Year

Nation

Maker

Description

1924

U.S.

Stutz / New Stutz

"Baby Stutz" 350 gpm engine modified in 1930 by the New Stutz Fire Apparatus Company. Used in Havre De Grace Md  and Farmland, IN.

Stutz "Junior" Fire Engine. 1924.  The famous auto maker and racer also built fire engines.  Stutz began his fire engine business in Indianapolis in 1919 and built engines and ladder trucks until the Crash of 1929.  This rig was his smallest model. The town of Havre de Grace, Maryland bought it in 1924.  In 1935  they traded it to the New Stutz Fire Engine Company, successor to the original Stutz firm.  (This engine has also survived and is now on display at the Fire Museum of  Maryland). The New Stutz people replaced the original hose bed with a combined hose bed and 350 gallon booster tank and sold it to the Indiana town of Farmland, which used it until 1950.  In 1982 Mr. John Allen of Indianapolis donated the rig to the Hall of Flame.  It was in very bad shape, and lacked a motor. It has been refurbished to its 1935 appearance with a  1933 Continental drive train from a REO fire engine.  In 2001 the Farmland Fire Department donated the rig’s original bell, allowing us to bring the engine back to its 1924 appearance.  

U.S.

American La France

Type 400 Senior fire engine used in Burlington, IA

1938 American La France Type 400 Triple Combination Fire Engine.  The earliest motorized American fire engines, which appeared around 1910, used an engine called the T-Head:  a single row of four to six pistons which were cast in sets of two in the shape of a large “T”.  One side of the T contained valves for the fuel intake, and the other side had valves for the exhaust.  It was a simple matter to remove the valves, and the twin cylinders could also be disconnected from the engine’s crank case.   T-heads were easy to repair but operated at a fairly low RPM which made it difficult to match to the speed of a centrifugal pump. They were also expensive to build because of the difficulty of casting the pairs of cylinders without flaws.  During the late 1920s and early 30s new engine designs appeared—the L-Head and the V-Head.  L heads were more compact and employed less expensive cylinder heads.  V’s arranged their cylinders in two banks which greatly reduced the length of the crank shaft.  This engine uses a V-12 engine which was designed in 1931.   The American La France Type 400 appeared in 1934 as the nation’s most advanced fire engine, with powerful pumps and the huge and powerful V-12 engine.  Of equal impact was the engine’s design, which was based on the styling of the elegant Packard, Cadillac and Duisenberg automobiles of the 30s. Only 141 of the pricy rigs were built. This engine was used in Burlington, Iowa and was completely restored by Mr. Bernie Lowe.  Bernie donated the rig to the Hall of Flame in May of 2009.  

Mack Model 45S “District” Fire Engine.  1948.  During the 1930s many cities couldn't afford Mack’s pricey line of first class fire engines.  In 1938 Mack introduced a new line of affordable “District” fire engines.  Although based on a rugged Mack chassis, the Model 45 used a competent but lower priced Continental six cylinder engine and drive train, as well as a 500 gpm centrifugal pump.  The 45S was smaller than other Macks, but easily met the needs of small and medium sized departments.  It was built to compete with engines built on Ford, Chevrolet, and Dodge chassis. Its dual ignition  (battery and magneto) made it a first class engine, but its price tag competed with commercial chassis apparatus.  Mack sold a lot of District pumpers.  This rig was  built in 1948 for the volunteer fire department of Pierre, South Dakota.  In 2003 an Arizona businessman donated it to the museum.  Don Hale restored it to its original appearance and excellent mechanical condition.

American La France Type 700 Aerial Ladder Truck. 1955.  The volunteers of Baldwin, New York put this Model 700 aerial truck into service in their Long island town in 1955.  Twenty years later they sold it to the town of Lynnfield, Massachusetts.  In 2000 the town of Lynnfield donated the truck to the Hall of Flame.  Its 45 years of front line service is a testimony to the quality of its design and construction.  The truck was designed for a volunteer department, so it has a number of compartments for each firefighter’s helmet and equipment.  The truck would often be driven to a fire with just a few of its crew, with the remainder joining the truck at the scene, donning their turnouts, and going into action.  Its 75 foot aerial extension ladder could be put into action very quickly.  The ladder, or “stick” could be used to gain access to upper stories or a roof for ventilation and rescue.  It’s “ladder pipe” could also be connected to a 2 ½” hose and used to play large quantities of water from high above the ground.