My dad started with Sullivan Fire Department in 1959, back when the fire station was located in the basement of City Hall…

 

 

 

..back when firefighters were alerted to a fire call by the sound of two fire sirens piercing the air, back when fire gear consisted of only white coveralls and hip fire boots, and back when you were lucky if three or four firemen showed up and one went to the fire station and drove the truck. He remembers a few things from the early days…backing the twins, the two Towers pumpers built a year apart in the 50`s and how they were his favorite trucks to drive, cause they held the roads so well especially driving through Meramac State Park on Hwy 185 South….

 

 

 

 

 

 

…he also remembers backing the trucks into the bays at City Hall, backing up very slowly and carefully because the bay doors were a tight squeeze back then….City Hall Station housed not only the two twins, but the 1941 GMC pumper and the 1929 General pumper, which was a reserve pumper and Sullivan`s first motorized pumper, and red colored as well. After that, the trucks were painted white for several years. It was only in the 80`s that we later returned to the red color for fire trucks in Sullivan.

Back in those days, the Fire Department was a city department and operated on a shoestring budget with the city paying all the bills and buying all the trucks and equipment. Back then, the Fire Department also held family and job and military service in high regard, and if a fireman couldnt show up for one of those reasons, it wasnt held against him. During that time, Jim drove a tractor trailer auto carrier for Complete Auto Transit, and delivered new Chevrolet cars and pickups all over Missouri and Arkansas to Chevrolet dealers, a job that Bill Green helped him get. Bill also talked him into joining the Fire Department back then as well. In 1961, Complete Auto temporarily transferred him and his family to Jackson, Mississippi, and a year later, transferred him back to Sullivan. Jim and Anna had purchased a house from Keith Cline before they left and kept the residence in Sullivan while gone, even returning a few months during the summer for model changes and holidays, so their residency was maintained in Sullivan while they were gone. While he was gone for the job, the Fire Department maintained his membership as well, noting him as absent on fire calls and meetings, just as if he was on family or military leave.

Fireman also worked two carnivals each summer back in the early days, the Firemen`s Picnic having started in the 1940`s and held in June each summer, followed by the Auxiliary Carnival in August before school started back up. Firemen would fry those locally famous fish sandwiches and use the money to help families burned out of their homes…

 

 

 

Firemen also put on the fireworks display held by the City of Sullivan, held for many years at the Sullivan Golf Course and then later at the Sullivan High School Football Field….

 

 

 

 

This event was set up and operated by Bill Green, who would hand select a crew of firemen each year to help him set up the event, light the fuses, and tear it back down and clean it back up afterwards.  The City of Sullivan was one of a few cities back then that even had a fireworks display and people from far and wide would travel just to watch the thirty minute show.

Another annual duty seriously undertaken by the firemen back then, was the testing of all hoselines on the trucks, this event often took up a whole day or weekend and usually a department dinner was held afterwards….

 

 

 

Dinners at the fire station were a good memory, as there were several good cooks among the wives of the firemen and there were always several dishes of good food and desserts there, and dinners were well attended by the families of firemen….

 

 

 

Jim also went to the Missouri State Fair in August, along with Bill Green and Bill Whitacre, and worked on the all volunteer fire department up there for a few days of the ten day operation, usually the three worked on the race track crew, standing back to back on the track curves and keeping a watchful eye on the race car drivers for any sign of crash or fire.

In 1962 when Jim and Anna returned permanently to the Sullivan area, the Fire Department had moved to the former Campbell Chevrolet Garage, after the City purchased the building and split it up, the south half of the building to the Street Department and the north half including the garage, to the Fire Department, four bays, three with doors. Just prior to their move back, the department had traded in the 1941 GMC pumper for a new truck, a 1962 Chevrolet pumper from Towers Fire Apparatus. This truck served the department and district for many years, one of the trucks that was taken to the Missouri State Fair in the 1980`s  for duty there as well.

 

 

 

In 1964, Jim became an agent for American Family Insurance and his office was out of his home on Vine Street near the Golf Course. Firemen Bill Green and Bill Whitacre lived on either side of the Johnson residence.

In 1965, the Sullivan Rescue Squad was formed for all types of rescues, whether on land or water. The City purchased a used step van and rescue equipment for the department as well as several sets of heavy black fire coats and air bottles and masks. A Fire Boat was purchased a few years later as well.

