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Deluge Hose Company celebrates 150 years
SUBMITTED PHOTO Members of the Deluge Hose Co. No. 1 celebrated its 150th anniversary celebration Saturday, May 30 at the Newark Elks Club.
MILESTONE: Fire company volunteers
By JOHN ZORNOW NEWARK - Before Newark's first fire company was formed on May 26, 1859, every able hand turned out to fight a fire if one broke out. Originally named 'Quickstop,' the volunteer company changed its name to Deluge Hose Company the following month. Now, a century and a half later, the company celebrated 150 years of service during a packed-house event last Saturday (May 30) at the Newark Elks Club. 'A proud and illustrious past,' Newark Mayor Peter Blandino said of the company while assuring members that the village board is committed to supplying them with the latest in equipment to fight fires. Charles Leach, president of the state's Northern Central Volunteer Fire Association, honored the company with a plaque. 'This is quite an achievement, and we congratulate the Deluge Hose Company on their first 150 years of service to Newark,' Leach said. The 50 charter members of the Deluge Hose Company came from a wide range of occupations manufacturers, businessmen, store owners and hotel owners. The company grew rapidly, and its first piece of equipment - a bowing pumper was purchased in September of 1859. A hose cart followed in March 1860; it was purchased from member R.H. Groat, who built the cart at his blacksmith shop at Groat's Corners. At that time, all of the company's equipment was moved by hand to fires until about 1896. It was then that Deluge Hose Chief Michael J. 'Mick' Flynn, who served as chief for 21 years, asked the Village Board to buy horses that would pull the equipment to fires. Flynn wasn't able to convince the trustees to purchase horses - that is, until the fire alarm rang. He then enlisted the board members to haul the equipment to the scene of the blaze. Exhausted, the board members returned to their meeting and voted to purchase the horses. Motorized equipment - an American LaFrance 750- gallon-per-minute pumper followed in 1919. In 1940, with World War II clouds on the horizon, the village obtained a Peter Pirsch pumper just before all civilian manufacturing was used to make war goods. The pumper served until 1963. It was the Peter Pirsch pumper that graced the lawn of the Newark Elks Club last Saturday for the anniversary banquet. The pumper, now owned by the Benton Fire Department in Yates County, brought back memories for many, including Alice Lyman Kitchen, who grew up in the old city hall fire house. Her father, Art Lyman, a member of the Deluge Hose Company, was Newark's last resident fire driver. He was supplied with an apartment on the second floor of the fire house, complete with a brass pole to make a quick trip down to the engine room. Copyright
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