Madison, Indiana was founded in 1809 on the Ohio River between Cincinnati and Louisville. The entire downtown has been designated part of a National Historic District. One part of this town’s fascinating history is the story of the Fair-Play Fire Co. Firehouse.
From a National Park Service article: “The Union Volunteer Fire Company organized in 1830 to help protect Madison’s citizens from fire, a very serious threat to 19th century communities. Several years later, the City of Madison voted to fund a paid municipal fire department, but within ten months the service was cancelled and the responsibility again rested on volunteer forces. In 1841, about 100 men, who originally were members of the Union Volunteer Fire Company, organized the Fair Play Fire Company No. 1, which is now the oldest volunteer company in Indiana.”
This is one of several active Volunteer Fire Departments protecting Madison, Indiana. Fair-Play Fire Company first saw action as a bucket brigade. They bought a hand drawn piece of equipment in 1851, and it is still owned by the department. The tall tower on the firehouse was built to hang hoses to dry. Go to the NPS article, link above, for more details about the history of this fire company.
Roadtirement 
That’s amazing, God bless these people! I love the brick tower, it looks so strong still. ☺️❤️
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They knew how to build to last back then!
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Classic old buildings. We had a volunteer fire department in Corrales for years.
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When I was an undergrad I was on the local VFD in the village next to my college. It was interesting and at times frightening.
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Training was minimal out here.
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The training I got was mostly to keep us from getting killed by hoses.
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That is a risk. We didn’t have hydrants out here until very recently, and they are still very few. I remember how hard it is to hold on to a large pressurized hose.
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The first time I handled a hose it made a believer out of me.
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But then there’s times when the water canon won’t fire on the fire: https://wp.me/p1yQyy-62l
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LOL I remember that. Best laid plans, or maybe best bought equipment.
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Cute little house-thing beside it.
What is the tower for? Ringing a bell?
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There are lots of wonderful small and large homes in Madison. The little one next to the firehouse probably dates from 1850 – 1870ish. The Tower was built by the fire company. It was used to hang hoses to dry after use fighting a fire. There is a bell at the top of the tower that was rung to announce a fire had been reported.
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Awesome!
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🙂
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Rural Indiana still has a fair number of volunteer fire departments. Several of my former coworker’s husbands still are on the volunteer force!
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Yes, there are lots and lots of VFD’s. There are 6 in our county alone. Thanks for sharing.
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