Rural fire protection

In the chronology

1. 1910 or 1911 John L. Foister becomes chief of the Chapel Hill fire company After the death of chief W. W. Pickard, Chapel Hill's volunteer fire company chose John L. Foister, a member since 1903, as its chief. He held the post until his death in 1932. People: W. W. (Walter W.) Pickard DigitalNC: The News (Chapel Hill), October 6, 1921, p. 1 (Chapel Hill Fire Fighters)
2. February 26, 1951 Orange Fire Protective Association elects T. C. Ellis its first president At its first general meeting, in the Hillsboro courthouse on February 26, the association formed to buy a fire truck for the country around Hillsboro elected Cedar Grove accountant T. C. Ellis president and voted to go ahead with the equipment after hearing that about 250 members had given $4,145. A southern Orange group led by S. H. Basnight asked that it be called No. 1 so a Chapel Hill-area company could be No. 2. People: Don S. Matheson, Sim Efland The News of Orange County (Hillsborough), March 1, 1951, p. 1
3. by March 15, 1951 Orange Fire Protective Association buys Orange County's first rural fire truck Because Hillsboro's town fire truck was restricted to calls within about a mile and a half of town, rural residents launched the Orange Fire Protective Association's drive at a meeting on January 12, 1951, and raised money through one-time memberships of $10 for a house and more for farm buildings. The members voted on February 26 to buy the equipment, and by March 15, 260 members had given $4,500 and a Ford fire truck for the countryside had arrived, crewed by the town's volunteer firemen. Orange Rural Fire Department: History of the Fire Service in Hillsborough · Also: The News of Orange County (Hillsborough), January 18, 1951, p. 1; The News of Orange County (Hillsborough), March 1, 1951, p. 1; The News of Orange County (Hillsborough), March 15, 1951, p. 1
4. by May 29, 1952 The county's rural fire association sets a fee for fires at non-members' property Directors of the Orange County Rural Fire Department agreed to charge non-members up to $50 each time the association's truck, manned by the Hillsboro Volunteer Fire Department, answered a call outside the Hillsboro limits. They reported 332 members who had given $5,695, nearly all of it spent on the truck, which had answered 16 calls in the past year; membership cost $20 for a home and $30 for a farm. The News of Orange County (Hillsborough), May 29, 1952, p. 1
5. May 1954 Carrboro offers its fire department to rural neighbors by yearly contract The Carrboro town commissioners passed an ordinance letting the mayor sign contracts with property owners in a fan-shaped district reaching about two miles out from town, south to the Chatham line and around past Calvander and University Lake, for the volunteer fire department to answer their calls. Annual fees were set by assessed value, Chapel Hill and its suburbs were excluded, and the town took no liability. People: Luther James Phipps The News of Orange County (Hillsborough), May 20, 1954, p. 1
6. November 9, 1954 Mary Whittington Crawford, one of Hillsboro's best-known citizens, dies at 81 Mrs. Mary Whittington Crawford, widow of Oliver Crawford and a Hillsboro resident since 1912, died at her home after a stroke; the News remembered her daily rounds helping neighbors and her work in the Presbyterian church, and said that in earlier years she had become the state's first woman member of a volunteer fire company and later marched in parades in its regalia. The News of Orange County (Hillsborough), November 11, 1954, p. 1
7. by January 20, 1955 Carrboro extends its rural fire protection a mile north of Calvander At the request of residents about four miles north of town, Carrboro's commissioners extended the town's rural fire protection district one mile north of its former limit at Calvander, covering both sides of the highway. Property owners in the district paid an annual fee in advance, and the volunteer fire department answered rural calls only for those who had joined. The News of Orange County (Hillsborough), January 20, 1955, p. 3
8. January 4, 1960 County commissioners approve a charter for a Hurdle Mills volunteer fire department The county commissioners approved a resolution sanctioning a charter for a Hurdle Mills volunteer fire department in northern Orange. The News of Orange County (Hillsborough), January 7, 1960, p. 4
9. by July 19, 1962 Eno Fire Protection Association equips a volunteer fire department near I-85 and US 70 The Eno Fire Protection Association secured modern fire-fighting equipment for its community, with both of its trucks to be housed in a new station near the junction of routes 85 and 70. Lewis Tetterton was the volunteer fire chief. The News of Orange County (Hillsborough), July 19, 1962, p. 15
10. September 1972 to February 1973 Efland and Orange Grove volunteer fire departments are incorporated As the Orange Rural Fire Department's board worked from 1971 to set up fire districts covering the whole county, rural communities formed their own departments: the Efland Volunteer Fire Department incorporated in September 1972 and the Orange Grove Volunteer Fire Company on February 1, 1973. New Hope followed later in February 1973. Orange Rural Fire Department: History of the Fire Service in Hillsborough · Also: opencorporates.com; opencorporates.com
11. 1974 The Orange Grove Volunteer Fire Company builds its first station Started after neighbors waited a long time for an Eli Whitney fire truck at a house fire around 1970, the company built its first station in 1974 and received its first truck later that year. Cane Creek Baptist Church Historical Research Committee, A Cane Creek Tapestry: A Picture History of Cane Creek Baptist Church and the Orange Grove Community (2003), scan p. 90
12. December 1977 Caldwell and Cedar Grove volunteer fire departments are incorporated The Caldwell Volunteer Fire Department was incorporated on December 6, 1977 and the Cedar Grove Volunteer Fire Department a week later, on December 13, extending local fire protection across the northern townships. Orange Rural Fire Department: History of the Fire Service in Hillsborough

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