Escambia County Fire-Rescue History

In Escambia County, the majority of its volunteer fire departments were organized from 1940 through 1970. Each department became its own independently chartered nonprofit organization. This required each department to draft organizational bylaws, identify a geographical boundary for fund collections and operations, and appoint an overseeing Board of Directors.

The bylaws drafted by each department varied widely. Membership requirements, the Fire Chief’s appointment, authority, and term of office, as well as the appointment of individuals to the Board of Directors differed from one fire district to the next. In essence, each volunteer fire department handled its organizational and administrative business quite differently.

Each volunteer department established a geographical boundary. Within this boundary, fire departments solicited funds for operations and provided fire suppression services to residents and businesses. During these times, fire departments were very territorial and frowned heavily on outside departments conducting any business or operations within its established district.

In the past, volunteer fire departments relied solely on voluntary contributions and local fund raisers to provide the capital needed to operate. This meant that an average of four (4) months per year were dedicated to visiting every residence and business within their district to collect donations. Due to this type of funding, the volunteer departments’ budgets varied widely from district to district. Many departments could not afford insurance, proper safety equipment, apparatus, or stations. In fact, many of the early fire trucks and stations were built by members of the individual departments.

Each department instituted a Board of Directors. Each Board was charged with overseeing the financial interests and administration of the department. This included managing acquired assets, ensuring departmental bylaws were being upheld, addressing membership issues, and overseeing the performance of the department’s Fire Chief. However, fire chiefs and individuals serving on the Board of Directors were elected in many different ways.

In regards to membership, it was not uncommon to have as many as forty (40) active members in each fire department. There was a strong sense of community pride and commitment by firefighters, and many were able to leave their place of employment when the alarm went out.