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Evanston Fire Department history Part 51

Dec 25

Posted by Admin in Fire Department History | 1 Comment

From Phil Stenholm:

Another installment about History of Evanston Fire Department

 

ONE MAN’S TRASH IS ANOTHER MAN’S FIRE

The first major fire to occur during the Dorband administration was at the Tapecoat Company chemical plant at 1521 Lyons Street, on a frigid day in January 1951. Located on a dead-end street in the 5th ward, just east of the C&NW RR Mayfair Division freight tracks, Tapecoat manufactured high-strength tape and chemical coatings used to seal commercial pipeline connections. Fire departments didn’t think much about hazardous materials in 1951, but if the Tapecoat fire occurred today, it might require a HazMat response.
 
Evanston firefighters contained the blaze, but not before an estimated $100,000 damage to the structure and its contents. The $100,000 loss was one of the top five highest-dollar losses from a fire in Evanston’s history up to that point in time, with only the fires at the N. U. Technological Institute (December 1940), Boltwood School (January 1927), the Marshall Field warehouse (December 1948), and the Mark Manufacturing Company plant (December 1905) sustaining greater dollar losses. Of course the Mark fire was many times worse than the others, because two Evanston firemen lost their lives battling that blaze.      

In the summer of 1952, one of the platoon drillmasters and a handful of new recruits manned the EFD’s soon-to-be scrapped 1917 / 1930 Seagrave Suburbanite 500 / 50 TCP (Engine No. 6) one last time for old time’s sake, as the venerable engine pumped for two days straight and delivered thousands of gallons of water onto a stubborn, smelly, stinking, smoldering fire located deep within the bowels of the city dump at 2100 Oakton St. The dump would be re-developed as a landfill recreation area known as James Park in 1965, featuring a picnic area, baseball diamonds, soccer fields, and the famous “Mount Trashmore.”  

With a virtual flotilla of new Pirsch rigs — Truck 21 (1951 Pirsch 85-foot TDA), Truck 22 (1952 Pirsch 85-foot TDA), Engine 21 (1952 Pirsch 1000 / 80 TCP), Engine 25 (1952 Pirsch 1000 / 100 TCP), and Squad 21 (1952 Pirsch 1000 / 100 combination pumper – rescue squad) — running out of Fire Station # 1 beginning in September 1952, the former Engine No. 1 – the 1949 Seagrave Model J-66 1000 / 80 TCP — was relocated to Station # 2, where it became Engine 22.

The two 1937 Seagrave Model G-80 750 / 80 TCPs remained in front-line service in the same places they had been located previously, but with a new 20-series prefix number assigned, such that Engine No. 3 was now Engine 23 at Station # 3, and Engine No. 4 was now Engine 24 at Station # 4.

The 1937 Seagrave 65-foot aerial ladder truck with 80-gallon booster that ran as Truck No. 2 at Station # 1 for 15 years was designated Truck 23, relocated to Station # 3, and placed into ready-reserve, meaning it could be staffed by Engine Co. 23 if a third truck was needed. In fact, you might say Engine Co. 23 was the EFD’s first “jump company”! The dilapidated 1917 Seagrave city service truck — Truck No. 1 1917-24, Truck No. 2 1924-37, placed into reserve as Truck No. 3 in 1938, and assigned briefly to the Evanston Auxiliary Fire Service 1942-44 — was stripped of usable parts and junked. 

The two 1927 Seagrave Standard 1000 / 50 TCPs that had been Engine No. 2 and Engine No. 5 for 25 years were placed into reserve, with old No. 2 becoming Engine 26 at Station # 2 (rig was moved to the new Station # 5 in 1955), and old No. 5 relocating to Station # 4, where it was designated Engine 27. The 1927 Seagrave pumpers were not equipped with radios. The 1917 / 1930 Seagrave Suburbanite 500 / 50 TCP (Engine No. 6) that had been the EFD’s lone spare pumper since 1938 was decommissioned and dismantled at this time.   

The 1924 Seagrave tractor formerly used to pull the old 85-foot aerial-ladder trailer (Truck No.1 1924-51) was retained and rebuilt as a Chicago F. D.-style high-pressure wagon, equipped with a mounted fireboat-type deluge nozzle, and with large-diameter hose carried aboard the rig’s pumper body / hose-bed that had been salvaged from the 1917 / 1930 Seagrave Suburbanite TCP after it was dismantled.

The high-pressure wagon was designated Squad 22 and placed into ready-reserve at Station # 1, where it was available to be driven to a working fire if requested. It was normally parked in the repair shop bay, and in addition to being a high-pressure wagon, it was used by EFD mechanics as a utility truck. Like the two 1927 Seagrave pumpers, Squad 22 was not equipped with a radio.

Also, 6,000 feet of new fire hose was purchased in 1951-52, including 4,000 feet of 2-1/2 inch hose for the front-line pumpers, and 2,000 feet of larger-diameter hose used to supply deluge and master stream nozzles. .

Other equipment added to the EFD’s inventory at this time included four powerful factory-installed searchlights mounted atop Squad 21 that could be used to provide lighting at night-time fires, two portable deluge nozzles and an oxygen-acetylene cutting torch carried aboard Squad 21, and several sets of self-contained breathing apparatus (SCBA) that replaced the old-fashioned canister-type gas masks that had been used by firefighters for many years. The SCBA however were assigned only to the two truck companies at Station # 1.

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Evanston Fire Department history Part 50

Dec 19

Posted by Admin in Fire Department History | 4 Comments

From Phil Stenholm:

Another installment about History of Evanston Fire Department

 

KSC732 IS ON THE AIR! 

At a cost of $13,000, two-way FM radios were purchased and placed into Evanston fire stations and on-board most EFD vehicles in June 1952. Paid for with funds from the 1951 bond issue, the new radio system initially had some problems with “bleed-over” interference from a local taxi cab company, but the problem was soon resolved by Motorola engineers assigned to the project.

The 20-series prefix was first used by the Evanston Fire Department after the radios were installed,in 1952, to help lessen confusion with other fire departments that were sharing the same radio frequency at that time, as well as other fire departments that might be added at a later date. 

Thus Engine 1 became Engine 21, Truck 2 became Truck 22, Engine 5 became Engine 25, etc. The new combination pumper / rescue squad was designated “Squad 21,” and EFD Chief Henry Dorband used the radio call-sign “F-1,” the same call-sign he had been using on the Evanston Police radio frequency since he got his new two-way radio-equipped Mercury automobile 1951.

The Evanston Fire Department ended up on the same radio frequency as the Wilmette, Winnetka, Northfield, Glencoe, and Highland Park fire departments. While radio repeaters were used on the Chicago Fire Department’s Main and Englewood radio frequencies, they were not employed on the radio frequencies used by north suburban fire departments, so sometimes a radio transmission from one of the fire departments on the frequency might inadvertently interfere with the radio transmission of another fire department on that same frequency.

