PHOTOS COURTESY OF FIFE HISTORY MUSEUM

The first Fife firefighters included, from left to right, Paul “Bud” Merritt, Pete Vogel, Bert Kepka, Bob Bevegni, Earl Rees, Perry Reiter, Bob Bulleri, Charlie Babbitt, Guido Bini, Leo Parodi, Leo Bulleri, Joe Vraves, Frank Schnider, Dave Hulcey, Pinky Johnson and Frank Laviola.

Fire department celebrates 60 years

By Meghan Erkkinen

By meghan erkkinen

Staff Writer

These days, Fife residents take comfort in the fact that, in an emergency, their firefighters are only a phone call away. But in the early 1940s, that was not the case for the city’s residents. Back then – before Fife was even a city – residents were reliant on the help of their neighbors and neighboring communities to help out in case of an emergency.

Residents certainly felt the negative effects of not having their own firefighters.

In 1934, for example, the Tacoma Public Works Department had to help residents put out a large fire at Andre’s Market Warehouse on Pacific Highway. In 1935, eight businesses and homes were destroyed along the city’s main intersection, which is today 20th Street and 54th Avenue. It was these large-scale fires, and others, that prompted Fife residents to consider establishing their own fire department.

“Eventually the community said we needed to do something to save our homes,” said Jack Murrey, who worked as a firefighter in Fife for 15 years, beginning in 1955, and served as fire chief for eight years. Murrey’s parents’ house was one of the ones destroyed in the 1935 fire.

After about four years of serious discussion, the Fife Fire Department was established in 1948, with a budget of $16,000.

The original department consisted entirely of volunteers. To qualify for insurance, the department needed at least 25 volunteers, so some of the founding citizens set out to sign up whomever they could.

“We had a few duds there, but we got 25,” said 83-year-old Frank Schnider, the only remaining member of the 25 original firefighters.

The fire department bought an old church building and transformed it into the first fire station. They purchased their first fire truck, a 1946 Ford. The first few years were not without challenges.

Money was the biggest challenge, but communications were also a challenge. The department’s communication system included only a phone to begin. In many cases, residents would call a firefighter’s wife, and she would sound the alarm. In those days, there were only six main streets in the city.

Furthermore, because almost all of the men had no experience fighting fires, it was a challenge to learn about how a fire department worked.

“We had to learn the ins and outs of the fire department,” Murrey said.

Working as a volunteer at a small department also presented its own unique challenges. Most of the volunteers had jobs that could be difficult to leave at a minute’s notice. And because the volunteers often came in from different directions, each had to be an expert in a variety of skills.

“When you’re in a big department, you have one job…Being a volunteer, if you’re the first one there, you have to know a little bit of everything,” said Carl Spane, who joined the department in 1951. “It’s a lot harder than most people realize.”

To address the challenge faced by the lack of funds, the wives of many of the firefighters – who formed the Sparkettes – organized a yearly Firemen’s Ball to raise money to buy equipment. The first ball was held in 1949.

The Sparkettes played a major role in the fire department, doing everything from answering calls and sounding the alarm to bringing hot coffee to the scene of a fire.

Over the first decade of its existence, the fire department grew, adding two new trucks and building a new facility just east of the original building. The residents of Fife came to depend on the support the volunteers gave them during their times of crisis.

The firefighters fought several major fires, including one in August 1953 that destroyed the Duffle Bag, a military outlet store. A scarcity of water hindered firefighters combating the flames.

In February 1957, Fife became a city. According to Schnider, who would become one of the city’s first council members, the firefighters played a key role in the city’s incorporation.

“These are the fellows who are responsible for changing the whole area,” he said. Many of the firefighters and the Sparkettes went door-to-door, encouraging people to support incorporation. Citizens voted in favor of incorporating by seven votes.

The fire department continued to evolve, overcoming old challenges and facing new ones. In November 1961, Murrey was appointed fire chief pro tem. In January 1964, the city faced what is still the biggest fire in its history.

The former Century Ball-room, where the Firemen’s Balls were previously held, caught fire shortly after 7 p.m. one night. Flames swept the length of the building just under the roofline and reached heights of 20 to 30 feet, visible for miles away. The fire burned nine businesses housed on the site, including IGA Market, Fuji’s 10-Cent Store and the Fife City Hall. (Fortunately, the city’s records were housed elsewhere.)

The ballroom, built in 1934 and located just north of the Poodle Dog, previously attracted thousands of people, who came to listen and dance to some of the most famous big bands in the country. With the shift to rock and roll, the building was transformed to accommodate businesses.

In January 1969, a fire nearly destroyed another notable building in the city. The Daffodil Motel, located along Pacific Highway, caught fire early one morning. A total of 100 men from seven different fire departments fought the fire. Oddly enough, the fire occurred just hours after that year’s Firemen’s Ball.

Over the years, the department slowly began to transition from a volunteer-based organization to paid firefighters. In the 1990s, the department was annexed into the Tacoma Fire Department to offer increased services to the citizens of Fife.

Although the department has changed since it first came to be, veterans remember fondly their experiences.

“They are all still my best friends. We get together every week almost,” Spane said of the men he served with. “The friendship is lasting.”

Spane also said there was something special about the voluntary nature of the job.

“You weren’t in it for the money,” he said. “It was strictly volunteering and giving back to your community.”

This year is the Fife fire department’s 60th anniversary. In commemoration, the Fife History Museum has an exhibit detailing the history of the department, beginning with how it got started and continuing through the years of its existence.

“The purpose of the exhibit is first to honor the first firefighters and their wives who served the community, and second, to show…how did it start here?”

The exhibit includes memorabilia, lots of photos and a detailed timeline. Visitors can also flip through a log of all the fires that happened in the city.

The museum is located at 2820 54th Ave. E. in Fife. It is open Wednesday, Saturday and  Sunday from 1-5 p.m.For more information, call (253) 896-4710. To arrange a tour at a different time, call Louise Hospenthal at (253) 896-2593.

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