Newfield Fire Company celebrates 105 years of service

This year marks 105 years of community service provided by the Newfield Fire Company. In March 1917, a town meeting was held to discuss the feasibility of a fire company for the village of Newfield. By the end of the meeting, 40 men had signed up to form the Newfield Fire Company.

The original equipment used included a homemade ladder cart, a hand-drawn chemical wagon and two dozen 10-quart galvanized pails. In time, a 1929 Model A Roadster pickup truck was purchased, and the chemical wagon was mounted to it.

The Newfield Fire Company became chartered and incorporated, a process required so the company could obtain a local bank loan, in June 1940. In 1942, the company purchased a panel truck that replaced the Model A. Indian Pump Tanks, hand tools and protective gear were also added to the new truck. In 1944, the first motorized truck, a 1941 Ford, was purchased and added to the company.

Fire Chief and New York State Trooper Ben Emery has been with the fire company on and off for 10 years, acting as chief for the last eight of them.

“We’re pretty consistent with 26 active members and 15 interior firefighters,” Emery said. “We respond to about 450 to 500 calls per year.”

The consistent growth of the town meant that the number of calls to the fire company were increasing. The fire company did not have the equipment to handle such fires even though they had added to their fleet, so new equipment would be needed to protect the town of Newfield.

In 1970, the company had two engines, two tankers and one brush truck, and by the mid-’70s, they saw the need for more manpower. The company organized and chartered a group of young men, ages 14 to 18, called Explorers. This group could respond to assist with fires and, on school days, were allowed to leave on the second alarm.

This program benefited the company in many ways, often resulting in already-trained firefighters who could become full members upon reaching their 18th birthday. Many of the Explorers went on to devote their lives to serving with the fire company as well as other public services.

Matthew Watros, Newfield deputy town historian and fire company member, reflected on the changes to the company over the years.

“In the beginning, it was only fires that the company was called to,” Watros said. “As the population rose in Newfield, the call volume went up. The company is now involved with motor vehicle accidents, flooding, gas leaks and EMS. Previously, wreckers used to have to extricate people and wait for EMS to arrive.”

In 1976, the company formed a rescue squad, which was initially created to provide basic life support until Bangs Ambulance could arrive. The company added basic first aid equipment and supplies to the brush truck, making it the company’s first rescue truck.

The addition of the rescue squad along with the increased size of fire apparatus made the company realize that it was quickly outgrowing the size of its current building. After considering several options, one of which was an addition to the existing building, the company decided to purchase the property adjoining the town Highway Department.

A new fire station was erected there, and in 1982, the company moved in, along with a newly acquired fire truck. As of 1982, the fleet had six trucks, two tankers, two engines, one rescue truck and one brush truck.

“Lot of things have changed since the beginning of the fire company,” Watros said. “For instance, we now carry pager dispatches [for] all members. Back in the day, people used to be notified using the phone tree call method.”

Emergency telephone trees are a useful organizational tool, allowing messages to get to groups of people quickly and effectively. The tree divides call responsibility among the group when there is an emergency or the need to spread an urgent message.

“Archie Allen, who was the town undertaker way back when, was the person originally called to start the phone tree because he had a siren at his house,” Watros said. “The wives would keep the phone tree going after that. Then, they started using a big air raid siren in conjunction with the phone tree. When Archie quit, the county started dispatching and they would set off the sirens. We eventually moved to pagers. We used to have to use the Motorola monitors, which were big, boxy things. We then started using small portable pagers, and now, alerts are sent to those and via text directly to our phones.”

Watros notes that the additions and advancements over the 105 years of the fire company have made huge improvements in the company’s ability to protect Newfield.

“Back in the day, we had long thigh rubber boots, fiberglass helmets and rubber coats that were all generally one size,” Watros said. “Now, everybody has their own gear including air packs and more advanced turnout gear, which allows us to do more work inside. I’m proud of the work the company does. My heart lies with the Newfield Fire Company.”

Information about the fire company can be found at newfieldme.org/departments/fire-department/ and on its Facebook page at facebook.com/NewfieldFireCompany.

Newfield Notes appears every Wednesday in Tompkins Weekly. Send story ideas to editorial@VizellaMedia.com.