Odessa
Fire Department Established in 1927
On
August 4th, 1927, the Odessa City Council authorized the
purchase of our first fire truck, hose, and other fire fighting
equipment for approximately $9,000 dollars. The new fire truck
carried a heavy-duty high pressure water pump, a chemical tank with
special hose, hook and ladder equipment and an adequate supply of
large size hose. A total of 5,000 feet of hose was available for
emergencies. At the time, the chemical apparatus would be the main
reliance for combating small fires, as the new municipal waterworks
system had not been completed. The water pump could be used in the
event of fires in the business section by drawing water from storage
tanks at the Ector County Courthouse, or at the railroad station.
When the waterworks system, which was under construction at the time
was completed, there would be fire hydrants available.
On September 20th, 1927, the
preliminary organization of Odessa's first volunteer fire department
was completed as Robert Morgan Neill was appointed Fire Chief.
Robert
M. Neill was Odessa's First Fire Chief. He served as chief
for six years, from 1927 to 1933. Robert Neill also served as a
Captain in the Texas State Guard.
The
first volunteers were P. J. Hubbard, A. J. Burkes, W. P. Scott,
Pat Walsh, Sam McCowan, Joe McCowan, George Shows, Emery Jones, C. H.
Stevenson, J. H. Price and C. H. Slaughter. During the beginning
stages of setting up the Odessa Volunteer Fire Department decided to
train the first volunteers through practice fire alarms as soon as
the big fire siren on top the Citizens Bank was ready for operation.
Odessa's first fire truck.
From left to right are some of Odessa's first volunteer
firefighters; Fire Chief Robert M. Neill, Sam McCowan, Joe McCowan,
George Shows (Driver) Emery Jones, C. H. Stevenson, J. H. Price and
C. H. Slaughter.
George Shows was our
very first
Engineer and took great pride in taking good care of the
fire truck. George Shows drove the fire truck for six years.
Storage
and maintenance of the first fire truck was the
responsibility of George Shows. Since George was the driver it had
to be parked close for him to run to and drive to the scene of a
fire as fast as he could. The best place chosen at the beginning was
at Robert M. Neill's garage which was located in the 100 block of
South Lee and just happened to be across the street from George
Shows' home. The truck was kept at Robert M. Neill's garage as
long as he was the Fire Chief.
Mr.
& Mrs. George & Pauline Shows are driving the Buffalo Fire truck in
the 1928 4th of July parade on Grant street in downtown
Odessa.
When Bert
Rabb became the 2nd Fire Chief
in 1933, the fire truck was moved to the South West corner of 7th & Grant which is the
location of a garage owned by J. H. Price and C. H. Stevenson. J. H.
Price's son Norman Price later grew up to be a career firefighter
with the Odessa Fire Department until he retired as a Battalion
Chief. Bert Rabb owned a Service Station across the street on the
South East corner of 7th & Grant.
The fire truck was kept at 7th & Grant until 1939
when the City decided to Appoint Tom Harris as the 3rd
Fire
Chief and the first paid Fire Chief and hire 4 full time firefighters to work along
side the other volunteer firefighters. The first four paid
firefighters were Chester Frady, Chunky Hendrick, Oliver Moody and
Ovid Bagby. Their salary was $80.00 dollars per month. The
volunteer firefighters were paid $1.00 dollar for each day time run
and a $1.50 for each night time run.
 The
first Central Fire Station was built in 1939 to house the
1st four paid firefighters and our 1927 Buffalo fire engine and the
1939 American LaFrance fire engine. This was also a Police Station,
City Hall and Municipal Court.
Odessa's 1st Motorcycle Officer
is Jack Ellington
Firefighters sitting on the white
1939 American LaFrance fire engine is L to R; R. G. Dixon,
Jim Massey, Oliver Moody, Fire Chief Tom Harris and Zada Anderson.
Firefighters sitting on the
1927 Buffalo fire engine is L to R; Chester Frady behind the
wheel, L-R; Jack Speight, Ovid Bagby and Adell Laird.
"It will only be for about
two weeks," the late Mayor A. J. Burks told Charlie Meadows,
then an employee of the city's water department. "That was back in
January of 1943," Meadows recalls, "and they just
wanted me to take over the fire department until they got someone
else,"
But things that have happened since Meadows took
that "temporary" job would indicate no one was looking. During Meadows
tenure as Fire Chief, the department has grown from a one-man, one-truck
brigade to an 80 man, 12-truck unit which has spread out to cover the entire
city. A native of San Angelo who came to Odessa at the age of three, Meadows
never intended to be a firefighter, much less the head of the fire
department which operates on a $426,024 yearly budget.
