Fogelsville Fire Company Began in a Hillside

Nestled in a Fogelsville hillside along Church Street across from is a garage door leading to the original site of the Fogelsville Fire Company.  There is no building to see, just a front wall with a white door.  Extending out from this front wall are two retaining walls, one on each side, to prevent dirt and debris from falling onto the driveway.

According to Jeff Grim, fire chief of , the fire department was formed on Feb. 2, 1916.  But it was not until July 3, 1918 that the town of Fogelsville had its first firehouse, when the fire company and A.C. Hittle, who owned the 16-by-32-foot tract along what is now Church Street, signed a formal agreement.

In the agreement, the fire company was to pay Hittle an annual rental of $1 for the use of the property and building on it.

For reasons unknown, the building had been built into the ground much like an early ground cellar.  And it was here that the first piece of equipment was housed—a hand-pulled hose cart.  Later, the fire company kept a truck in the ground cellar garage and continued to pay the $1 rent until the late 1990s when the building could no longer be used by the fire department. 

It is now owned by Jon and Kim Snelling of Fogelsville.