately serve an expanding industrial community. Citizens residing in the Second and Fourth Wards responded by organizing Phillipsburg’s second volunteer fire company, extending organized fire protection into the southern section of town.
The company established its headquarters on South Main Street near Smith Avenue in a substantial brick building that quickly became a neighborhood landmark. Like many public buildings of the nineteenth century, the structure served more than one purpose. The engine room occupied the first floor alongside school classrooms, while the second floor was used for company meetings and business. A lockup was located in the basement, making the building both a firehouse and an important municipal facility.
Unfortunately, the history of the Andover Engine Company has largely been lost to time. Unlike the volunteer companies that followed, few newspaper accounts survive, and no known company records have been found. What remains today are scattered references that provide only brief glimpses into the company’s existence.
Those surviving newspaper notices reveal that, like many volunteer organizations of the era, the Andover Engine Company relied upon public support to help finance its operations. One of the few documented examples appeared in the Easton Express on January 18, 1870, announcing the company’s First Annual Ball, to be held on February 1 at Masonic Hall in Easton. The newspaper reported that tickets were selling rapidly and noted that “a large number of tickets have been sold,” adding that the “Andover boys and their friends will no doubt have a grand time of it.”
Although brief, the notice illustrates an important part of nineteenth-century volunteer fire company life. Annual balls were not merely social occasions. They provided much-needed revenue for the company while strengthening relationships between the firefighters and the communities they served. Unlike later Phillipsburg fire companies, however, few newspaper accounts survive describing additional social events or fundraising activities conducted by the Andover Engine Company. Whether this reflects fewer activities or simply the loss of historical records remains unknown.
By 1872, only five years after its organization, the Andover Engine Company voted to disband. The reasons for the company’s dissolution were never fully explained in surviving records, although maintaining a volunteer fire company during this period often proved financially difficult. Following its disbandment, the company’s apparatus was scrapped while the building passed from fire company use into the hands of the school district, becoming known locally as the Andover School.
For the next three years, the former engine house served an entirely different purpose. Grammar School No. 2 occupied the first floor under Principal J. C. Butler, while Primary Department No. 2 met upstairs under Mrs. McKinney and Miss Gibney. Nearly 120 students attended classes within a building originally constructed to house firefighters and their apparatus.
That chapter came to an abrupt end during the early morning hours of September 13, 1875.
Shortly after 3:00 a.m., residents discovered fire inside the former Andover Engine House on South Main Street. Witnesses reported that the flames first appeared in the stairway leading to the second floor. With Phillipsburg left without an organized volunteer fire company following the disappearance of both Warren Fire Company and the Andover Engine Company, there was little anyone could do beyond watching the flames consume the building. Within two hours, the structure had been reduced to ruins. The front wall collapsed into the street, leaving only portions of the side and rear walls standing. A steady rain and the isolation of the building prevented what might otherwise have become a devastating fire for the surrounding neighborhood.
The loss reached far beyond the building itself. Nearly $600 worth of newly purchased school furniture had been placed inside only days before the fire. Students lost their books, slates, and personal belongings, while the Emerald Cornet Band lost musical instruments, uniforms, and other equipment stored within the building. Although insurance covered part of the damage, total losses approached $5,000.
The only attempt to combat the fire came from a hose line stretched from the Warren Iron Foundry, but by the time water reached the scene the building was already beyond saving.
Almost immediately, suspicion turned toward arson. Newspapers reported that the fire appeared to have originated in the stairwell, leading many residents to believe it had been deliberately set. Several theories circulated throughout the community. Some associated the fire with controversy surrounding recent constitutional amendments affecting the public school system, while others believed it was intended to force town officials into finally organizing a new volunteer fire company. No arrests were ever made, despite a reward being offered for information leading to the arrest and conviction of those responsible.
Whether accidental or intentional, the destruction of the former Andover Engine House proved to be a defining moment in Phillipsburg’s fire service history. Newspaper editorials strongly criticized the town’s lack of organized fire protection and called upon civic leaders to take immediate action. They argued that a community of nearly 8,000 could no longer leave its homes, businesses, and industries without adequate protection from fire.