The Evanston Police Department’s base-station radio-transmitter received the FCC-assigned call-sign KSA580 when it was placed into service in 1951, and the Evanston Fire Department’s base-station radio-transmitter received the FCC-assigned call-sign KSC732 when it was placed into service in 1952.

The base-station radio-transmitter at Station # 1 was known as “KSC732 – the desk,” or simply “732 – the desk.” The radio-transmitter at Station # 2 was KSC733, the radio-transmitter at Station # 3 was KSC734, and the radio-transmitter at Station # 4 was KSC735. The radio-transmitter at Fire Station # 5 received the FCC-assigned call-sign KSD841 when the station opened in 1955.

The EFD’s radio system was tested twice a day, once at 0800 hours, and then again at 2000 hours, with each station having to acknowledge receipt of the test by stating its FCC-assigned call-sign. A radio test could be delayed if one or more companies were en route to a call, or even canceled if a major incident was in  progress. 

Each EFD company officer was responsible for keeping track of the current status of all of the other companies of the same type (engine or truck). For example, the officer of Engine Co. 24 would need to know whether or not Engine Co. 23 was in service or out of service, because it could change Engine Co. 24’s first-due or second-engine response area. Company officers would have to acknowledge over the radio whenever another company’s status changed. If acknowledging from a fire station, the station’s FCC-assigned call-sign — or sometimes just the last three numbers of the call-sign — was used.

Both the police and fire department base radio consoles were initially located in a room on the second floor / south side of the police station, in close proximity to the stairway that led from the police station to Fire Station # 1. The radio consoles were later relocated to a room on the first floor / northeast side of the police station, next to the police complaint desk and on the far opposite side from Station # 1.  

Both the police and fire department radios were operated by civilian communication operators who were under the supervision of a police sergeant. Technically, half of a communication operator’s salary was paid by the police department, and half was paid by the fire department. Prior to 1975, communication operators were exclusively male, and in some cases were retired police officers or retired firefighters. Multi-tasking, speaking clearly, and having a good memory was useful. Typing skill was absolutely NOT a requirement.

All fire calls, inhalator calls, and details were broadcast over the EFD radio, with communication operators usually announcing fire and inhalator calls, automatic alarms, car fires, trash fires, etc, and a firefighter at the desk at Station # 1 typically announcing a non-emergency engine or truck company detail, such as a residential lock-out, a gas-wash, or an odor investigation.

A four-second long horn-type alert-tone was broadcast immediately prior to announcing a fire call, inhalator call, or detail, as well as for the twice-daily radio test. This horn tone was unique to the EFD and was activated by pushing a button similar to a doorbell. It couldn’t be stopped once it was started, and it covered all voice transmissions that might be in progress. There were only two activation buttons for the horn, one located in the Evanston Police radio room, and the other at the desk at Fire Station # 1. 

The communication operator did not assign EFD companies to a call. Rather, the communication operator would simply announce the call-type and location twice, and then state the time and the EFD’s radio call-sign. Then the radio system would turn into a party-line conference call. Companies that were due to respond were expected to acknowledge receipt of the call over the radio, and it was up to the platoon commander to make sure that the proper companies had acknowledged and were responding.

This somewhat arcane aboriginal dispatch procedure that dated back to 1952 was not changed until 1982!

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Evanston Fire Department history Part 49

Dec 16

Posted by Admin in Fire Department History | 1 Comment

From Phil Stenholm:

Another installment about History of Evanston Fire Department

THE MODERNIZATION PLAN

Chief Hofstetter was succeeded in office by 52-year old Henry Dorband, a 31-year veteran of the EFD who had been the company officer of Truck Co. 1 and a platoon commander since being promoted to assistant chief fire marshal in 1948. Capt. Michael Garrity was promoted to assistant chief fire marshal when Dorband was appointed chief, joining Assistant Chief Jim Geishecker as one of the EFD’s two platoon commanders.

Deceased Assistant Chief J. E. Mersch was initially replaced as commander of the Fire Prevention Bureau by Capt. John Schmidt in 1951, followed by Capt. William Murphy in 1952 after Capt. Schmidt retired to take a position with the Federal Civil Defense Administration.

Thus, the leadership of the Evanston Fire Department was transformed and invigorated virtually overnight. Chiefs Dorband, Geishecker, and Garrity joined the EFD during the years 1918-20, so they weren’t exactly rookies. They had been waiting a long time — more than 30 years each! — for a chance to make their mark.

In addition to the new chiefs and the changing of the guard in the Fire Prevention Bureau, Lt. Jim Mersch, Lt. Lincoln Dickinson, Lt. Ronald Ford, and Lt. Lester Breitzman were promoted to captain in the years 1950-52, with Capt. Mersch assigned to Engine Co. 1, Capt. Breitzman to Engine Co. 2, Capt. Dickinson to Engine Co. 3, and Capt. Ford to Engine Co. 4, and with Capt. Ed Fahrbach moving from Engine Co. 4 to Engine Co. 5 after 27-year veteran Capt. Frank Sherry retired in 1951.

While Assistant Chief Geishecker and Assistant Chief Garrity worked opposite platoons and served as truck company officers at Station #1 in addition to their platoon commander responsibilities, the two captains who served as company officers of the two engine companies at Station # 1 – Jim Mersch with Engine Co. 1 and Ed Fahrbach with Engine Co. 5 – were the EFD’s senior captains, working opposite platoons and serving as drillmasters, in addition to their company officer responsibilities.

In addition to the deaths of Chief Hofstetter and Assistant Chief Mersch in 1950, the retirements of Capt Sherry in 1951 and Captain Schmidt in 1952, and the various promotions to chief, assistant chief, and captain that soon followed, Lt. William Rohrer retired in 1950 after 27 years of service, Lt. Charles Novak (24 years of service) retired in 1951, and Lt. Fred Schumacher (25 years of service) retired in 1952.

Ed Burczak joined Francis “Marvin” Hofstetter as one of the EFD’s two fire equipment mechanics in 1950, and to replace the promoted and retired lieutenants, firemen Leonard Bach, Herb Claussen, Knud Hanson, George “Bud” Hofstetter, George Jasper, Erv Lindeman, and Willard Thiel were promoted to lieutenant during 1951-52.

Very soon after he was appointed chief fire marshal, Henry Dorband unveiled an ambitious “Fire Department Modernization Plan” that was designed to implement all of the remaining unmet recommendations from the 1935 NFBU inspection, and meet the current and future needs of the Evanston Fire Department.

A $160,000 bond issue to pay for new equipment and apparatus was passed by Evanston voters in April 1951 (88% of the voters approved), and a second $775,000 bond issue to pay for three new fire stations passed by a much smaller margin (60% approval) in April 1953. The two bond issues totaled $935,000, and did indeed lead to the modernization of the EFD.