In 1944 the Odessa Fire
Department was made 175 runs, and in 1945 the Fire Department made
208 runs.
In 1945 Odessa had grown
too much for the small half paid and half volunteer Fire Department.
The City's population had grown to about 12,000. Meadows went
to the City Council and ended the volunteer fire department.
He added 8 more men bringing the total firefighters up to 12.
A substation called Fire Station # 2 located at South
Grant and May was built in 1947 to allow faster response to South
Odessa. Now there was a fire station on both sides of the railroad
tracks.
By 1947 the Odessa Fire Department
was making 362 runs a year.
By 1949 the 1st Fire Station # 4
was built at the SE Corner of Golder & Kermit Hwy
You can see W. T. Barrett Stadium to the left.
( A 7-11 is located there now )
 By
1950 the Odessa Fire Department was making 500 runs a year
and had 4 Fire Stations.
In April of 1950 the firefighters moved to The Second
Central Fire Station located at 210 N. Lincoln. At this time
the department had 7 Fire Engines; 5 pumper trucks and 2 booster
trucks. As a firefighting crew they had 51 firefighters. The Fire
Chief is Charlie Meadows, Assistant Fire Chief Bill Edmiston, Fire
Captains; A. B. "Dutch" Shows, J. T. Turner, G. G. Jernigan, Leroy
Patrick, J. A. McKandless and W. J. "Bill" Childress. Fire Marshal
was L. L. Withrow and the two Fire Inspectors were Bill Shell and N.
F. McKernery. The firefighters worked 24 hours on and 24 hours off
and were paid $220.00 dollars plus a $30.00 dollar cost of living
bonus per month.
One of the biggest additions to
the department at this time was the 100 foot aerial ladder truck the
city council agreed to purchase for $35,000 dollars. Odessa's City
Manager Casey Fannin stated, "With the arrival of this truck our
fire department will be qualified to handle any fire situation that
may arise, bar none." The City Manager went on to say, "Odessa has
the most efficient firefighting unit of any city it's size, with
experienced personnel to match."
By
1951 the Odessa Fire Department was making 538 runs a year.
Another substation called Fire Station # 3 located at
7th and Dixie (County Road East) was built in 1951.
Fire Station # 5 was
built in 1955 at 38th & Dixie
In 1957 the Odessa
Fire Department after making so many oil field fires, put
together the " Fire Research and Development Center".
This gained world recognition and was visited by personnel
from 15 States and 3 foreign countries. Every conceivable
type of oil field fire was reproduced on the Ector County
Coliseum grounds. The firefighters fought these fires and
practiced different techniques as Chemist researched
chemicals to see what type of foam and what firefighting
tactic would be most effective against oil field fires. Due
to the high cost of oil products the "Fire Research and
Development Center" only lasted a few years. Cardinal
Industries & Odessa Fire Department Developed a new foam
called Emulsiflame, This proved to be the best chemical
agent for smothering the largest and hottest fires the oil
field can dish out.
Fire Station # 6
was built in 1959 at Brentwood & Grandview
March 1962, Fire Chief
Charlie Meadows retired from the Odessa Fire Department and took on
a new job in Austin. Texas as the 1st State Fire Marshal. The
firefighters held a retirement party for him in the truck room at
Central Fire Station.
On April 1st, 1962,
W. J.
"Bill" Childress was appointed to the
position of Fire Chief by the Odessa City
Council after being recommended for the
position by the City Manager W. E. Routh.
By 1962 the
department was beginning to feel the heat of more and more
fires for the department was now making over 1,000 call a
year. It was now clear to the firefighters - as the city
grew so would the department and the amount of fires and
fire deaths.
The Fire Department
strength by 1963 was seven fire stations and 108
firefighters.
New Fire Station # 4
was built in 1963 at Golder & University
Fire Station # 7
was built in 1963 at 8th & Santa Rosa
Odessa was the 1st
City in Texas to have the Emergency 911 Dialing
System which began on April 1st, 1970
Helen Reeves is seen here in the 911 Dispatch
located at the Odessa Fire Department during the early
1970's
[Coming Soon.]
[Coming Soon]
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