Pawtuxet Fire Company

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     The Pawtuxet Volunteer Fire Company was organized on February 16, 1891, making it the first volunteer fire company to be established in the city.  In its early days, it was also referred to in newspapers as “Volunteer Fire Company No. 1”

     The Pawtuxet fire station was located on Commercial Street at the corner of Sheldon Street in Pawtuxet Village. Prior to 1891, the building had been a grammar school, which the fire company purchased from the city for the sum of fifty dollars.

    A mascot of sorts kept by the company is a child’s doll kept in a glass front wooden case. Legend has it that it was found in the old school when the fire company took possession of it. The doll is about twenty inches tall and seems to be well made with eyes that open and shut. It was likely expensive in its day, and is still in remarkably good condition despite the passage of time, and today can be seen on display at the Cranston Volunteer Firefighters Museum. The mystery lies in who left the doll in the school, and why.

     The company’s first piece of fire apparatus was a hose cart, and the Pawtuxet volunteers were originally known as “Volunteer Hose Company No. 1”  (This hose cart has survived to this day, and is presently on display at the Cranston VFF Museum.) 

     Once officially established, the company began searching for a fire engine, and in October of 1891 they obtained a hand-engine built in 1864 by the Cornelius Callahan Company of Boston, and dubbed it “Fire King”.    

     The engine had originally seen service with the Fitton Fire Company of Rockville, Connecticut, but had been stored unused for the previous four years in a barn because Rockville had updated to more modern apparatus.      

     

     The engine was capable of throwing a stream of water just over 239 feet.  On November 2nd the company held a parade to show off their new engine – the first of its kind for Cranston. The parade wound throughout the streets of Pawtuxet Village. At this time the company became known as “Volunteer Fire Company No. 1.”  

     

The Providence News
November 2, 1891

     Evidently a second fire engine was acquired by the Pawtuxet Fire Co. in 1895.

     To see an article about the “Fire King” engine, click here.

   

Welcome Rockville’s – 1902

      In 1902 the Pawtuxet Fire Company honored members of the Rockville Fire Company.  To read more about that day, click here.

     The company chartered the “Pawtuxet Fire King Veteran Firemen’s Association” in 1906. 

     Because the company lacked horses, and an agreement was made with the electric street car companies that stated whenever there was a fire alarm, the motormen were to stop the trolley and allow the volunteers to hitch their engine to it so as not to have to pull it a great distance.  At that time trolley lines ran on Narragansett Boulevard, Broad Street, and Park Avenue.

     In November of 1895 the fire company celebrated the arrival of a second fire engine.  Details about the engine are unknown. 

     At a company meeting held in March of 1896, it was unanimously to incorporate the fire company and a committee was appointed to secure the necessary legislation.  At the same meeting, it was voted to construct a water tank measuring  6 by 4 by 4 feet in front of the fire station for testing the fire engines.  

     Shortly after noon on December 25, 1897, trolley motorman Charles Gordon, Jr. saw smoke coming from a house on Bluff Avenue and gave an alarm.  Within a short time the Pawtuxet volunteers had their fire apparatus attached to the back of the trolley and were carried to the scene.  1,300 feet of hose was laid to a hydrant on Shaw Avenue and the fire was brought under control.  Damage was confined to an el of the house and there were no injuries.    

     In 1898, the fire company erected an 80 foot flag pole in front of the fire station, and on it hung an American flag measuring 15 by 25 feet.  As a point of fact, in 1898, the American flag only had 45 stars. 

     It has been reported that in 1904 the fire company became the first volunteer company in New England to have a motorized fire truck. At that time the chassis to an “Atterbury Truck” was purchased, and company members custom built the body to suit their firefighting needs.

Click on images to enlarge. 

Pawtuxet motorized fire truck towing a Hook & Ladder wagon.
November 25, 1915 

     One of the largest fires the company ever responded to was on February 11, 1915, when the famous Rhodes on the Pawtuxet burned to the ground. The building was later rebuilt and is still standing today.

      The obsolete “Fire King” was eventually sold in 1943 to a Massachusetts collector for the sum of $100.  As a point of irony, the antique engine was severely damaged in 1972 when the barn it was being stored in burned to the ground.   The remains of the “Fire King” were later purchased by members of the Pawtuxet Fire Company with the intent of restoring it, but as of this writing it is unknown if the restoration ever took place.   

     On September 30, 1917, the company purchased a 75 horse-power “triple combination” motorized fire truck equipped with a 40 gallon chemical tank and a water suction pump.   

     In 1919 the company received another motorized pumper truck, but the type and make are unknown at this time.   

     At a meeting in January of 1926, fourteen charter members of the company were presented with medals honoring their long-time service.  To learn more, click HERE.

     In 1927 the Pawtuxet Fire King Band played at Rhodes on the Pawtuxet.  Click here for more info. 

     At the 1932 annual company meeting Fred E. Johnson was re-elected Chief, and Howard I. Lee, and Herbert G. Lee were elected Captain and Lieutenant respectively.  Chief Johnson had served as head of the fire company since 1891, and continued to serve in his position until his death in May of 1938. 

     At the 1940 annual company meeting Herbert G. Lee was elected Chief; Arthur E. Church was elected Captain, and Albert J. Stockard was elected Lieutenant.      

     In the latter half of the 20^th century the Pawtuxet Fire Company was known for their white trucks and yellow turnout gear. The yellow coats earned them the nickname, “Yellow Jackets”, and their company patch depicted an angry wasp putting water on a fire.

     Pawtuxet was the only company in Cranston to have a truck known as Special Service One, which, among other things, was capable of replenishing air supplies for Scott Packs at fires. This truck responded to all working fires in the city.

     In 1991 the Pawtuxet Fire Company held its Centennial Banquet, celebrating 100 years of service to the community. 

     The Pawtuxet Fire Company disbanded in 1995, and the station later became the home of the Providence Canteen Truck operated by The Special Signal Fire Association, funded by The Salvation Army.  The canteen was a delivery-van-style vehicle that supplied food and beverages at active fire scenes throughout the state and Massachusetts.  The canteen is still in existence but is now based in Warwick, R. I. 

Company Insignia

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