 

 

 

 

Also in 1965, the first twin, the 1951 Chevrolet pumper, was traded in for a 1965 GMC Pumper from Towers, almost identical to the 1962 Chevrolet Pumper except for the grill.

In 1969, during a fish fry held at Jim`s residence for friends including City Marshal Jerry Umfleet and family, and Trooper Oscar Armfield and family, James and the other children were playing at the east side of the house when they noticed flames inside the side door of Bill Green`s residence. The children ran to the garage and alerted the men inside of the fire next door. Jim entered the Green residence and found a skillet of grease on fire on the stove. Unable to find anything with which to extinguish the fire, he wrapped several towels around the handle and carried the skillet to the door. In the process, hot grease from the skillet splashed up on Jim`s arms and he was severely burned on both arms with second and third degree burns. He was immediately transported to Sullivan Community Hospital by City Marshal Jerry Umfleet and Trooper Armfield, where he received treatment and skin grafting for his burns for the next four weeks, and then he recovered at home for six months afterward.

For several years, Jim served as an officer of different ranks, and as a Captain during the early 70`s, elected to the offices by the firemen at annual elections, and was very active in responding to fires and rescue calls, trainings, work details, and meetings. One of the larger fires during his time on the department in the early years occurred in 1975 at the Zeno`s Motel, located on the North Service Road next to the drive in theatre, now known as Family Motor Inn. The west wing of the motel complex caught fire that night and burned to the ground, believed to have been caused by arson.

Another large fire in the early 70`s occurred in 1974 at the former Shell Station Cafe, turned into an Antique Shop, located at the intersection of Elmont Road and the Highway 66….

 

 

 

 

 

A few years later, with arson fast becoming a serious crime in the area, an arson investigation squad was soon formed by Barry West, an investigator hired by the Franklin County Prosecutors Office, and a few firemen were recruited from each department in the county and trained to investigate fires of suspicious nature. Jim was part of the original investigative squad formed and responded for many years to several fires in the county area.

I joined the department in 1974 as a junior fireman, but even before that was responding to fire calls with my dad. I remember going to a large house fire one night at the Turnipseed Farm off Sappington Bridge Road, in an area that later became known as the Turnipseed Subdivision, and I photographed the house completely involved in fire, as my dad and another fireman worked to set up hoselines and lights…Bob Golatka arrived in his white coveralls just as I snapped the photo of the house on fire...

 

 

 

…and I remember another fire where we rolled up early one morning at a farm to find the house fully involved in fire and I photographed Jim Taylor fighting the fire alone with no gear on at all….

 

 

 

…I think this is one of the stark differences between the old days when my dad started on the department, and the department as it is now…there was little fire gear available back then as there is now, and the quality of what they had back then is way different than it is now, but the ability of the Sullivan firefighters back then to do more with less, is what really stands out in my mind. In light of today`s advances in equipment and technology, they may not have had much, but they were able to work through their adversities and overcome and make things work, and they didnt complain about it either, they didnt sit around and whine about what they didnt have, they just made do with what they did have.

In 1976, they again overcame adversity and approached the voters in the city limits of Sullivan and Oak Grove, as well as the unincorporated areas of Stanton, Japan, and surrounding areas, and convinced them to approve the formation of the Sullivan Fire Protection District, as well as approve a tax rate and the election of three board members, Bill Green, Roy Baldwin, and Ed Hardy.

It was at this time that Ed Hardy stepped down from the office of Fire Chief, and Jack Cuneio, was promptly elected by the firemen as the next Fire Chief. Jim was elected as his Assistant Chief. From this point on, a department bylaw was created and passed that no Chief would serve longer than a two year term, providing additional firefighters an opportunity to serve as Chief if they desired and if elected to the office by the membership.

One of the larger house fires in 1976, was the Craig House on Sapsucker Road just north of Elmont Road, and heavy black smoke issued from the two story wood frame house on arrival. One of my classmates and friends, Ron Whitford, was with me that day and rode out to the fire with my dad and I, and helped me hand out fire coats to the firemen there…

 

 

 

…and my dad is walking toward the house wearing a black coat and white helmet in the next photo…these photos were taken by the TriCounty News reporter that day….

 

 

…I remember there was an upright propane tank on the side of the house that got a bit hot and became involved in the house fire eventually…I remember Ron and I dove to the ground behind one of the fire trucks when that bottle popped off, and soon after that, the house became fully involved….

