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History of Town & Country Fire Department

The Town & Country Fire Department was actually started as a joke, or having some fun with George Sullivan. In 1948 the Village of Elmira Heights had an old 1917, hard rubber tire, fire truck for sale. So the likes of Marc Dilmore, Coozie Jansen, Clive Blowers, Joe Lynch and a few others decided to get together and purchase this truck to give to “ Mr. Fireman “, George Sullivan, as a joke present.

It seems at about this time there was no fire protection outside of the Village of Horseheads, if you wanted any you had to contract with the Village of Horseheads, and unless you had this contract, the Horseheads Fire Department was forbidden by the village trustees to take any equipment outside the village limits. As a result, your house, barn or whatever burned! So George’s answer to this gift fire truck was “all right you S.O.B.’s we are going to set up a fire company”. It was given the name Town & Country Fire Department hence, they could go anyplace they wanted to. With this, Town & Country Fire Department became a reality. The next truck was purchased from the Corning Fire Department for $600.00, a 1927 American LaFrance pumper was brought down from Corning on one of Sullivan Brothers flat bed trailers. It should be said the best thing on that fire truck were the wheels. It looked like a piece of junk. Then the work began, George Sullivan, Howard Waters, Art Sullivan and whatever other help could be obtained to sand, scrape, or whatever to remove paint etc. This replaced our first piece of equipment the 1917, look at us we jumped up ten years!

At about this time we became incorporated, April 14^th, 1949. Our first directors were: George Sullivan, Art Sullivan, Joe Lynch, Charles Goodyear, Marcus Dilmore, Wayne Ferguson, Clive Blowers, and Harry R. Lawrence. Then we picked up a ladder chemical truck from Saranac Lake, which we used off and on but it really wasn’t much good for our use. This was kept at the Horseheads Holding Point Fire Station. We then sold the 1927 truck to the Village of Horseheads and obtained a 1936 fifteen hundred gallon American LaFrance pumper from Great Neck, Long Island.

This piece of equipment had been in an accident, the right front side was damaged. Once again out came the elbow grease, in the form of mechanics, painters, etc. This truck is still running, and is housed at the Town & Country Fire Station.

During all this time you might want to know what was home for us. Part of the time it was Sullivan Brothers garage, the Horseheads Holding Point Station, or underneath the Horseheads Village Library.

Where did we get money? Begged, borrowed and sometimes even stole a little! We ran raffles, car washes, a hot dog stand at the fairgrounds each year, headed by Marc and Elsie Dilmore, and any way we could make a buck. We paid nothing for labor and all donations were gratefully accepted. In the middle of the 1950’s the Town of Horseheads came to our rescue and bought us some hose. This was done with the help of Herm Dunbar. Also at about this time we obtained some land on the corner of Franklin Street and Gardner Road, which was to be the future home of the Town & Country Fire Department. The first section was 50’ x 30’ building with two bays. We got the blocks and whatever materials we needed for cost, and once again got out the elbow grease. With help from cinder block layers, brick layers, and whatever, up went a building all in one day! Spurge and Ike Moss headed up the carpentry work, Harold Decker brick laying and cement work, George Sullivan headed up block work and plumbing, and Coozie (High Voltage) Jansen the electrical work. At this point I feel we should stop and not list anymore names as it is impossible to include everyone and say once again “THANKS” to all who helped in any way, many of whom are still active members of Town & Country. A special thanks is due to our wives who fed us many delicious meals thru all these activities..




	At approximately this time we were asked to cover parts of the Towns of Big Flats and Veteran. So once again after the 1964 truck was paid for we purchased another new chassis for the 1967 tanker and then in 1968 we purchased a new pumper with a seven hundred fifty gallon tank. In 1971 we added a Dodge pickup and had it made into a grass and brush truck to go out thru fields. In 1972 we had a new tank built for our tanker which holds twenty-five hundred gallons of water.


		When this building was completed in went our 1936 pumper, which really looked small all alone in this building, so we let Erway Ambulance use half the bay and keep their equipment there, also they were a big help to us on emergency calls. So in the late 1950’s we were able to get a contract with the Town of Horseheads which enabled us to buy our first piece of new equipment, a 1959 American LaFrance, with a seven hundred and fifty gallon pump, and a five hundred gallon tank, gas engine, which since was re-powered into diesel. Our next pumper was purchased in 1964, same type American LaFrance.

As you can see at this point we were pretty well fixed for equipment, which caused another problem, where to put it all? So Once again we became carpenters, brick layers, electricians, etc. and up went another addition with many of the original volunteers helping. In 1968 we took another step and put on first alarm attendants to answer phones and sound sirens and plectrons for Town & Country and Village of Horseheads. Since that time we have added an alarm board with over fifty alarms hooked into it. As of this writing we answer and dispatch fire alarms for the following fire companies: Town & Country, Horseheads, Baldwin, Big Flats, Breesport, Millport, and Tompkins Corners. We can also dispatch Erway Ambulance to an emergency wherever they may be needed.

I do feel that without the push and motivation of one man, George Sullivan, that none of this would have ever come about. I would like to see this writing dedicated to all the deceased members and all those that still give so much to make it a going fire company