The photos on this page are of apparatus that are no longer owned by the department. This page contains apparatus which were manufactured prior to 1950.
These photos are reduced-size or cropped thumbnails. Click any photo with a border to see the full-sized image.
The Hedberg Volunteers, 1936. Chief J.N. Hedberg stands on the rear of the Chief's car at left. The pumper was one of the few Pierce-Arrow fire engines that ever existed. As a community service, as well as to publicize his business, Hedberg conceived the idea in 1930 of forming his own volunteer fire department to offer some protection to the unincorporated rural areas around San Jose. Prior to the formation of the County Central Fire District, such areas had no coverage at all.
Hedberg's own employees living near his shop became the first volunteers. They built their own pumper, in the Hedberg shop, which lasted about six years; it had to be dragged to its last fire. Its replacement was another Hedberg hybrid, one of the only Pierce-Arrow fire engines ever built (Milwaukee had one for some years during the 1920s). For many years, rural fires on San Jose's outskirts were fought by "The Hedberg Volunteer," who oftentimes arrived too late to do much good, but nonetheless became a local institution.
Since about the late 1930s, the Hedberg Volunteers disappeared from the local scene. Hedberg died in 1955, and his shop buildings on the Guadalupe Creek at 321 West Reed St, San Jose, became overgrown with weeds and vines.
Chemical Wagon? Ford Model T? Date unknown.
Engine, 1920s? Date unknown.
Patrol 1 was a 1947 6 cylinder International pickup 1/2 ton, carrying 100 gallons of water and a 5gpm high pressure pump. This vehicle was used by then Assistant Chief Luhring. Assistant Chief Turner had a Dodge Powerwagon equipped the same for his use. Photo taken 7 Sep 1949.
This is a 1936 White, used as a Civil Defense rescue unit in the 1950s and 1960s. Date unknown.
This ex-military 1946 Dodge 4x4 was used as a brush fire rig.
Ths 1948 White/Van Pelt had a 500gpm pump, a 40gpm high-pressure pump, and a 500 gallon tank. It was eventually sold to Davis, California, in whos livery it is shown here.
Engine 4, a 1948 White/Van Pelt, during a pump test. Date unknown.
Engine 4, shown in a pre-delivery photo by the P. E. Van Pelt fire apparatus & equipment company, Oakdale, CA. This rig was nicknamed "The Big Belch", because after it's muffler dropped off, it was permanently replaced by a large piece of pipe, creating a VERY loud exhaust.
From a San Jose News clipping dated 6 December 1947:
The two fire trucks pictured above are combination high pressure fog fire fighters built for the Central Fire Protection District of Santa Clara County by Bean-Cutler Division of Food Machinery Corporation. Harry Engman of Food Machinery, left, turns over the equipment fo Henry Lingua, Chief of the County Fire Protection, while Commissioners, left to right, M.E. McCollam, C.W. Zanker, H.O. Fiebig and J.A. Mirrasou, look on.
Not named in the article are FFs Burroughs (behind left engine) and Ackley (behind Engine 1, right).
Assistant Chief Fred Luhring prepares to set up the floodlight unit. The unit was equipped with a generator and six 500-watt flood lamps. Photo from a4 July 1948 San Jose Mercury News article.
An early photo of one of County Fire's 2000 gallon tankers. At the wheel is Chief Henry C. Lingua, speaking with drill master Orrin McAbee (former Chief of the Cottage Grove volunteer department), left, and FF Bruce Gammon, engine driver, right. Photo from a 4 July 1948 San Jose Mercury News article.
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