The public response was immediate. Town officials began making plans to secure a modern steam fire engine, while local citizens and business leaders organized what would become Phillipsburg’s third volunteer fire company. Although the Andover Engine Company had disappeared several years earlier, the destruction of its former firehouse became the event that helped usher in a new era of organized fire protection for the town.
Although the former Andover Engine House had been destroyed in the 1875 fire, the building itself was not immediately abandoned. More than a decade later, on July 11, 1887, the Fire Committee submitted a report to the Town Council after examining the remains of the old engine house, which had remained in ruins since the fire. The committee recommended that the structure be repaired and restored to good condition. Just over two weeks later, on July 27, 1887, the Town Council awarded the repair contract to Casper Laubach for $450. By January 24, 1888, the Reliance Hose Company had petitioned the Town Council for permission to use the old hose carriage housed in the Andover Engine House and requested that it be supplied with additional hose. While the newspaper accounts do not explain when the apparatus was placed there, they do show that the restored building had returned to use as a municipal fire property before it later became the home of the newly organized Jersey Hose Company No. 2.
Centennial Engine Company (1876–1914)
The Centennial Engine Company was organized on January 27, 1876, restoring organized fire protection to Phillipsburg during the nation’s Centennial year. Its formation came after two years in which the town lacked an organized volunteer fire company, leaving residents without dependable fire protection during a period of rapid industrial and commercial growth. The need became especially apparent following the destructive fire of September 13, 1875, which destroyed the former Andover School building. In the months that followed, public pressure mounted for town officials to once again establish an organized fire department. The Town Council responded by authorizing the purchase of a modern steam fire engine while encouraging the formation of a volunteer company to operate it.
At the January 25, 1876, meeting of the Phillipsburg Town Council, a petition signed by seventeen citizens requested permission to organize a fire company for the town’s newly purchased steam fire engine. The petition was approved, and two days later the Centennial Engine Company officially came into existence. Following its organization, the company elected its first officers and adopted bylaws governing its operation. George W. Wilhelm became the company’s first president, serving until 1890 and providing steady leadership throughout the company’s formative years. Early department histories noted that Centennial’s membership consisted largely of respected businessmen and citizens from Phillipsburg’s First and Third Wards who were committed to protecting their growing community.
To equip the new company, the Town of Phillipsburg purchased a Silsby & Company steam fire engine at a reported cost of between $3,000 and $4,000, one of the largest municipal investments in public safety the community had yet undertaken. The steamer was housed in Centennial’s Market Street engine house, which remained the company’s headquarters throughout its thirty-eight years of service. For the next eleven years, Centennial Engine Company stood alone as Phillipsburg’s only organized volunteer fire company. Every alarm within the town depended upon its members. Fires involving homes, businesses, factories, warehouses, railroads, and industries were all answered by volunteers responding from the Market Street engine house. During those years, the company established a reputation for discipline, reliability, and aggressive firefighting that soon became recognized throughout the Lehigh Valley and northwestern New Jersey.
One of Centennial’s first great tests came on June 4, 1879, when the company was summoned to Easton to assist at the catastrophic Pardee Hall Fire at Lafayette College. The fire quickly became one of the most widely reported disasters of the nineteenth century, appearing in newspapers across the United States, throughout Canada, and even in England because of the prominence of Lafayette College and the magnitude of the loss. Positioning their Silsby steamer along the Bushkill Creek, Centennial firefighters forced water through nearly 1,700 feet of hose up the steep hillside to supply two Easton steam engines battling the flames. Contemporary newspapers praised the remarkable performance, noting that the amount of water delivered to the top of the hill seemed almost impossible under the circumstances. The response firmly established Centennial’s reputation as one of the region’s premier volunteer fire companies.
Before the company could even return home, another emergency developed. Burning embers carried across the Delaware River from the Pardee Hall fire ignited buildings owned by Mark T. Warne on North Main Street in Phillipsburg. Centennial immediately returned from Easton, placed its steamer back into service, and worked late into the night saving the threatened buildings. The events of June 4, 1879, became one of the defining moments in the company’s history, demonstrating not only the capability of its apparatus but also the endurance and dedication of its members.
