Sesquicentennial of the Sauk City Fire Department Hon Tammy Baldwin

SESQUICENTENNIAL OF THE SAUK CITY FIRE DEPARTMENT-HON. TAMMY BALDWIN (Extensions of Remarks - May 17, 2004)

HON. TAMMY BALDWIN
OF WISCONSIN
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

Monday, May 17, 2004

Ms. BALDWIN. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize the Sesquicentennial of the Sauk City Fire Department. On May 23, the Sauk City Fire Department will celebrate its 150 years of service to community in a festival at the Saint Aloysius Church.

Sauk City was founded in 1854 as Wisconsin's first incorporated village. That same year a Sauk City merchant, J.J. Heller, had a small wooden fire engine built to protect his store from fire. Mr. Heller organized a meeting seeking assistance with the labor-intensive fire engine, making Sauk City home to Wisconsin's oldest volunteer fire department and oldest standing fire station.

During the 19th century, there was a great need for organized and responsive fire departments due to the fire prone stoves, lamps, and chimneys of that era. Furthermore, the business districts, composed of crowded rows of wooden buildings, were constantly at risk for a rapidly spreading fire. Sauk City was a pioneer for this region in stopping these devastating fires.

This is a wonderful success story about a community coming together to fill a need. In 1859, the fire department had a new locally made fire wagon. In order to raise money to purchase a bigger fire engine, the town and its several breweries organized a festival. The outpouring of support was so impressive at the first festival that it became a boisterous event. As the community grew and the technology advanced, the Sauk City Fire Department kept pace with new stations and fire engines. Today, the thirty-eight volunteer professional firefighters of the Sauk City Fire Department serve a 170 square mile area in south central Wisconsin.

While the sheer length of the Sauk City Fire Department's service to the community is worthy of praise, it boasts several other impressive qualities. The Sauk City Fire Department has done a remarkable job of restoring two of its locally manufactured fire engines from 1924 and 1928. It was also first fire department to use the two-toned Decot siren, which was created by Sauk City Fire Chief Ted Decot and became a nationwide commercial success.

Mr. Speaker, I join Fire Chief Michael Fehrenbach and all the residents of Sauk City in celebrating the Sauk City Fire Department's 150 years of service to the community.