The first of the two bond issues enabled the City of Evanston to purchase five new pieces of firefighting apparatus from Peter Pirsch & Sons of Kenosha, Wisconsin. Included in the purchase — with a total price-tag of about $135,000 — were two tractor-drawn 85-foot aerial-ladder trucks, two 1000-GPM triple-combination pumpers, and one 1000-GPM combination pumper / rescue squad. To secure the contract, Pirsch had to outbid (underbid) Seagrave and American LaFrance for the ladder trucks, and Mack for the pumpers and the rescue squad.

The TDA that had been purchased from Pirsch in 1950 and delivered in 1951 (the new Truck No. 1) was retroactively incorporated into the bond issue as one of the two tractor-drawn aerial-ladder trucks, with the $35,000 appropriation returned to the city treasury. In addition, a new chief’s automobile – a 1951 Mercury sedan equipped with an Evanston Police FM two-way radio — was purchased with funds from the bond issue.

Chief Dorband assigned all five of the new Pirsch rigs to Station # 1 when they were placed into service in September 1952, and ordered them to be parked outside whenever possible, so that Evanston voters could drive-by the firehouse and see the city’s brand-new modern fire apparatus with their own eyes. The five Pirsch rigs would remain together at Station # 1 until 1955.

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Evanston Fire Department history Part 48

Dec 12

Posted by Admin in Fire Department History | 6 Comments

From Phil Stenholm:

Another installment about History of Evanston Fire Department

THE END OF AN ERA

Lt. John Schmidt returned from Germany in 1949 and was promoted to captain, after Lt. William Owens was promoted to captain and then almost immediately retired after 20 years of service. Also, Lt. Ed Fahrbach was promoted to captain and assigned as company officer of Engine Co. 4, with Irish-born Capt. Michael Garrity using his seniority to effect a transfer from Station # 4 in what was then the back-water hinterlands of southwest Evanston to Station # 3 on Green Bay Road in North Evanston, which unlike Station # 4, was close to both bus and rail transportation. Fireman Charles Novak was promoted to lieutenant at about this same time.

By 1950, Evanston’s population had grown to 73,641, a 20% increase over the population of 1930. The population increase can be mostly-attributed to the post-World War II “baby boom,” as well as to the residential development of both southwest and northwest Evanston. The Evanston Fire Department, however, had not kept pace with the changing times. Despite the invigoration of “new blood” — 50 new firemen, mostly all veterans of WWII, had been hired during the years 1946-49 — the leaders of the EFD were old, sick, and tired. However, change was in the wind.

Following a lengthy illness, EFD Chief Albert Hofstetter died on September 24, 1950, at the age of 70, after 49-1/2 years of service with the Evanston Fire Department, including the last 36+ years as Chief Fire Marshal. Though very ill in the weeks prior to his death, Chief Hofstetter still hoped to retire from the EFD on his Golden Anniversary in March 1951. Unfortunately, he didn’t make it that far.

Then just 17 days after the death of Chief Hofstetter, 67-year old 1st Assistant Chief Fire Marshal J. E. Mersch died after suffering a heart attack behind the wheel of his staff car while leading the annual Fire Prevention Week parade up Orrington Avenue. Chief Mersch had served 45 years with the Evanston Fire Department, and was the first Fire Prevention Inspector, serving in that capacity for 22 years after suffering a disabling leg injury in a traffic collision in September 1927. He helped to establish the Fire Prevention Bureau in 1929, and then single-handedly ran it right up until the moment of his death.

The deaths of Chief Hofstetter and Assistant Chief Mersch came just two years after two other long-time chief officers — 46-year veteran Assistant Chief Tom McEnery and 38-year veteran Assistant Chief Carl Windelborn — had retired. The four veteran chiefs had served a combined 178 years with the EFD, an average of more than 44 years per man!

The last major fire to occur during the Hofstetter regime was one that gutted the North Shore Flour Supply Company warehouse at 709 Chicago Ave in April 1950. With the structure located just a couple of hundred feet from Station # 2, Engine Co. 2 was on the scene in about a minute, immediately taking the hydrant next-door to the south, leading out, and attacking the fire through the front door.

Engine Co. 1 and Truck Co. 1 assisted Engine Co. 2, with truckmen laddering the roof and ventilating, while pipemen from Engine Co. 1 grabbed a second line off Engine 2 and followed Engine Co. 2 into the interior. However, Truck Co. 1 was unable to adequately ventilate the reinforced roof, and so the two engine companies working inside had to back-out to avoid being overcome by heat and smoke.

Engine Co. 4, Engine Co. 5, and Truck Co. 2 responded on a second alarm, with Engine Co. 3 changing quarters to Station # 1. The off-duty platoon was called-in to staff the reserve engine at Station # 4 and the reserve truck at Station # 3, and to provide relief for firefighters working at the fire, Nearby Station # 2 was used as a staging area for men from the opposite platoon while they waited for assignments, and as a temporary rest & recovery area for firefighters after being relieved. The blaze was eventually extinguished, but not before a $70,000 loss to the building and its contents.

A few days after the fire, the assistant chiefs who served as the company officers of Truck Co. 1 and Truck Co. 2 scheduled remedial training for members of the two truck companies on the subject of “proper vertical ventilation.” During the course of the training, worsening weathering damage to the aging wooden aerial-ladder on Truck No. 1 was noted. The truck’s ground ladders had been replaced in 1938, but the aerial-ladder, trailer, and tractor were 25-years old.

With Chief Hofstetter on extended medical leave, Assistant Chief Henry Dorband (company officer of Truck Co. 1) was dispatched to meet with Evanston’s mayor and aldermen to explain the problem with the aerial-ladder, and to offer possible solutions:

1. Replace the wooden aerial-ladder with a metal aerial-ladder (estimated cost: $15,000);
2. Replace both the aerial-ladder and the trailer (estimated cost: $25,000);
3. Replace the tractor, trailer, and aerial-ladder (estimated cost: $35,000).

The city council opted for choice # 3, and the city advertised for bids to supply a tractor-drawn aerial-ladder truck, with specifications that included an 85-foot metal aerial ladder, water-proof equipment compartments on the trailer, and a canopy cab with additional rear-facing bench seating for four behind the cab. 

In what was something of a surprise, Peter Pirsch & Sons of Kenosha, Wisconsin, came in with the low-bid and was awarded the contract. With an estimated delivery date of August 1951, the EFD’s new TDA would be the first fire apparatus purchased by the City of Evanston from a manufacturer not named Seagrave since 1911.