 

 

 

Another large house fire in 1976, was the St Louis University owned house for the Jesuit Priesthood, a two story wood frame home out north of Stanton at the end of Hwy JJ. I cant remember how the fire got started, but the home was full of yellow pine paneling which was quite well aged and burned very hot. The house was well involved on arrival and despite aggressive efforts to attack the fire, it was way too hot to enter….

 

 

 

 

…so firefighters tried to attack it from outside on a ladder…my dad is directing their efforts at the base of the ladder….

 

 

 

It was also during this time that the Fire Department started utilizing inch and a half hoselines to attack structure fires, getting away from the booster or red lines for everything.

The District Board worked on getting the department their first tanker, a 1976 Ford chassis which carried 2,000 gallons of water in an old Carnation Milk Tank fitted to the chassis, seen here in a parade, and the department officers helped spec out the truck….

 

 

 

 

During this time, the District Board also worked with the Missouri Conservation Department to secure several old jeeps for brush trucks, which were housed in the fourth bay of the fire station……

 

 

 

In 1978, Jim was elected Chief and served his two year term, with Leroy Spradling as his Assistant Chief the first year and Bob Marsh the second year. During his term as Chief, Jim called for  the formation of the new Junior Fire Department, opened to any young men,  14 to 18 years of age, who wished to join the fire department and help the firefighters, as well as the formation of the junior firettes, open to young ladies,  14 to 18 years of age, who wished to join the Firettes Auxiliary and help support their operations after fire calls and during the carnival operations. Prior to this time, the Junior Fireman Program was only open to the immediate relatives of active firefighters.

During his tenure as Chief, Jim also arranged for Nick Sacco, Chief of the Eureka Fire District, to come to the Sullivan Fire Station and provide training classes one night each week, similar to content in present day Firefighter One Classes.

Jim also accepted the donation of an air generator trailer from the Conservation Department and guided the department in retrofitting it to fill air bottles at the scenes of large fires and the supply bottles at the fire station as well. Jim worked closely with the Conservation Department , instrumental in guiding the fire department to support the state wide campaign for one eighth cent sales tax, and working closely with Mike Reavis for the Matching Funds Grant the Conservation Department makes available to departments each year….

 

 

 

Mike Reavis was a very good friend of the Sullivan Fire District and Department…he introduced us to Smokey Bear, who became yet another good friend of the department and district, and Mike and Smokey showed up at several department events back in the day to lend their support to the department. Here Jim is seen riding the Ferris Wheel with Smokey at one of the many carnivals held during the 70`s…

 

 

 

Here is a large two story frame farmhouse that caught fire at the corner of Highways J and H near Japan…Jim is silhouetted in the middle of the photo directing firefighters to cool down the propane tank near the house…

 

 

 

 

 

Not all house fires were about fire and smoke though, sometimes the dangers were hidden in the smoke and darkness, like this home on the north side of Bourbon, who called for help from the Sullivan Fire District, requesting a tanker and manpower both. Sullivan responded with the new tanker and a crew of seven firefighters who donned their gear and airpacks and entered the house through the basement door…

 

 

 

…and extinguished the fire. Bourbon was shorthanded that day on manpower and they were exhausted on arrival, but pitched in and helped to ventilate the home once the fire was out…when the smoke lifted in the basement, the firefighters found themselves surrounded by hundreds of snakes of all types in glass aquariums…the snakes had perished by smoke inhalation and luckily we didnt have any means to revive them. The homeowner was a snake collector and had many types of snakes in the basement, including poisonous snakes ! There sure were a lot of wide eyes in there when the smoke lifted !!

Here are a few photos of events during my dad`s term as Chief of the department….

 

 

 

 

 

…here above and below, working with an instructor from the Missouri Fire and Rescue Training out of Mizzou, firefighters were able to learn the many capabilities of the Jaws of Life and rescue tools purchased by the district in 1978…

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Hose testing above and Hose training below....

 

 

 

 

…and working with the new junior firefighters on community relations on Clark Street, allowing a property owner to burn the remains of the old P n Hirsch building, where Central Market`s parking lot is now located…

 

 

 

Dad and Bob Marsh promising they were good at the Christmas Dinner….

 

 

 

 

 

Above the group of firefighters and junior firefighters at the Christmas Party in 1978 during my dad`s first year as Chief and his officers in the photo below…

 

 

 

The Christmas Party in 1978 was also special for another reason, the department celebrated its 50th anniversary and the Honorary firefighters were recognized for their many years of service and contributions to the department.