The influence of the Centennial Engine Company extended well beyond firefighting. As the company matured, many of its members helped establish organizations dedicated to the welfare and recognition of volunteer firefighters. One of the earliest organizations to emerge from Phillipsburg’s volunteer fire service was the Firemen’s Relief Association of Phillipsburg, New Jersey, organized on May 22, 1879. The association later became one of the nineteen charter fire departments that met in Newark to organize the New Jersey State Firemen’s Association, placing Phillipsburg among the founding departments of what would become one of New Jersey’s most influential volunteer fire service organizations. According to early historical records, the town association’s first officers were Frank B. Heckman, President; Silas Hulsizer, Vice President; W. A. Ashmore, Treasurer; and Allen J. Clifton, Secretary.
As firefighters completed the years of active service required for exemption under New Jersey law, another organization emerged within the department. On December 10, 1883, the Exempt Firemen’s Association of Phillipsburg, New Jersey was organized. Early department histories note that, for several years, the association was conducted by the exempt members of the Centennial Engine Company, reflecting the company’s leadership within the department during its formative years. Its first officers were George W. Wilhelm, President; L. T. Brant, Vice President; A. J. Clifton, Secretary; and W. A. Ashmore, Treasurer.
Phillipsburg’s Exempt Firemen’s Association would later become a charter member of the New Jersey State Exempt Firemen’s Association when that statewide organization was established in 1889, placing Phillipsburg among the communities that helped shape one of New Jersey’s earliest statewide organizations for exempt volunteer firefighters. Together, the Firemen’s Relief Association and the Exempt Firemen’s Association became enduring parts of Phillipsburg’s fire service tradition. Their organization reflected the growing maturity of the department during the Centennial era and demonstrated that the volunteer fire service had developed beyond individual companies into a broader fraternal organization dedicated to supporting its members and preserving the traditions of volunteer firefighting.
As Phillipsburg expanded during the 1880s, additional volunteer companies were organized in Phillipsburg beginning in 1887. Still... Centennial remained the department’s senior company and continued responding to many of the area’s largest fires. Centennial continued to adapt to improvements in firefighting technology. In August 1887, Engineer William K. Houser, assisted by members of the company, conducted a public demonstration of the Silsby steamer using the town’s newly expanded municipal water system. Operating from a hydrant near the Market Street engine house, the steamer produced streams approaching 200 feet under one operating condition and nearly 225 feet under another. Local newspapers declared the demonstration entirely successful, proving both the effectiveness of the steam engine and the capabilities of Phillipsburg’s modern water system.
Despite its importance to the department, Centennial Engine Company briefly faced an uncertain future. During the February 23, 1888, Town Council meeting, a communication signed by Richard J. Titus on behalf of the Committee of the Board of Engineers requested that the Council “disband the Centennial Fire Company, and reorganize the said company by making members thereof twenty persons,” listing the proposed members by name. The request, however, received no motion from the Council and no action was taken. Newspaper accounts on surviving Council records do not explain why the reorganization was proposed, leaving the reason unknown.
The company’s reputation frequently brought requests for assistance from neighboring communities. On October 30, 1891, Centennial Engine Company, along with the Reliance Hose Company, answered one of the largest mutual-aid calls in its history when a devastating fire swept through the business district of Clinton, New Jersey. At the time, Clinton had no organized fire department of its own. Urgent telegrams requesting assistance were sent throughout the region, and under the direction of Chief Engineer Joseph H. Firth, members of both companies responded by Lehigh Valley Railroad, transporting both firefighters and equipment to the scene. The fire destroyed twenty-three buildings, eliminated seventeen businesses, left eighteen families homeless, and caused an estimated $125,000 in property damage. Newspaper accounts reported that Phillipsburg firefighters remained in Clinton throughout much of the day assisting in controlling one of Hunterdon County’s most destructive nineteenth-century fires.
Centennial again demonstrated its commitment to neighboring communities during the Hampton Junction Fire of February 1896. Responding aboard the Central Railroad, the company transported its steam engine and hose carriage twelve miles in only eleven minutes. Upon arrival, firefighters quickly placed the steamer into operation, saving the remaining business district from destruction after two buildings had already been lost. The response came at a personal cost. Firefighter Frank McBurth suffered severe frostbite to his face and feet while operating at the blaze and was unable to return home with the rest of the company. His injuries served as a reminder of the hardships nineteenth-century volunteer firefighters willingly endured while protecting communities beyond their own.