Over the years, Evanston had been one of Seagrave’s best customers, spending upwards of $135,000 between 1917-49 to purchase a total of eight pumpers, three ladder trucks, and a tractor, plus major repairs to damaged rigs in 1927 and 1928, and a rebuild of one of the 1917 pumpers in 1930. However, by 1950 Seagrave was inundated with post-war apparatus orders that sometimes resulted in delivery dates as long as two years, and it was losing bids it would have won in the past. 

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Evanston Fire Department history Part 47

Dec 8

Posted by Admin in Fire Department History | 1 Comment

From Phil Stenholm:

Another installment about History of Evanston Fire Department

A NEW POLICE / FIRE HQ AND ANOTHER SUDDEN DEATH

A new Seagrave Model J-66 canopy cab 1000-GPM / 80-gallon TCP equipped with a Pierce-Arrow V-12 engine for maximum power, and a Mars FL-8 light on the roof, two high-mounted red flashers, a Delco-Remy Twin-Blast siren, and a bell as warning devices, was placed into service at Fire Station # 1 as the new Engine No. 1 in January 1949, and what had been Engine No. 1 – one of the two 1937 Seagrave Model G-80 canopy cab 750-GPM / 80-gallon pumpers – was transferred to Station # 4, where it became the new Engine No. 4.

Engine Co. 1 continued to respond as the second engine to all structure fires and to inhalator calls city-wide, with Engine Co. 5 remaining the dedicated “high-value district” engine company. Also, the 1917 / 1930 Seagrave Suburbanite 500 GPM / 50-gallon TCP that had been running as Engine No. 4 since June 1947 was placed back into reserve at this time, as the EFD once again had both a pumper (Engine No. 6) and the city service ladder truck (Truck No. 3) in reserve. 

Also beginning in January 1949, the Evanston Fire Department no longer provided fire protection to the College Hill section of the Village of Skokie, as the Skokie Fire Department opened its long-awaited east-side Station # 2 at 8340 Hamlin Ave. The new Skokie F.D. Station # 2 was staffed mostly by full-time firefighters, operating with a brand-new 1948 American LaFrance Model 710 PJO 1000-GPM TCP. Together with its Station # 1 at 8031 Floral Avenue in downtown Skokie that was staffed mostly by full-time firefighters operating with a 1937 Pirsch 750-GPM / 60-foot aerial quad and a 1926 Ahrens-Fox 1000 GPM TCP, the Skokie Fire Department was fast becoming a significant north suburban fire department in the post-war years. 

At this point in time, the Wilmette Fire Department was partly full-time but still mostly part-time. and it was  located in a combined police / fire station built in 1915 at 831 Green Bay Road. Front-line apparatus in Wilmette’s two-bay fire station consisted of a 1942 Seagrave Model G-80 750 GPM TCP and a 1943 Seagrave Model J-66 750-GPM quad, with a 1915 American-LaFrance Model 75 750-GPM TCP in ready-reserve.   

The Winnetka Fire Department was located in a very unusual three-bay firehouse at Green Bay Road & Ash Street. The structure was built originally in 1870 as the Academy Hall school, and then it was extensively remodeled and transformed into a fire station in 1925. Like the Wilmette Fire Department, the Winnetka F. D. was partly full-time but mostly part-time in 1949, with a 1947 American-LaFrance Model 775 PGC 750-GPM TCP and a 1926 American-LaFrance Type 14 750-GPM quad in front-line service, and a 1919 American-LaFrance Type 75 750-GPM TCP in ready-reserve.

Built in 1897, the Evanston Police / Fire headquarters at Grove & Sherman was essentially condemned in 1948 due to rampant plumbing problems in the basement cell-block of the police station, and serious structural cracks in the apparatus floor of the fire station. There was also a potential fire hazard related to decomposing 19th century electrical wiring insulation buried deep inside the walls that would have required gutting the interior of the building to replace.

A new two-story Evanston Police / Fire Public Safety headquarters was constructed at the northwest corner of Lake & Elmwood during 1949, and opened for business on August 27th of that year. The old headquarters at Grove & Sherman was torn down almost immediately after the police and fire departments vacated the facility, and the lot was filled-in and leveled and used for more than 25 years as a parking lot for the Valencia theater. An 18-story high-rise office building known as One American Plaza was constructed on the site during 1975-77.

While about 20% larger than its predecessor, the new Public Safety headquarters mirrored the configuration and orientation of the old one. The Evanston Police Department occupied the east side of the facility with an address of 1454 Elmwood Avenue, and the six-bay Fire Station # 1 was located on the west side of the complex at 909 Lake Street.

A brick drill tower was built into the rear of the fire station, replacing the EFD’s old drill tower that had been constructed behind Station # 3 in 1925. The west bay was separated by a brick wall from the rest of the station, and served as the EFD‘s repair shop. The two bays located closest to the repair shop were longer than the other three bays and could easily accommodate aerial-ladder apparatus, with room to spare.

A small two-bay garage for the police ambulance and the prisoner wagon was located on the far northeast corner of the structure facing onto Elmwood Avenue, just a few steps from the EPD’s front desk, where police officers were on duty at all times and available to staff the ambulance when needed. The structure also included a basement parking garage that was used mainly by the police department for vehicle storage, and a basement handball court that was available to both Evanston police officers and firefighters.    

On September 20, 1949, EFD Capt. Ed Hanrahan (Engine Co. 1) suffered a fatal heart attack while playing handball in the basement handball court, less than a month after the station opened. Capt. Hanrahan suffered from what is known today as morbid obesity, and playing handball was part of his diet and exercise weight-reduction regimen. A 22-year veteran of the EFD, Hanrahan had served as one of Chief Hofstetter’s buggy drivers prior to being promoted to lieutenant in 1945, and was said to be one of the most popular men in the department.

Capt. Hanrahan was only 44 years old at the time of his death. He was also the fifth EFD officer age 50 or  younger to die suddenly of a heart attack since 1929, the other four being 39-year old Lt. Walt Boekenhauer (Engine Co. 4) while on vacation in July 1929, 41-year old Lt. Frank Didier (Engine Co. 2) while off-duty in September 1931, 50-year old Lt. Carl Dorband (Engine Co. 3) while sitting in front of Fire Station # 3 in May 1942, and 43-year old Lt. William Elliott (Truck Co. 1) while on his day off in January 1945.  

 

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Evanston Fire Department history Part 46

Dec 1

Posted by Admin in Fire Department History | 1 Comment

From Phil Stenholm:

Another installment about History of Evanston Fire Department

GIVE THE LADY WHAT SHE WANTS! 

On June 10, 1947, the pump on Engine No. 4 broke-down during a routine annual pump test and could not be repaired. The 1917 Seagrave 750-GPM pumper had been in nearly-continuous front-line service for more than 29 years – as Engine No. 1 1918-37, and then as Engine No,. 4 since 1938 — and because its frame and chassis had extensive corrosion and rust damage, it was not likely to survive much longer, even with a new pump.

