PCFD Timeline

 

  • 1841 - The “Courthouse Disaster” where building materials were destroyed, delaying the completion of the courthouse till 1852 gave rise to the formation of the first Painesville Fire Company in 1841, comprised of 50 men, a rotary hand engine and a hose cart.
  • 1843 - The Painesville Fire Company provided mutual aid to the Cleveland Fire Department. Equipment was transported via flatbed rail cars to and from Cleveland, Ohio.
  • 1849 - Fire Engine Company #2 was founded.
  • 1856 - Fire Engine Company #3 was founded.
  • 1857 - The entire southern business district located on Main Street was destroyed. The loss was estimated at $100,000 or 2.89 million dollars in today’s money.
  • 1871 - The Painesville Fire Department devises a system of cistern water reserves, the largest held over 3,000 gallons of water. This system gave the department the ability to fight fires as far as 3 miles from the fire station. This system was the first in the area. The Common Council of Painesville Village agrees to fund an all-volunteer municipal fire department. They also authorized the purchase of a steamer fire pumper and hose at a cost of $5,250. Lucius Farris was selected as the Chief Engineer of the Steamer and paid $50 per year. Fire department payroll was $8.50 per month for 20 men and 4 coal boys. Firefighters were paid $1 per fire and $0.50 per drill.
  • 1873 - A new and modern fire house is constructed on N. St. Clair Street in Painesville. The station was designed with room for two fire engines, hose carts, a hook and ladder, four horse stalls, a second floor sleeping quarters and was considered a masterpiece of its time.
  • 1880 - The fire department averaged one alarm per month.
  • 1893 - The fire station on N. St. Clair is damaged by fire. It is restored and continued to be used until 1961.
  • 1900 - Tim Morgan is selected as the first full-time Fire Chief.
  • 1915 - The fire department purchases its first motorized apparatus, a Ford Runabout. This vehicle was equipped with a copper chemical tank and a 26 foot ladder.
  • 1917 - Lee Elliot is named as Fire Chief, replacing Chief Morgan.
  • 1921 - The all-volunteer fire department is replaced with an all-paid professional fire department. Six men rotated 24 hours on 24 hours off schedule and were salaried employees. A 1921 American LaFrance fire pumper, the first motorized fire engine, is purchased ending the horse-drawn age.
  • 1928 - The department purchases its first motorized aerial, a 1907 Seagraves 40 foot ladder (wooden).
  • 1942 - Painesville Fire Department staffing is increased to nine men, continuing the 24 on 24 off rotation.
  • 1944 - Four men are called to active duty for World War II. Volunteers are used to supplement staffing. Volunteers continued to supplement staffing until 1982.
  • 1946 - The department purchases a Buffalo fire engine.
  • 1948 - The department obtains its first power assisted 75 foot aerial, an American LaFrance. This aerial replaced the wooden 40 foot ladder.
  • 1949 - C. Gordon Smith is selected as the department’s third Fire Chief.
  • 1950 - Staffing is increased to 13, six per shift, continuing on the 24 on 24 off schedule.
  • 1956 - The three platoon system (24 on 48 off) replaces the two platoon system.
  • 1958 - Eugene Tuthill is named the department’s fourth Fire Chief.
  • 1961 - Today’s present station on Mentor Avenue is opened, the corner stone was laid in 1960.
  • 1962 - Painesville Fire Department ushers in the age of EMS with the purchase of a Ford Heavy Rescue vehicle. This was the first such vehicle in Lake County.
  • 1963 - City passes an operating levy to help fund the fire department.
  • 1971 - Robert Farren is named as the department’s fifth Fire Chief.
  • 1972 - The department purchases a 90 foot aerial, an American LaFrance snorkel, to replace the older 75 foot aerial.
  • 1975 - Captain Sherman Reed designs the department’s first arm patch.
  • 1978 - Staffing is increased to seven men per shift
  • 1981 - Jack Martin is selected as the departments sixth Fire Chief.
  • 1991 - The department hires its first African American firefighter.
  • 1997 - The City begins operating a paramedic program.
  • 1998 - Staffing is increased to eight men per shift, with a minimum of five.
  • 2000 - Frank Whittaker becomes the department’s seventh Fire Chief.
  • 2002 - Mark Mlachak is named the department’s eighth Fire Chief.
  • 2003 - EMS billing is instituted to help fund the department.
  • 2007 - Part-time firefighters are re-instituted into the department.
  • 2008 - The department hires its first female firefighter.
  • 2011 - The 9/11 Memorial Garden featuring a section of steel beam from the World Trade Center is established in front of the station.
  • 2019 - Tom Hummel is named the department's ninth Fire Chief.