 

 

 

Below, helping the Sullivan Police Department divers in recovering a stolen police car and property at the Sullivan City Lake….

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

…and I asked Dad if he remembered this next one….

 

 

 

…and he only faintly remembered getting the jeep stuck in the brushy field off Hwy H behind the Wesleyan Church on a brush fire…that`s Cleo Cline with the tree on his shoulder trying to help lift the jeep up on the side…I cant remember who the two younger guys are, that are lifting on that tree.

 

 

Here Dad waits on Pumper 803 to arrive for the car fire….

 

 

 

 

Midwest Shoe Fire early morning on Springfield Avenue….

 

 

 

 

 

This was an early morning house fire at the corner of Park Street and Blair Street, and there were firefighters away at fire school when this one occurred, but you saw alot of teamwork at this one, and Sullivan FD worked this fire alone, no help was called in….

 

 

 

This next set of photos shows a call we received while several firefighters were in church…I remember jumping up and leaving church and going to the fire station with several others. On arrival, we discovered it was a house fully engulfed with a heavy volume of fire from the front half of the house in Oak Grove Village…

 

 

 

…this was an accidental fire, a resident starting a fire in a wood stove using a very flammable fuel mix, that literally exploded in the face of the person that lit the fire. Besides the house being heavily damaged by the intense fire, a super nice local boy suffered burns from this fire but made a complete recovery and went on to become a sensation from this area.

 

 

 

 

…and here is an A frame house in Miramigoa Park that caught fire and presented several problems for firefighters on arrival, one of them the heavy volume of fire that greeted firefighters…

 

 

 

Dad is seen here directing firefighters using a large diameter hoseline to attack the fire…

 

 

 

Below he is shown carving on a roast hog for a department dinner….

 

 

 

 

and here he and Kenny Green pay Santa a visit in 1979….

 

 

Shortly after finishing his two year term as Chief, Jim ran against Ed Hardy for a seat on the Board of Directors of the District and won, the beginning of more than a  fourteen year span of service on the Board of Directors, many years as Board President.  During his tenure on the Board, the Sullivan Fire Department saw many changes in equipment, personnel, and policies.

This timeline included the following highlights :

 

1980 — Purchase of land at 10 South Church Street

1981 — Purchase of Rescue Squad and City Pumper

 

 

 

1981 — Construction started on Station One, 10 S Church

 

 

 

 

 

1982  — Sullivan Fire Department moves to Station One.

 

 

 

1983 — Purchase of a new Jeep for Brush Fires.

Took possession of a former Air Force Water Tanker through the Missouri Conservation Department, carries 5,000 gallons of water…it was referred to as Mable and retrofitted with a newer pump.

1984 — Purchase of Top Kick GMC Pumper from Towers.

 

 

 

Purchase of land and construction began for Station Two at Stanton, and Station Three at Japan.

Purchased the truck chassis of the Bourbon Roller Mill and retrofitted with a 3,000 gallon tank and new pump, housed at Station Two.

 

 

 

1984  — Windmill Restaurant Fire in Stanton

In the early evening hours with the restaurant half full of diners, a thunderstorm rolled through the area and a bolt of lightning struck the building, setting fire to an area above the kitchen in the open airspace above the ceiling, which was not detected by employees or patrons inside the building for several minutes. By the time the fire was detected and the alarm dispatched, the fire had gained a strong foothold in the open space above the kitchen and restaurant, and heavy rolling fire greeted firefighters on arrival….

 

 

 Heavy fire had already penetrated the roof on the east end of the massive building and it was apparent the fire was heavy in the kitchen area as well….

 

 

 

As Roy Baldwin arrived on scene with Pumper 804, Jim and another firefighter quickly ran to the fire side and pulled two preconnect hoselines and stretched them out as other firefighters arrived and prepared to fight fire….

 

 

 

 As Roy charged the lines at the pump panel, Jim began pulling supply lines from the back of the pumper, anticipating tanker connections…Cran Spindler is shown arriving as well and began assisting by helping Jim pull hose off the pumper as well…

 

 

 

Within minutes, Tom Henson and two other firefighters arrived, packed up,  and began attacking the east end of the building from outside, while Command requested a second and third alarm for the fire….

