The Buffalo Truck
Okanogan Fire Department
By 1945, seventeen years after the city of Okanogan purchased Engine #1, city fathers found themselves in the position of needing to purchase a new fire truck. Okanogan had grown, with residential sections spreading both north and south, and insurance underwriters were recommending the city buy a new truck to provide better fire protection for the town. Seventeen years of service had taken its toll on old Engine #1, so the decision was made to replace it.
Representatives of several different companies made proposals to the city council and community members, citing the strengths of their vehicles. At this point the decision became somewhat contentious, as the firemen and several council members preferred the Buffalo truck for its more powerful Hercules engine, but other council members favored the Pirth truck equipped with a Waukesha engine. After much discussion and debate the mayor finally called for a secret vote, and the Buffalo truck was chosen by a vote of 3-2 of the city council.
On March 2, 1945, the city awarded a contract to the Buffalo Fire Appliance Co. of Buffalo, New York, for a new truck to be delivered within 45-60 days after the receipt of government priority, a wartime regulation. The cost to the city for the truck and equipment was $9693.00. However, because of the restrictions and shortages caused by World War II, the city would not take delivery on this truck until January of 1946, nearly a year after the purchase was approved by the city council.
In addition to the Hercules engine, this new truck boasted a dual ignition system utilizing either a magneto, or battery, a 50 gallon heavy gauge gas tank and V type safety glass windows which were independently adjustable. The seat was 68 inches wide, providing room for three fully equipped firemen, and was covered in red leather. The truck's pump was designed for fire department work, and when connected to a hydrant delivering 50 pounds of pressure, could produce 1400 gallons per minute on a fire. It also sported a 200 gallon booster tank, 110 gallons more than that held on Engine #1.
The Buffalo truck, as it was called, would serve as Okanogan's sole fire engine for nearly 20 years, and during that time provided invaluable service on such major fires as the Loup Loup restaurant on Main Street, the county shops, and the major warehouse fires in the early 1960s.
Today, it rests here in the museum in good running order and is still occasionally rolled out for parades. It is not hard to imagine it roaring through the streets of Okanogan, protecting and preserving the lives and livelihoods of the citizens of the town.