With the gravitas of a long-time chief of the Evanston Fire Department, Albert Hofstetter requested and received an audience with the mayor and the city council. Chief Hofstetter explained that replacing the pump on a 29-year old rusted-out fire engine would be a waste of money, maintained that the safety of all Evanstonians was at risk, and convinced the aldermen to immediately issue an emergency appropriation in the amount of $18,000 to purchase a new triple-combination pumper.  

Seagrave (naturally) won the bid, and the EFD’s lone spare pumper – the 1917 Seagrave chemical & hose booster pumper that had been rebuilt at the Seagrave factory in 1930 as a 500-GPM Suburbanite TCP with a 50-gallon booster tank — was temporarily placed back into front-line service at Station # 4, thereby leaving the EFD without a spare pumper for the 18 months it would take Seagrave to build the new rig. Meanwhile, the Seagrave engine with the broken pump was dismantled for spare parts to help keep the other two 1917 Seagrave rigs running, and then the frame & chassis and whatever else was left of the relic were sold for scrap.      

In 1948, downtown Evanston was a vibrant area with many high-end stores that provided a significant commercial tax base for the city. The downtown area was anchored by three large department stores,  Wieboldts’s at 1007 Church Street, Lord’s at 1611 Orrington Avenue, and Marshall Field & Company at 1700 Sherman. While the Evanston Field’s store was a smaller suburban version of the company’s world-famous headquarters store that occupied an entire city block at State & Washington in Chicago’s Loop, it was considered to be the most exclusive department store on the North Shore. 

Just a few days before Christmas in December 1948, the Marshall Field warehouse at 1224 Emerson Street was gutted by fire. Four engine companies, two truck companies, and a number of men from the off-duty platoon battled the stubborn blaze for hours, attempting to salvage as many of the valuable goods as possible, while at the same time working to contain and extinguish the flames without injury to firefighters. It probably would have been useful if Chicago Fire Insurance Patrol No. 8 on Ravenswood Avenue was still in service and responding to fires in Evanston to provide dedicated salvage work, but unfortunately that arrangement had ended in January 1933.  

The Marshall Field warehouse fire occurred during the period of time when the EFD had no reserve pumper, so Engine Co. 4 operating with its four-man crew plus additional manpower from the off-duty platoon, and another eight off-duty men staffing the reserve 1917 Seagrave city service truck, provided a modicum of fire protection to the city from Station # 1 while the rest of the EFD was fighting the fire. At the behest of Field’s president Hughston M. McBain, Chicago Fire Department Commissioner Michael J. Corrigan ordered the CFD’s Main Fire Alarm Office to immediately dispatch whatever assistance the Evanston Fire Department might request to help extinguish the fire.  

The CFD wasn’t needed, but the estimated $177,430 loss to the Marshall Field & Company warehouse and its contents was the third-largest loss from fire in Evanston’s history up until that point in time, with only the Northwestern University Technological Institute inferno in December 1940 and the Boltwood School conflagration in January 1927 incurring a higher loss.

With the new more-favorable state pension law now in effect, there were a slew of retirements involving very senior members of the EFD in 1948, as 46-year veteran 1st Assistant Chief Tom McEnery, 40-year veteran Capt. Ed McEnery (Tom’s brother), 38-year veteran 3rd Assistant Chief Carl Windelborn, and 28-year veteran Lt. Harry Jasper all retired at about the exact same time 

Assistant Chief J. E. Mersch remained commander of the Fire Prevention Bureau and by virtue of seniority automatically became 1st Assistant Chief Fire Marshal with the retirement of Chief McEnery. Capt. Henry Dorband was promoted to Assistant Chief and replaced Chief McEnery as both company officer of Truck Co. 1 and a platoon commander, and Capt. Jim Geishecker was promoted to Assistant Chief and replaced Chief Windelborn as company officer of Truck Co. 2 and a platoon commander.

Also in 1948, Lt. Ed Hanrahan was promoted after having scored first on the 1947 civil service test for captain, and was assigned as company officer of Engine Co. 1, Lt. William Murphy scored second on the test, was promoted to captain, and was assigned as company officer of Engine Co. 5, and firemen Lincoln Dickinson, Ronald Ford, William Owens, and Fred Schumacher were promoted to lieutenant.

Besides the loss of a number of veteran EFD officers to retirement in 1948, firemen John Monks (38 years of service), John Lindberg (28 years), John Anderson (21 years), and Lou Knockaert (21 years) also retired in 1948, and Fire Equipment Mechanic Norman Fochs (21 years of service) and firemen Dominic Bartholme (25 years), John Gleeson (21 years), Ted Thompson (21 years), and Walter Janz (20 years) retired in 1949.

30 men – mostly all veterans of World War II – passed the entry-level civil service test for fireman and were hired over the three-year period 1946-49 to replace the many veteran firefighters who had retired or died, and so the Evanston Fire Department suddenly got a lot younger.

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Evanston Fire Department history Part 45

Nov 26

Posted by Admin in Fire Department History | 1 Comment

From Phil Stenholm:

Another installment about History of Evanston Fire Department

THAT’S VERY ROOD! 

There were no significant fires in Evanston during the World War II years, so the volunteer Evanston Auxiliary Fire Service (EAFS) that was organized in June 1942 with Auxiliary Truck Co. 3 at Fire Station # 3 and Auxiliary Engine Co. 7 at Station # 4 was never needed. The EAFS was disbanded in 1944 after Auxiliary Engine Co. 7’s 1917 Seagrave 300-GPM chemical & hose booster-pumper (ex-Engine 3) broke-down at a training drill and could not be repaired.   

Meanwhile, the older members of the Evanston Fire Department felt the stress of the manpower-shortage caused by the drafting of younger firefighters into the military — some almost immediately after they were hired — as well as the loss of prospective EFD recruits waiting on civil service lists who enlisted or were drafted before they could even be hired. Many long-time members were becoming increasingly demoralized and/or ill because they were being forced to work overtime for straight-time comp days they could never actually use due to WWII manpower shortages. 

29-year veteran EFD Capt. Anthony Steigelman died at the age of 57 after a lengthy illness in June 1944, and Capt. Henry Tesnow retired after 30 years of service, Lt. Ed Newton retired after 34 years of service, and master Fire Equipment Mechanic J. K. “Karl” Wilen retired after 21 years of service that same year. Firemen Lawrence Ahrens (24 years), Frank Altenberg (28 years), Jerry Moriarty (25 years), Herman Peters (21 years), and Herman Windelborn (24 years) also retired in ’44.

Lt. Jim Geishecker – a future chief of the EFD — was promoted to captain and replaced Capt. Steigelman as company officer of Engine Co. 1, Lt. Frank Sherry was promoted to captain and replaced Capt. Tesnow as company officer of of Engine Co. 2, and firemen William Murphy, William Rohrer, and Edward C. Fahrbach were promoted to lieutenant. Note that there was an Edward C. Fahrbach and a much older Edward G, Fahrbach in the EFD at the same time in the 1920’s and 30’s.  

