| What do you collect? | Clothing + Fashion | Jewelry + Watches | Pottery + Glass | Furniture + Home | Art + Photos | Music + Movies | Toys + Games | Sports | Coins + Stamps | Paper + Books | Ads + Signs | Autos + Transport | Eras + Decades | All » |
The first fire engines in the U.S., called hand pumpers, were shipped to New York from England in the 1700s. Water was pumped from the tub by volunteers working long, parallel handles on the truck. American manufacturers produced similar hand pumpers until the early 1800s, when the steam pumper was developed, which supplied a continuous stream of water more effectively.
The earliest fire trucks were hand pulled to the scene, but by the mid-1800s, horses were used to draw the steam pumpers and running boards, and back steps were added to the vehicle. In 1906, the Radnor Fire Company in Wayne, PA began offering a pumper with two gasoline motors, bringing fire trucks into the modern age. ...
If you're interested in collecting vintage fire trucks or apparatus, some of the manufacturer names you'll want to explore include Waterous, Ahrens-Fox, Dedrick, Mack Trucks, Peter Pirsch and Sons, American LaFrance, New Stutz Fire Engine Company, Seagrave, Sutphen, Babcock, Snorkel, Spartan Chassis, Inc. and Emergency One. You may also want to consider starting with vintage model fire trucks, which take up considerably less space!

This incredibly comprehensive archive of LAFD ephemera and memorabilia is as good a history of 19th and 20th centur… [read review or visit site]

Great collection of forest fire prevention posters, multimedia, and memorabilia from the 1940s through the present.… [read review or visit site]

Don't let your dog near this site... hundreds of photos of fire hydrant collections from over 60 individual collect… [read review or visit site]
Got a site to suggest? Let us know.
Are we missing one? Tell us.
41 watchers32 watchers102 watchers51 watchers74 watchers12 watchersSource: Google News
I love to see all the Irish dancers with their little curls, and I especially enjoyed seeing the antique fire truck sponsored by Quigley's make its way down...Read more
425-5505 or 425-9261 14th annual Eureka Springs Spring Antique Show, through Sunday, Inn of the Ozarks Convention Center, Eureka Springs...Read more
The still-burning building was brought under control by 1 pm, but there was little hope for the gutted building that had contained antique furniture,...Read more
Look for the fire-truck displays to find Kent. "I've always liked toy cars and trucks for as long as I can remember," said Kent during a Tuesday interview...Read more
There teams will head around the Soldiers and Sailors Monument, reminiscent of the old tradition to parade champions and their trophy on a fire truck...Read more
That print will depict the Fourth of July in Cylinder, complete with fireworks in the park and the old '69 fire truck...Read more
The department received a call from the curators of the Ypsilanti Fire Museum, who had an antique ladder service truck with "Toledo" still visible on the...Read more
Yet far from being relegated to the garage, the oldest fire truck in this part of the country is still on active service with the fire department of the...Read more