 

 

 

 

Since the fire had not yet reached across to the front doors, Tom decided to try an interior attack through the front doors…he and Jim pulled a large diameter hoseline from Pumper 804…. fitted it with a large flow nozzle, and entered the double front doors. About twenty feet inside the door, Tom raised a ceiling panel and heavy fire was observed rolling across the vast open air space above the ceiling line…it was decided to back out of the building and begin a defensive exterior attack instead.….and Sullivan firefighters battled the heavy fire while help from fire departments surrounding Sullivan raced to the scene to assist, answering second and third alarms for assistance.

 

 

 

 

 

Firefighters were amazed with the speed of the fire that raced across the massive building, and shortly after darkness fell, the fire was beginning to get a foothold on the windmill tower itself…

 

 

 

 

...and as firefighters from Union to Cuba areas responded to the scene, they reported seeing flames high in the air from their areas…firefighters mounted a deck gun attack from the parking lot in an effort to gain control of the tower fire…

 

 

 

…however, attempts to stop the growing fire with deck guns failed and the fire grew in intensity….tankers were shuttling water from the large diameter line hydrants along the South Service Road in Sullivan as well as the Meramac River at Meramac Caverns.

 

 

 

…by now the back of the building was fully consumed by fire as well as half of the tower….

 

 

 

…and then the tower was soon totally engulfed in fire and it became a waiting game as fire crews backed away to safe positions….

 

 

 

 

 

 

…while waiting for the inevitable to happen….

 

 

 

…this became one of the biggest alarms of Dad`s time on the department as well as mine, the equivalent of a five alarm fire and a massive tanker shuttle ensued. The building was a total loss and was never rebuilt.

 

1985 — The District Board approved a training program.

 

A new training program was approved by the District Board and James was appointed by the Board as the Training Officer, with a sizeable budget allowed for classes and live burn exercises. Instructors came in from all over the state to provide classroom instruction followed up by live exercises. In the first three years, over 1000 hours of training were offered and provided.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

1986 — Purchase of a five man Smeal Pumper, now 844.

This truck seated five firefighters and was formerly used by the Louisiana State University Fire Academy, carried 900 gallons of water and has a Waterous two stage pump. First red pumper purchased by the district and first pumper with a Waterous pump. Housed at Station Five now, 844.

1987 — Approved building of a smoke house Station One.

This was a two story smoke house built with in house labor at a tremendous savings to the district, upstairs above the meeting room and offices, and utilized by many firefighters and junior firefighters from departments all over the state for many years until recently when it was dismantled to make a day room for paid fire crews. However live burns and LP Gas training exercises could never be completely replaced by a simple smokehouse, so training programs were utilized that included a little bit of both as much as possible.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

1996 — Purchase of Sutphen 75 foot Ladder Truck, 852.

After a brief hiatus from the District Board, Jim rejoined to complete the term of Kenny Gross, who left the board due to his full time job. The Ladder Truck is still in service and considered one of the best trucks purchased by the district, housed currently in Station Five.

 

 

 

On Sunday, April 29th, 2012, the Sullivan Fire Protection District honored my dad for over fifty years of service to the department and district and dedicated Pumper 854 to him. The ceremony at Sullivan Station Five started with the posting of the colors by the Sullivan Fire Department Honor Guard….

 

 

 

…and then State Representative Dave Schatz presented Dad with a Missouri House Proclamation for over fifty years of dedicated service to the district….

 

 

 

 

 

…followed by Rodger Windel, Missouri State Fire Marshal, who presented Dad with a certificate from the State Fire Marshal`s office for fifty years of service assisting with fire investigations, and then JT Hardy, Administrator for the City of Sullivan, presented Dad with a proclamation from the City Council of Sullivan, for over fifty years of service to the Sullivan Fire Department and citizens of Sullivan. Due to the placement of the flags, in close proximity to the podium, I wasnt able to get photos of Rodger or JT making their presentations.  Mike Dace and Jim Eaton also gave some brief talks about Dad`s history and years of service to the department and district board….

 

 

 

…and then the attached plaque was unveiled showing Pumper 854 dedicated to Jim.

 

 

 

…followed up with Dad giving a brief speech and thanking his family and friends for their support. The ceremony was followed up with Scott Perry of Temple Baptist Church giving the invocation prayer and then the Color Guard retired the colors…

 

 

 

Auxiliary members cut the cake….

 

 

 

…while photos were taken of Dad and Mom with his proclamation plaques next to the pumper and the dedication plaque by Jim Bartle with the Sullivan Independent News…

 

 

…and here is the dedication plaque on the truck….