21-year veteran Truck Co. 1 assistant company officer Lt. William Elliott died at the age of 43 while off-duty in January 1945 and chief’s buggy driver Ed Hanrahan was subsequently promoted to lieutenant, Lt. John Reddick retired after 22 years of service with the EFD in 1946 and Jim Mersch was promoted to lieutenant, and with Lt. Schmidt in Berlin, chief’s buggy driver and future EFD chief Lester Breitzman was promoted to lieutenant and replaced Lt. Schmidt as assistant company officer of Engine Co. 1 and administrative assistant to Chief Hofstetter in 1947.

During those same years (1945-47), firemen Herman Godeman (21 years of service), John M. Mersch (40 years), Michael Olk (22 years), John Balmes (34 years), Harry Nelson (disability pension after 18 years of service), Lou Morgan (20 years), Charles Lapp (20 years), Harold Anderson (20 years), George Wilson (20 years), William Brundage (23 years), George Paugels (25 years), and Fred Godeman (27 years) also retired, leaving the EFD with a critical shortage of experienced firefighters to staff shifts. 

While the World War II years were relatively quiet in terms of major fires, the EFD did battle a significant blaze at the iconic Rood Building at Fountain Square in downtown Evanston on the night of February 15, 1946, just a few months after the end of the war. Built in 1895, the magnificent four-story structure adorned with cupolas, gables, and turrets was mostly unoccupied and awaiting demolition at the time of the fire, but a high-value district response (three engines and a truck) followed by a second-alarm (one engine and one truck) and a call-back of the off-duty platoon was needed to help extinguish the blaze and to protect exposures to the north.

The structure itself was still carrying $46,000 in fire insurance, so the timing of the fire was somewhat  interesting. There wasn’t much inside to salvage and there weren’t any occupants who needed to be rescued, so the fight went defensive fairly early-on. At the height of the blaze, all four EFD engines at the fire were pumping from nearby hydrants and both Truck Co. 1 and Truck Co. 2 were operating elevated master streams from their aerial ladders, pouring tens of thousands of gallons of water onto what used to be the Rood Building’s roof and attic. 

As was the norm for an extra-alarm fire occurring in Evanston’s downtown high-value district, Engine Co. 4 transferred to Station # 1 to provide city-wide engine coverage pending the arrival of the off-duty platoon. Members of the off-duty platoon of Engine Co. 2 staffed reserve Engine No. 6 at Station # 2 and members of the off-duty platoon of Engine Co. 3 manned reserve Truck No. 3 at Station # 3, once they arrived at their respective fire stations. The off-duty platoon from the four Station # 1 companies walked to the fire to provide rotation-relief for companies working at the scene, which was located only a block north of Station # 1. 

The manufacture of airplanes, ships, submarines, tanks, trucks, jeeps and other vehicles needed by the military to fight World War II meant that  — with a few exceptions — police cars and fire chief’s automobiles were generally not available for purchase during 1942-45. However, once the war was over, automobile  manufacturers got busy producing new models, such that police and fire departments were able to replace their aging fleets.  

In 1946, two new automobiles were purchased for the use of the Evanston Fire Department, replacing the two  1936-37 Fords. Chief Hofstetter received a Ford Deluxe Fordor sedan, and a Ford Deluxe Tudor sedan was assigned to the Fire Prevention Bureau. 

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Evanston Fire Department history Part 44

Nov 19

Posted by Admin in Fire Department History | 1 Comment

From Phil Stenholm:

Another installment about History of Evanston Fire Department

THEY CALL ME “OBERBRANDDIREKTOR” 

There were only two promotions in the Evanston Fire Department between 1934 and 1942, both occurring on the same day in May 1937. It was for sure a big day for the Dorband family, as Lt. Henry Dorband – a future chief of the EFD — was promoted to captain and replaced Capt, John Wynn as company officer of Engine Co. 2, and Henry Dorband’s older brother Carl was promoted to lieutenant and assigned as assistant company officer of Engine Co. 3. Unfortunately, Lt. Dorband would suffer a fatal heart attack at the age of 50 while sitting in front of Station # 3 on a Sunday afternoon in May 1942.

After the death of Lt. Dorband, there were twenty promotions over the course of the next seven years, as a wave of “new blood” began to take command of the EFD. Fireman John Schmidt was the first to receive a promotion, finishing at the top of the Civil Service promotional list for lieutenant that was established following Lt. Dorband’s death in 1942.

Prior to his promotion, Schmidt had been a long-time chief’s buggy driver as well as Chief Hofstetter’s administrative assistant and personal secretary, so when he was promoted to lieutenant to ostensibly replace Lt. Dorband at Station # 3, Chief Hofstetter stepped in and transferred Lt. Frank Sherry from Engine Co. 1 to Engine Co. 3, thus making sure that Lt, Schmidt would remain at Station # 1 and continue to serve as the chief’s “right-hand man,” in addition to performing his other duties as assistant company officer of Engine Co. 1.    

Fluent in both English and German, Lt. Schmidt took leave from the Evanston Fire Department in 1947 after being appointed the temporary Oberbranddirektor of the fire brigade in the U. S. Sector of Berlin, Germany. As Oberbranddirektor, Schmidt helped the severely degraded Berliner Feuerwehr located in the U. S. Sector recover from damage to facilities and equipment incurred during World War II, especially in the last days of the war after the Russian army stormed the city.

Schmidt served as Oberbranddirektor of the Berliner Feuerwehr in the U. S. Sector until the Federal Republic of Germany was established and the City of Berlin was returned to local rule on May 23. 1949, at which point he returned home to Evanston. Because he was next on the promotional list for captain when he took his Leave of Absence, Schmidt was promoted to captain upon his return to the EFD in 1949.  

Schmidt was initially assigned as company officer of Engine Co. 5 upon his return to the EFD, before replacing Assistant Chief J. E. Mersch as commander of the Fire Prevention Bureau after Chief Mersch’s sudden death in October 1950. Definitely one of the Evanston Fire Department’s “best and brightest” and a likely future chief of the EFD, Capt. Schmidt instead chose to retire in 1952 at the relatively young age of 51 after 25 years of service — despite being next on the promotional list for assistant chief —  after he was appointed Midwest Regional Fire Coordinator for the U. S. Civil Defense Agency by U. S, President Harry Truman.

While probably none of the other members of the Evanston Fire Department who retired or who were promoted in the 1940’s had quite as unique a career as John Schmidt, some did make a mark over the course of time.  

