|
A History of Reliance Fire Company No. 1
In the early years of this century, a new era in firefighting opened through the invention of the automobile. Firemen were slow to recognize it, just as they had been slow in accepting the horse, and automobiles were first used only to transport men to the fire while engines remained much as they had been--horse drawn. Anyone with an aesthetic eye could not fashion replacing the graceful fire horse with a noisy gasoline engine.
While this struggle continued in the larger cities, Vineland was faced with a struggle against the human element rather than machine. The budding town had grown and matured much and in 1915 a small group of men gathered together and decided that Vineland should have a larger fire department, thus giving the town better fire protection.
The Pioneer Fire Company had its full quota, so the only alternative was to form a new company. This was not easy. It was frowned upon by many; even the Borough Officials of that time refused to recognize the new group as a fire company. They were only supportive of Pioneer which was now very well known and established in the community. After all, the town had grown and experienced much with the men of Pioneer.
These unpopular men were unwavering in their purpose and with the help and support of the late Royal P. Tuller, all the necessary legal papers were drawn and the Reliance Fire Company was born.
With lack of proper equipment, scarce finances and the criticism of those bitterly opposed to the new company, the early members of Reliance struggled down a rough and burdensome path. But their courage in the belief that this was right and good for the town was rewarded. They began taking in new members which brought encouragement and energy to continue despite all handicaps. Hamilton Gebhart was named first Chief and the little fire company located in the old Palace Garage building (currently J.C. Penny Company) made itself a significant part of the city.
One of the first fires Reliance responded to was at the Kimball and Prince Lumber Company located on South East Boulevard and Almond Street. Here they had to use the little hose wagon found on the premises. It was not easy to call oneself a fire company having no equipment with which to fight fires. They were steadfast and with the help of the late G.B. D'Ippolito and Nicholas D'Pasquale, who signed a note, Vineland's first motorized firefighting equipment was bought in 1916. This was a gasoline powered chemical engine.
The early prejudice against the gasoline powered engines did not affect the men of Reliance. On the contrary, they had great pride in their first engine. The old Brockway nicknamed the "Little Red Wagon" meant a great deal to those men determined to bring better fire protection to the Borough of Vineland and it paved the way for the modern trucks in use throughout the city today.
Everything was not settled with the buying of a truck. There was still the overdue note. Mr. Roy Brooks, a member of Reliance, took the truck everyday and made house to house visits for funds.
During those early years, distress and mirth both played their parts. There was the first parade held on a hot Fourth of July with members of Reliance marching up Landis Avenue clothed in their rubber coats and helmets. John Pennino led the company carrying a large bouquet of flowers.
Reliance went in dept time and time again, but fate was always kind. The men bought their own uniforms, coats, boots, helmets and two trucks. Later, the two trucks were turned over to the Borough of Vineland for $1.00. This allowed Reliance to be funded by the city and they then received their fire hall on South Sixth Street.
Rivalry
While the forming of Reliance in the early 1900's afforded Vineland with greater fire protection, it also created a fierce rivalry between the two companies.
In a day almost lacking in athletic competition and social contests, the incidents of firefighting made up the void for many men. At first the volunteer firemen wanted merely to extinguish the fire; then they wanted to do so before their rival. When a man devoted the major portion of his time and effort to his company, he wanted to be sure that other companies were regarded in an inferior light. Several means were used to keep one's adversaries form getting there first. Some of these were street fighting or racing one's engines on the more smoothly surfaced sidewalks, at a great risk to pedestrians; or sounding false alarms to weary one's rivals so they could not run so swiftly to a genuine fire, the later crew was said to be "passed" and this was a feared disgrace.
This rivalry continued between Pioneer and Reliance until the late thirties when it subsided somewhat. In 1948, under the Fire Commissioners Ordinace, the two companies merged.
|
Brief History
History Written By Linda M. Kandle in 1976.
|
