Winslow Township Fire Department-Station 253
Cedar Brook Volunteer Fire Company
LINE OFFICERS
- Captain- Lou Raciti
- Lieutenant-Vacant
EXECUTIVE OFFICERS
- President Robert Maschke
- Vice-President-
- Secretary Dalton Verderame
- Asst. Secretary Bruce Schlessinger
- Treasurer Harold DeWitt
- Trustee Chairman Joseph Littley
Trustees
- Joe Littley-Chairman
- Karl Auwarter
- Joe Bigwood
- John DiThomas
- Bruce Schlessinger
History
In the early 1920’s, residents of
the Cedar Brook area of Winslow Township became concerned about how long it
took nearby fire companies from Atco, Berlin, and Hammonton to respond to fires
in Winslow Twp. In August of 1925, local
residents joined together and the Cedar Brook Volunteer Fire Company became
chartered. The original firehouse was
the building at Route 73 and Meyers Ave, which now houses the Winslow Twp.
EMS. Their first piece of apparatus was
a 1920 Chevrolet open-cab pumper truck.
Fire company members took turns tending to a coal stove during the
winter months to keep the building at a suitable temperature and so the water
in the truck would not freeze. The fire
company members and the Ladies’ Auxiliary raised funds for all of their
expenses by hosting ravioli and turkey dinners, carnivals, dances, and
door-to-door fund drives.
Residents would report a fire in
Cedar Brook by calling a switchboard operator at the Ancora State Hospital, who
would then call the Casario residence or Pat Casario’s local barbershop. A switch at the Casario residence would
activate a tower-mounted siren at the firehouse, alerting members to the fire. Since its founding, the fire company was
responsible for all of its expenses which included apparatus purchase and
maintenance, insurance, fuels, utilities, firefighting gear, and training. In the 1940’s, an Army surplus truck was
purchased and converted by the members into a truck for fighting field and
woods fires. That truck remained in
service through the 1990’s when it was replaced by a modern brush-fire
truck. In 1955, a GMC truck chassis was
purchased, onto which a 1600-gallon water tank and a fire pump were installed
by the company members and Brimfield’s Truck Service in Braddock. In 1968 the fire company purchased the old
Cedar Brook School building, constructed an addition to the front of the
property for apparatus housing, and they have occupied that building ever since. It was at this time that the company obtained
a Bingo gaming license, and bingo games were held weekly for fundraising to
help with all of their expenses.
The early 1970’s saw another
addition to the firehouse with a new apparatus bay constructed on the north
side of the building, which still accommodates the company’s equipment. As the population increased, so did the
number of new members and the number of fire calls. In 1973, the fire company purchased a Ward
LaFrance custom pumper with a 1000 gallon-per-minute pump and a 1000 gallon
water tank. A GMC utility truck was
purchased in 1975, and a new Pierce 1500-gpm custom pumper in 1979. In 1987, the fire company and the township
governing body entered into a partnership to purchase a new LTI 100-foot ladder
tower, the township’s first true ladder truck.
The township also purchased four new pumper trucks for other Winslow Twp.
fire companies, marking the end of the era where volunteer fire companies were
responsible for purchasing their own apparatus.
In 1989 the Winslow Township Fire District was formed, which greatly reduced the financial burden on the
individual fire companies. In 2000, the
district moved its offices into the Cedar Brook firehouse after the membership
agreed to give up the space once used for fundraising activities. Renovations to the former bingo and dance
hall included office space and storage areas along with a large meeting and
training room. In 2017, after nearly 50
years of ownership, the Cedar Brook Fire Company turned over their entire
building and surrounding property to the Fire District, at a cost to the
township of just one dollar. The members
of the Cedar Brook Volunteer Fire Company still operate out of that building
and are proud to have served the residents of Winslow Township for over 90
years, continuing to do so with honor and distinction.