Lt. Dan McKimmons retired in 1943 after 32-years of service with the EFD, and Fireman John Reddick was promoted to lieutenant and replaced Lt. McKimmons as assistant company officer of Truck Co. 2. Note that this is a different John Reddick than the one who served with the EFD and was fired after he and several other members of Truck Co. 1 were caught drinking alcohol while on duty at Station # 1 in 1906.

Dan McKimmons was hired in 1911, one of four new men added to the EFD when the Robinson Jumbo automobile pumper was placed into service. When he was a fireman assigned as tillerman on Truck Co. 1, McKimmons had been seriously injured after being thrown to the ground when the American-LaFrance HDA was demolished in a collision with an Evanston Railway Company streetcar at Grove & Sherman in September 1916, and then as a lieutenant assigned to Truck Co. 2, he nearly died before being rescued and resuscitated by other firefighters after becoming trapped and overcome by smoke while battling a blaze in the basement of an apartment building at 1015 Dempster Street in February 1941. 

Dan’s older brother George was the rookie fireman whose first day on the job was December 13, 1905, the day of the tragic Mark Manufacturing Company fire at which two Evanston firemen were killed. George McKimmons would later leave the EFD and join the Chicago Fire Department, and after being promoted to captain, he was the CFD officer who organized Truck Co. 44 at Engine 55’s house on Sheffield Avenue in 1928.

 

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Evanston Fire Department history Part 43

Nov 13

Posted by Admin in Fire Department History | 1 Comment

From Phil Stenholm:

Another installment about History of Evanston Fire Department

EMPOWERMENT & RETIREMENT 

The International Association of Fire Fighters (IAFF) Local No. 742 was organized by Evanston firefighters during 1942, and was officially established on February 1, 1943. Although the city council steadfastly refused to completely restore the pay cuts from 1933-34, a new state law passed in 1941 reduced the average work-week for Illinois firefighters from 84 to 73.5 hours, by granting firefighters a so-called “Kelly Day” after every seven days worked, and resulting in what was essentially a three-day mini-vacation. Chicago Mayor Edward Kelly had invented the “Kelly Day” during the Depression and modestly named it after himself, to give Chicago firemen more time-off when it was not possible to give them a pay raise.

To comply with the new state law and to provide coverage for firemen on their Kelly Days, the Evanston City Council restored four of the six positions that had been eliminated in 1933, but cut minimum staffing from 31 to 28 men per shift. (Actually, 35 men were scheduled to work each shift, but each of the seven companies could run one man short). Five men on each platoon were on a Kelly Day each shift, including three at Station # 1 and two (combined) at the other three stations. 

Not including the chief and the fire prevention inspector, a maximum of 21 men were on duty at Station # 1 each shift, but there could be as few as 17 if each company was running one man short. A maximum of five men and a minimum of four men per company were assigned to Engine Co. 1, Truck Co.1, Truck Co. 2, and Engine Co.5 each shift, plus a chief’s buggy driver.

A maximum of 14 men and a minimum of 11 men were assigned (combined) each shift between Engine Co. 2, Engine Co. 3, and Engine Co. 4, with a maximum of six men and a minimum of four men assigned to Engine Co. 2, and a maximum of five men and a minimum of three men assigned to Engine Co. 3 and Engine Co. 4, depending on which two of the companies had a man off-duty on a Kelly Day.      

By 1944, Evanston Fire Department salaries had at last met (and in fact exceeded) those from 1932. Annual EFD salaries in 1944 ranged from $5,100 (Chief Fire Marshal) to $3,528 (1st Assistant Chief Fire Marshal) to $3,384 (2nd and 3rd Assistant Chief Fire Marshals) to $3,180 (Captain) to $2,904 (Lieutenant) to $2,760 (Mechanic) to $2,592 (Fireman I) to $2,532 (Fireman II) to $2,460 (Fireman III) to $2,340 (Fireman Recruit).

In 1947, the Evanston City Council voted to add six more positions to the fire department in order to restore the pre-1942 maximum and minimum shift staffing levels, bringing the total number of members of the EFD to 88, with 43 on each platoon, plus the chief and the fire prevention inspector.

Two of the six new men (one each shift) were assigned to Truck Co. 1 but could be temporarily assigned to any of the other three companies at Station # 1 that might be running a man short. Two of the new men (one each shift) were assigned to Engine Co. 3, and two of the new men (one each shift) were assigned to Engine Co. 4, thus restoring the pre-1942 four-man minimum shift staffing at fire stations 3 and 4. Thirty eight firefighters were once again scheduled each shift, returning to the pre-1942 31-man minimum shift staffing, since each company could run one man short. The staffing increase however was short-lived. 

In 1946, Chicago firemen were granted a Kelly Day after every four days worked instead of after every seven days, and during 1948, Local 742 — led by William Owens, Fred Schumacher, Lincoln Dickinson, John Lee, Ervin Lindeman, George Jasper, and Leonard Bach — campaigned for a further reduction in the work-week, to match that of Chicago’s firefighters. The Evanston City Council eventually agreed, and the average work-week for Evanston firemen was reduced from 73.5 to 67.5 hours, as members of the EFD received a Kelly Day after every four days worked. In exchange for a reduction of hours in the work-week, however, staffing was cut back to the pre-1947 level of 35 men per shift, with a 28-man minimum if each company were to run one man short.

Beginning in 1948, eight or nine Evanston firefighters were on a Kelly Day each shift, including exactly one man from each company each shift, plus one or two of the extra men assigned to Station # 1. With one man from each company on a Kelly Day every day, a maximum of six men and a minimum of five men were assigned to “high value district” Truck Co. 1 and Engine Co. 5 each shift, a maximum of five men and a minimum of four men were assigned to Engine Co. 1 and Truck Co. 2, and a maximum of four men and a minimum of three men were assigned to Engine Co. 2, Engine Co. 3, and Engine Co. 4. There was also a chief’s buggy driver assigned to each shift. 

In 1947, the state pension law was changed to allow firefighters to receive a larger pension. Previous to 1947, a retired fireman would receive 50% of his final monthly salary as his monthly pension, regardless of the number of years worked. However, firemen who retired after the new 1947 pension law went into effect were granted pensions amounting to 50% of their salary, PLUS an additional 2% per years of service over twenty years up to 30 years of service, PLUS an additional 1% per years of service over thirty years up to 35 years of service. Thus, a firefighter retiring with 35 years or more of service would now receive 75% of his last monthly salary as his monthly pension.

The change in the pension law led to a flurry of retirements of veteran members of the Evanston Fire Department, as 21 men — nearly a quarter of the department! — including two assistant chiefs, two captains, a lieutenant, a mechanic, and 15 firemen, retired in 1947-49. That came on the heels of the retirement of 14 other veteran Evanston firefighters — including a captain, two lieutenants, a mechanic, and ten firemen — who had had their fill of working forced-overtime for straight-time comp days during World War II, which combined with the deaths of three veteran company officers during those same years resulted in a significant and rather sudden drain of a combined 1,000 years of experience(!) within a relatively short period of time.  

