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In November of 1937, 17men from the Violetville Volunteer fire
department started the Community Volunteer Fire Department of Violetville in the growing
town of Arbutus
The Arbutus
Community Association leased a portion of their property to
the firemen and donated lumber to help them with the
construction of their firehouse.
A small, two story, wood frame building was erected to
house a 1927 American La
France fire engine & 1932 Kissel
ambulance downstairs and provided living quarters upstairs.
In
1942 AVFD bought the community hall building when Arbutus
Community Association moved across the street to present day
Town Hall. Three
years later an addition was built on to the old community hall
building to house additional apparatus.
A
new 1942 Ford/Ward
LaFrance engine had been bought and was later replaced by a
1947 Seagrave engine.
A 1947 International Harvester panel truck for use as a rescue squad and
that was later replaced by a 1954 Dodge.
In 1951 a 1947 Willy’s Jeep was purchased and replaced by a 1967 Jeep
CJ-5 and in 1958 a 1957 Seaking
aluminum boat replaced an older aluminum boat.
Many different ambulances passed through AVFD in the
early years including a 1948 Buick
Roadmaster, 1952 & ’56 Cadillacs,
Pontiacs, an Oldsmobile, Fords,
and Chevy’s in the ‘60’s, ‘70’s, and ‘80’s.
The 1960’s brought
about the lowering of the age limit for members from 21 to 18.
In 1963 the Ladies Auxiliary was “reorganized” and in
1965 member Ed Kelly developed a reliable device for the
suctioning of fluids from patients mouths.
Although his design was the standard used for many years
on ambulances everywhere, he was never truly credited for his
work because he didn’t secure a patent.
On
May 4, 1964 ground was broken for a modern fire station and on
October 20, 1964, AVFD moved to it’s new quarters at 5200
Southwestern Blvd. The new station provided necessary room for the apparatus and
men with offices, recreation & bunk rooms, and a banquet
hall. The two old
buildings were then razed for parking.
The sixties and
seventies brought more modern fire apparatus.
A 1966 Mack
engine replaced the ’47 Seagrave,
and a 1969 Brockway
replaced the ’54 Dodge
in 1971. A 1973 Boston
Whaler power boat and ’73 Chevy
pick-up truck were purchased after Tropical Storm Agnes wreaked
havoc on the east coast in 1972.
After about a year the boat was sold when it was realized
that it was not needed. In
1978, an additional engine (‘78 Seagrave)
was purchased with a new lime green/yellow color scheme and the
ambulances had become modern Paramedic (medic) units.
By 1980, women were
finally accepted as regular members of AVFD although it was not
without a fight. Many
believed strongly that women had no place in the firehouse but
the ladies have competently filled nearly every position at AVFD
since then and to this day the Department still boasts a higher
than average percentage of female members.
The 1966 Mack
engine was replaced with a ’87 Hahn
and that was replaced with a 1999 Pierce.
The 1978 Seagrave
was replaced by a ’97 Pierce
which was nearly identical to the ’99
Pierce. The
1969 Brockway Rescue
Squad was replaced by a ’93 Spartan
and the medic units were now state of the art Advanced Life
Support units on heavy duty Ford
chassises. With the
new ’93 Spartan squad came the return of a red over white
paint scheme which would again become the standard.
Once again in 1995
the age limit was lowered from 18 to 16 with parental consent.
In
1996, AVFD became a specialized company in Swift Water Rescue.
The 1988 Ford medic
that had been replaced was re-designated as a Swift Water Rescue
Response Unit.
In 1990 the Ladies
Auxiliary had disbanded but a group of ladies revived the
Auxiliary in 1997 and opened it up to male and female members.
In 1998 they made a presentation of new Holmatro
rescue tools (jaws of life) to replace the 1970’s era Hurst
system. They
would continue to raise funds and purchase needed equipment for
AVFD.
Also in 1998, AVFD
and the University of
Maryland Baltimore County (UMBC) developed a partnership
which would allow UMBC students to gain Emergency Medical
Service (EMS) experience through the Department by becoming
University Members. Eventually,
a substation would be opened on campus with one AVFD medic unit
housed and staffed by University Members during the school year.
For the year 1999, AVFD responded to 1019 fire/rescue
calls and 1615 ambulance calls.
After more than 60 years of commitment to the community
through the efforts of the members of AVFD, the Department has
reached an enviable position among the volunteer fire companies
of Baltimore County.
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