Town of Two Rivers Fire Department
Fire Chiefs 1950 to Present
1950-1960 Lawrence Hansen
1960-1990 Wilmer Meissner
1990-1997 Richard Meissner
1997 to present Arik Hansen
The Town of Two Rivers Fire Department was the first department in the
state and the nation to be dispatched by radio. This was in 1954.
History of Town of Two Rivers Volunteer Fire Department 1950-1900
By Wilmer Meissner, Former Fire Chief
Before we had our own Fire Department, if anyone wanted fire protection
they had to pay dues to a neighboring fire dept. If you called that
department, they would check their records to see if you were paid up. If
you were they would come, if you were not paid up, they would not respond.
In the Sixties, the state law said the Town Chairman was responsible for
fire protection, either to have their own fire department, or contract
with another fire department.
Early in 1950 the town board decided to organize our own fire department.
The town board negotiated with the City of Two Rivers to buy a 1948 Dodge
fire truck for $4,812.00. The truck was to be kept in the city fire
station. The town paid the city $3,000.00 per year and the city could use
the truck. At a fire in the town, two city firemen would respond, with the
truck, and volunteers would go to the fire to help.
The volunteers trained at the city station with the city firemen. Fire
calls went in to the city station,, they in turn called key firemen and
they called other firemen by phone. It was not very efficient, but it was
the best that we had at the time. The bad part was that the town was
divided by two phone lines. Two Rivers phone line and Manitowoc phone line.
To call from one line to the other, it had to go through long distance,
that delayed the calls some more. In July 1954, we purchased 2 two-way
radios and 4 monitors, the first fire department in the state to have
radios. The two-way radios were stationed at Hansen's, and at my place.
That way people on the Two Rivers line would call Hansen's to report a
fire, those on Manitowoc line called me. We dispatched the calls to the
firemen with monitors.
The city got a new manager, John Devers. He decided that the city didn't
want anything to do with the town, so on December 22, 1953, the town
Chairman, Oscar Eis was notified that the fire truck was to be removed
from the city station by December 31,1953. Also, they would not take any
fire calls. The fire truck was stationed at Guehchow Brothers garage on
Highway 42, for about two years, then we moved to Shoto in Holly's garage
for about another three years, until Holly needed the space for himself.
Then we moved the truck to Peterik's garage, across from the Double Dam
Bar until the Fire station was built in 1960.
Water was a big problem. The fire truck only had 300 gallons water on it,
so water was hauled to the fires in milk cans and anything available by
firemen or farmers. We bought 5-275 gallon fuel oil tanks equipped with
quick dump valves. They could be slid on the pick-up truck to haul water.
We had a stock water tank on the fire truck that we used as a drop tank to
pump out.
In 1953, the firefighters bought a used International truck with a 1,000
gallon tank, and 350 gallon per minute pump from East Troy Fire Department
for $1,000.00. In 1957, we bought a new Dodge Truck with a 1,250 gallon
tank. The town and the firefighters each paid half, $6960.00 total. At
this time we sold the fuel oil tanks to Menchalsvile Fire Department. The
first money the firefighters made when we ran a dance at Shoto. We cleared
$80.00 on November 10,1950. That was the money we had to run our first
picnic the next year.
Lawrence Hansen was the first Fire Chief from the start to December 31,
1959. The first Officers were: Fire Chief - Lawrence Hansen, Assistant
Chief- George Timm, President- Henry Engelard, Vice President- Fred Ploor,
Secretary- Wilmer Meissner, Treasurer- Rudie Stiehaur. I've been Fire
Chief from January 1, 1960 to December 31, 1989. In the past 40 years we
had a big turnover of Officers and Firemen.
In 1960, I applied for the 2% on fire insurance premium. The following
year we got about $450.00, and it's been going up every year to over
$2,900.00 in 1988. In 1968, Ray Taddy, Town Chairman and myself appeared
before the City of Two Rivers Council to have an agreement approved to use
City hydrants. The agreement was not approved at that time, there was a
mix-up with Henry Hilbert, City Fire Chief. In 1970, Joe Taddy, Town
Chairman, and myself met with the City Council for the same reason. After
the Council heard what we wanted, they wondered why that agreement wasn't
approved sooner.
The firefighters built the kitchen on the fire station at no cost to the
Town on July 16, 1968. We became Incorporated under the laws of the State
of Wisconsin as the Firefighters of the Town of Two Rivers Incorporated.
Before that we could buy property, but we could not own it, it went to the
Town. After we incorporated, we bought land from Joe Meyer. In 1972 we
built the 50 x 70 foot building for $14,000.00. In 1977 we built the
36 x 70 foot addition to the present building for $16,000.00. Toilets were
added to the building in 1978 for $4,000.00. Before we could build, we had
to get a permit from the D.N.R. and Park and Planning. We were in a flood
plain, so we had to fill to six inches above the bench mark on the
Northeast wing of the South Bridge.
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