DEPARTMENT HISTORY
A fire department was formed in Swanton Vermont just after the village was incorporated in 1888. Hawley was the first chief engineer as the fire chief was called at the time. By 1893 the village had grown and it was necessary to have two fire departments. The Swanton Hose Company was formed to protect the east side of the river with Fred Moore as the chief. The Star Hose Compan
y was formed and housed on the west side of the river at the Webster Lumber Company with H. These chiefs were later called foremen. There was keen rivalry and competition between the two companies. In those days the equipment had to be hauled by hand. The early hose house was made of canvas and it was located on the south east corner of First and York Streets. In the early years a "bucket brigade" was the only means to supply water to a burning structure. In 1928 a chemical cart was moved to the Webster Lumber Company, close to the building that is now Swanton Lumber Company. An electric siren was installed on the top of the Batchelder building. This replaced the use of the bell on the Methodist church. In 1929 the fire station was remodeled and a new hose trailer was purchased for the fire truck. The fire house at Swanton Lumber was rebuilt after a tornado blew it down. About 1932 Swanton decided to modernize their fire department and a new combination truck and booster pump, along with the latest fire fighting equipment was purchased. The west side station was discontinued as an independent unit. A new Pierce Arrow fire truck with a 500 gallon pump and a 100 gallon tank was purchased. Personnel was cut to twenty men, two of which were assigned to the station on the west side of the river (at the Swanton Lumber Company). The name was changed to the Swanton Village Fire Department under J. A Ford V8 was added next as an auxiliary hose truck. The old faithful 1917 Model T Ford, which had been the department's only truck, was retired from active service. In 1937 the firemen were: C. Hatch, A. Penall, H. Cassavoy, G. Laselle, H. Moreau, J. Leo Loiselle, F. A. Bell, J. Leavitt, Jr., A. Moreau, W. Anderson, D. Unwin, C. Reynolds, A. Colomb, W. Cline, H. Stearns, E. Clark, S. Prouty Sr., E. Mulheron, and F. Brown. In 1939 a Model T Ford hose wagon with a windshield was purchased. In 1945 a new Peter Pirsch 500 gallons per minute pump with a 100 gallon tank fire truck was purchased along with a Maxim ladder truck. In 1975, the village office, the electrical department and the fire station burned. The village office and the fire station moved to Grand Ave. In 1979 the department moved to a new village complex on First St. where it now has a new and modern six bay station with an office and kitchen. In 1981 portable scanners were purchased. They would notify firemen of a fire if they were within 10 miles of the station. In 1984 radios were updated to four channel units with capabilities to transmit and receive from the Missisquoi Rescue Squad, the Highgate-Franklin, and Franklin County mutual aid groups, and the Town of Swanton. Today, in 1997, the fire department now has a class "A" 500 gallons per minute pumper/tanker with 1800 gallon capacity, a 100 foot aerial ladder truck, an equipment carrying van, and a sixteen foot emergency fire-rescue boat with a 20 hp motor. The department is continually updating its equipment and training its men in order to give the best possible fire fighting assistance to the citizens of Swanton. To insure that all emergency phone calls were answered by the fire department, eleven red phones were installed in selected firemen's homes in 1973. This system served Swanton well until 1996 when central dispatching from St. Albans City was utilized in anticipation of the upcoming 911 statewide answering system.