As the new century approached, the fire service entered a period of rapid technological change. Horse-drawn steam apparatus had served Centennial faithfully for decades, but gasoline-powered automobiles promised to revolutionize firefighting. Among the strongest advocates for modernization was Chief George Pfister, a longtime member of the Centennial Engine Company. Serving as Chief of the Phillipsburg Fire Department from 1902 until his death in 1911, Pfister worked closely with town officials and the Fire Committee to secure funding for a motorized combination chemical and hose apparatus for Centennial Engine Company. Contemporary newspaper accounts reveal that the proposed apparatus would have been stationed at the Market Street engine house because of its central location within Phillipsburg’s business district. Once the new apparatus entered service, Centennial’s trusted Silsby steamer was to be transferred to Lincoln Engine Company, allowing both organizations to remain fully equipped. Pfister recognized that motorized apparatus represented the future of firefighting, making him one of the department’s earliest champions of modernization.
Unfortunately, Chief Pfister never lived to see those plans become reality. Following months of declining health after battling a severe winter fire, he died on April 27, 1911, at just thirty-eight years of age while still serving as Chief. His funeral became a department-wide event. Members gathered at the Centennial engine house before accompanying their chief to his final resting place, while firehouses throughout Phillipsburg were draped in mourning. Newspaper accounts remembered him as a faithful public servant whose greatest ambition was improving fire protection for the citizens of Phillipsburg. Three years later, another significant change brought Centennial’s distinguished history to a close.
In 1914, Phillipsburg adopted the Commission form of government. Seeking additional municipal office space, the Commissioners selected the second floor of the Centennial engine house on Market Street for use as town offices and meeting rooms. Centennial’s members strongly opposed the proposal, believing it would interfere with the operation of the company and diminish the purpose for which the building had been constructed. Despite their protests, the Commissioners approved the plan and occupied the building. Faced with circumstances beyond their control, the members voted on April 28, 1914, to disband the Centennial Engine Company after thirty-eight years of continuous service to the Town of Phillipsburg. The story, however, did not end there.
Only weeks after Centennial’s disbandment, twenty-six former members petitioned the Commissioners for permission to organize a new volunteer fire company to continue protecting the First and Third Wards. Approval was granted, and on May 14, 1914, the Phillipsburg Fire Company No. 1 was organized. While the company bore a new name, it carried forward the experience, traditions, and spirit established by the Centennial Engine Company. For nearly four decades, Centennial Engine Company stood at the forefront of Phillipsburg’s fire service. It introduced steam-powered firefighting to the community, protected the town as its sole volunteer company for eleven years, answered some of the region’s most significant fires, pioneered mutual aid responses by railroad, embraced improvements in water supply and firefighting technology, and helped lay the groundwork for the department’s transition into the motorized era. Although the company ceased to exist in 1914, its influence remained deeply woven into the history of the Phillipsburg Fire Department. Few organizations contributed more to the department’s early development or left a more enduring legacy than the Centennial Engine Company.
Sources:
- Phillipsburg 94 Fire Historical Society Facebook Group
- Easton Express and the Allentown Morning Call Microfilm.
- Town of Phillipsburg Website
- 1894 Souvenir Booklet
- 1909 Souvenir Booklet
Photos and images:
- Columbia Hotel on South Main Street.
- AI generated image of Andover Schoolhouse Fire
- AI Colorized photo of Centennial Engine Company in front of firehouse .
- Internet Photo of 1879 Pardee Hall Fire ruins.
- Group photo of Centennial Engine Company in front of their firehouse.
- Chief Pfister in 1909.
- 1945 PFD fire apparatuses during Victory over Japan parade.
- 1952 group photo of PFD and PES apparatuses
- 1963 group photo of PFD and PES apparatuses
- 1991 group photo of PFD apparatuses
- Lincoln Engine: 94-65*
- Reliance Hose: 94-66*
- Jersey Hose: 94-63*
- Alert H&L: 94-69*
- Phillipsburg Fire Co. #1: 94-64*
- Warren Chemical: 94-67
- Photos with (*) are credited to Jersey Shore Fire Photography.
