History of the Milton Fire Department

In the beginning…

The history of the Milton Fire Department goes back over 137 years, as does the Town of Milton's incorporation. Along with a series of by-laws to govern the new municipality, on September 21, 1857, By-law #12 was passed to formulate and regulate the Fire Brigade Hook and Ladder Company for the Town.

In 1917, the fire brigade bought a 1915 McLaughlin Buick. The back seat was removed and a box to carry the hose was built onto the car. Despite having a motorized vehicle, the brigade still hauled the hose reels and the ladder wagon to the fire scenes. On September 5, 1922, a new truck arrived in Milton. It was supplied by Bickle Fire Engines Limited. The cost, including an International chassis, combining hose truck, chemical and pump, was $3,500. Back then, the Brigade responded to an average of 10 to 12 calls each year.

Ladder wagons and hose carts were situated throughout the Town for quicker response and also to accommodate firefighters who lived and worked in the different areas of the Town. Up until the early 1900's, the department responded to an annual average of 10 emergency calls, compared to approximately 650 responses in 1997.

First fire station

The first fire station was located in the basement of the old Town Hall on Main Street. The next move was two doors east (present location of Shoppers Drug Mart in Carriage Square), where the local Police Department occupied a room on the main floor and the Fire Department occupied the rest of the building.

Notifying firefighters about emergencies

To notify the firefighters that there was a fire or emergency, a siren was placed on the roof of the fire station. As the Town grew, the siren could not be heard in every area of the Town, especially if there was any wind. Bell Canada had been working on a project that would assist in the alerting of firefighters. This system was the first of its kind in Canada and was adopted in Milton. The system instituted the use of the home telephone with a constant ring rather than a normal ring on the telephone. The problem with this type of alerting system was that when the firefighter was not at home, he/she would not receive the call.

Since that time, the Milton Fire Department has acquired a paging system to notify all fire personnel, which is still the alert system that is being used in Milton and many other fire departments throughout the province.

More milestones

• In 1857, Town Council approved that the Milton Fire Department would consist of one Engine Company with 35 volunteer firefighters and one Hook and Ladder Company of 20 men.
• In 1977, a second fire station was built in the Campbellville area (Guelph Line & Campbellville Road).
• In 1978, the current department headquarters (Central Station) was opened on Steeles Avenue.
• In 1997, Town Council gave approval for a review of the Town of Milton Fire Service and a Fire Department Master Plan was developed.
• In 2008, the Master Fire Plan was updated
• In 2010, Station 4 was constructed on James Snow Parkway