History

  1. 1945-1970
  2. 1971-1990
  3. 1991-Present
Year
Event / Historical Recap
1945The community of Miami Villa, Wayne Twp. (located along the Miami River near Chambersburg and Rip Rap Roads.) recognized the need to protect the community from fire and decided that a Fire Department should be developed. With funding non-existent, donations were sought and the first piece of apparatus, a soda acid truck, was bought from the City of Vandalia for $500. This little volunteer Fire Department assumed the responsibility for not only providing fire protection for the community of the Miami Villas but also responding to fires throughout rural Wayne Township. When it was quickly realized that a building was needed to store this new piece of apparatus, Station 1 was built by volunteers on Rip Rap Road south of Chambersburg Road Volunteers were notified of fires by the use of a loud whistle on top the Fire Station. Today this building is still standing and is used by the Huber Heights Street Department.
1947A fundraiser was held and $1000 was raised to purchase the first actual fire pumper in 1948. During this time volunteerism certainly had a different meaning - volunteers paid $25 to belong to the Department and $3 in annual dues. 1955 Wayne Rescue was founded. The care administered was rather primitive, compared to today’s standards, but it certainly filled the need providing rapid transport to a receiving hospital for an ill or injured citizen. At around this same time a developer, Charles Huber, entered the community with great ambitions to build a community of brick homes.
1956The first Huber home was built and construction did not stop until the early 1990’s when just over 10,000 single-family homes, apartments, and condominiums were standing. During this time both the Fire Department and Wayne Rescue were private organizations and received no funding from the Township.
1960The Fire Department approached the Township and requested they take over Township Fire Department responsibilities. This was mainly due to funding - local donations as well as fundraisers were not enough to sustain the Fire Department for such a rapidly growing community. The manner in which volunteers were now notified had improved with the utilization of both the whistle on top the station and a phone notification system which called all volunteers simultaneously and alerted them of the emergency location. Additionally, dispatching was handled from the homes of two citizens in the Township who alternated in monitoring the fire phone for any emergencies.
1961Station 2 was built at the intersection of Brandt Pk. and Longford Road This facility was built to not only accommodate the Fire Department but also Township offices. Additionally, another pumper was purchased around that same time along with a Rescue Van and a 1500-gallon tanker shortly thereafter.
1963A 1000-gallon tanker-pumper was purchased (another purchased in 1968).
1964Jim Officer was appointed Fire Chief and held that position until July 1971.
1969Funding was becoming more of a challenge for Wayne Rescue. Local fundraisers and door-to-door donations were not enough to keep this essential part of the community viable. As a result, the Township acquired Wayne Rescue and merged it with the Fire Department.
1970Wayne Township continued to grow throughout the 1970’s being viewed as the most rapidly growing community throughout Ohio in the mid 70’s.