It was April 1965 when the original firehouse was demolished to make way for the new firehouse, which is now the old firehouse.
We are talking about the property located at 8 North Newtown Street Road where the first firehouse was built in 1916. While a massive building at the time it was constructed, it served as the community hub and home to many of the churches in the area.
Over the years, the trucks got bigger, and while the building never physically changed, it got smaller. Both the community and the fire company outgrew the 50-year-old building. With the widening of Route 252 to four lanes, the building whose second floor stuck out over the current two-lane roadway, had to go.
In a day, the building was gone and what was not hauled away was used to fill the basement of the building. The original firehouse or what is left of it, is located under the concrete pad of the old firehouse. The new firehouse would open a year later in the same location, just 50 feet back from the road.
The new firehouse also served the township community for 50 years, and like its predecessor, it also got “smaller” over the years. The newest firehouse is located at 2 Charles Ellis Drive. |