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Evanston Fire Department history Part 42

Nov 4

Posted by Admin in Fire Department History | 5 Comments

From Phil Stenholm:

Another installment about History of Evanston Fire Department

THIS MEANS WAR! 

During the decade of the 1920’s, as the Evanston Fire Department was expanding to an 84-man force, sixty new firemen were hired. During the decade of the 1930’s, however, only nine new men were hired, and only four during the height of the Depression 1932 – 1939.

The four men who were hired between 1932 and 1939 were hired off the same civil service list. They were one of dozens of unemployed men who took a long-awaited civil service test for the position of fireman that was given by the Evanston Civil Service Board in September 1935. Only 18 passed the test, and only four of the them were hired during the life of the list, all four in 1936. Each of them would go on to have stellar careers with the EFD: James Mersch Sr would retire as an assistant chief (and platoon commander) in 1958, George Jasper retired as a captain (Engine Co. 23) in 1963, Ervin Lindeman retired as a captain (Truck Co. 22) in 1967, and Lester Breitzman retired in 1971 after 35 years of service, the last seven as chief. 

The United States of America entered World War II following the December 7, 1941 attack on Pearl Harbor by  naval and air forces of the Empire of Japan. George Jasper was the first Evanston firefighter to be drafted into the U. S. military in June 1942. The Evanston Auxiliary Fire Service (EAFS) was organized that same month, mainly in preparation for a possible enemy attack by air raid or sabotage on Chicago, but also to help offset an anticipated manpower shortage in the Evanston Fire Department during the war. 

The EAFS operated with the EFD’s reserve city service ladder truck (Truck No. 3), a 300-GPM booster-pumper (Engine No. 7) that had been transferred to the street department for use as a utility truck in 1938 before being returned to the Evanston Fire Department in March 1942 and restored by EFD mechanics as a fully-functioning firefighting apparatus, and three government surplus U. S. Civilian Defense 250-GPM pumps mounted on trailers received by the EAFS in November 1942 that could be pulled when needed by street department trucks.

Lloyd Winne was appointed Chief of the EAFS, with Jared Johnson and M. E. Carter serving as the two company commanders. The EAFS was divided in two, with half of the men organized as Truck Co. 3 at Station # 3, and the other half organized as Engine Co. 7 at Station # 4. To make room for the EAFS engine company at Station # 4, the EFD’s lone-remaining spare rig — Engine No. 6, the 1917 Seagrave 300-GPM booster pumper that had been rebuilt as a 500-GPM “Suburbanite” TCP at the Seagrave factory in 1930 — was relocated to Fire Station # 2.   

The EAFS was disbanded in 1944 after its 300-GPM booster pumper (Engine No. 7) broke down and could not be repaired. The apparatus was subsequently dismantled for spare parts that were used to keep the other 1917 rigs running, most especially the venerable 1917 Seagrave 750-GPM TCP that had been in continuous front-line service for more than 25 years, first as Engine No. 1 from 1918-37, and then as Engine No. 4 since January 1938, but was showing signs of extensive rust damage on the chassis, axles, drive-train, and engine block.   

The Evanston Fire Department had difficulty maintaining minimum staffing for shifts during World War II, especially in 1944 and 1945. By November 1943, all civil service lists had been exhausted, and there were no qualified men available to be hired as firefighters. Many of the men who had been on civil service lists in 1942 and 1943 were drafted before they could be hired, and others who were hired were drafted almost immediately afterward.

The firefighters who did not enter the military — many of whom were veteran firemen nearing retirement — were often compelled to work their day off and receive just a straight-time comp day they could bank and use later. During the war it was not unusual for an Evanston firefighter to work 72 consecutive hours and then receive just a straight-time comp day, except he couldn’t actually use it because of manpower shortages.

This caused a morale problem throughout the EFD, and many older firefighters chose to retire rather than accept the burden of forced overtime. In fact, as many Evanston firemen retired during the years 1943-45 as during the previous ten years combined! And as more men retired, an even greater burden fell upon the men who remained. 

A year prior to the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, the most costly fire in Evanston’s history (to date) occurred when Northwestern University’s Technological Institute — which was under construction — was destroyed ($620,000 loss) on the morning of December 2, 1940. 64 Evanston firefighters, assisted by Chicago F. D. Engine Co. 70, Engine Co. 110, and Engine Co. 112, battled the blaze well into the afternoon as a cold north wind fanned the flames, threatening other N. U. properties to the south. Evanston and Chicago firefighters poured more than a million gallons of water onto the conflagration before eventually bringing the blaze under control, thanks in no small part to an abrupt change in wind-direction from northwest to south. Eight months later (August 1941), another fire caused heavy-damage ($35,000 loss) to the Pontiac Sales automobile dealership at 1819 Ridge Ave.

On February 23, 1941, the EFD responded into Wilmette and assisted the Wilmette F. D. battling a large and dangerous fire at the Vitreous Enamel Company factory at 1419 Central Ave. Just five days earlier, veteran EFD Lt. Dan McKimmons (Truck Co. 2) had narrowly escaped death after becoming trapped in a smoke-charged basement while battling a blaze in an apartment building at 1015 Dempster Street. Suffocating from smoke inhalation, Lt. McKimmons was rescued just in the nick of time and resuscitated by Assistant Chief Tom McEnery, Lt. William Elliott, and firemen Ed Hanrahan, John Reddick, Lou Morgan, George Thompson, Herb Claussen, and Fred Godeman.

Several other veteran Evanston firemen were not quite so fortunate, however. Fireman Fred Korn retired with a disability pension in 1939 after suffering a career-ending arm injury, Albert Balmes (Engine Co. 5) died as the result of a head injury suffered during a fight at his niece’s weddng reception in July 1940, Walt Caple retired on a disability pension in 1941, Lt. Carl Dorband (Engine Co. 3) died of a heart attack while sitting in front of Fire Station # 3 on a lazy Sunday afternoon in May 1942, and Capt. Anthony Steigelman (Engine Co. 1) and Lt. William Elliott (Truck Co. 1) each died while off duty, Steigelman in June 1944, and Elliott in January 1945. 

The first (and only) fatality to result from a traffic collision involving an Evanston Fire Department vehicle occurred during World War II, on the afternoon of Sunday, October 10, 1943. Truck Co. 2 was headed eastbound on Central Street, en route to Dyche Stadium for a drill with the EAFS, and as rookie Fireman Hjalmar Okerwall turned the lumbering 1937 Seagrave 65-foot aerial ladder truck northbound onto Ashland Avenue, an automobile occupied by an elderly couple heading westbound on Central Street failed to stop and collided with the fire truck. The car’s female passenger was killed.

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