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Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio History

Cuyahoga Falls Fire Department

 On February 2, 1837, the Cuyahoga Falls hook and ladder company was formed by an act of the village council. It was made up of eight men, all volunteers, who organized bucket brigades to put out fires. 

On June 3, 1837, the very first ordinance passed which established the fire department for the safety and protection of the citizens of Cuyahoga Falls. The first fire warden was appointed in 1839. The men who served as fire wardens were:

A.G. Bill	E.N. Sill	William Rattle	Joseph Holloway	Ezra Comstock	George Dow
H.C. Smith	J. Holloway	H.A. Miller	Enock Morgan	Jacob Gilbert	Henry Scott

In 1838, the first uniform, a hat, frock and belt, was established, and a committee was formed to select and procure uniforms for the fire department. 

In 1888, the fire department was officially "organized" by the Village Council. The department was run entirely by volunteers, but was staffed by a chief, Thomas Carney, two captains and twenty call men. To date, twelve men have served as fire chief. They are:

In 1909, for about nine months, Cuyahoga Falls was without fire protection due to a feud with City Council. All volunteers resigned their post. The fall of 1909 all the volunteers were reinstated. Also that year, a member of council acting as fire chief bought a horse drawn hose and chemical truck for $1,525. Equipment such as this had not been a requirement because the city had water mains. Being a member of the Hook and Ladder Company for five years offered special privileges. A member was eligible for a certificate from the state exempting him from Road Tax, serving as a juror or doing military duty while living in the State of Ohio.

The Falls never owned a fire engine for a long time after Akron. But by 1891 the system was improved considerably. Hose and hook and ladder trucks were purchased along with a fully paid, organized firefighters.  Hydrants were installed at convenient points. Several years before that there were lines of pipe from the Variety Works and the Pearl Mill which was brought through the main business street upon the west side, driven by pumps attached to the water-wheels of those establishments which with the few hundred feet of hose they possessed afforded partial protection to a limited area. The defect in this partial system was that after the fire was discovered it took valuable time before a stream of water could be had to extinguish fires.  

Location 

In the early years, the fire department was quartered in the basement of city hall, located at Front Street and Broad Boulevard. In 1927, the fire department was moved from the basement of City Hall to its first station, Station 1 at 1924 Front Street, and established a staff that consisted of both paid members and volunteers. In 1932, the department was fully staffed by paid members. Station #2, at 2121 High Street, was built in 1949 to service the eastside of town, which at that time was isolated because of the railroad tracks dividing the city. Station #3, at 1601 Portage Trail, was added in 1959 due to expansion of the city westward after the war. Station #4, at 3089 Northampton Road, was added with the merger of Cuyahoga Falls and Northampton Township in 1986.

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1962 Portage Trail Fire Station

By the 1900's many changes had taken place. The fire department had outgrown the section of the 1882 Town Hall they had been allotted. Fire Station Number 1 on Front Street was built at Weller Court in 1927 and Fire Station Number 2 was built on High Street  at Portage Trail East in 1950  and Fire Station Number 3 was built at Portage Trail at North Haven Boulevard in 1959.

Front Street: Fire Station 1 in 2004