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The History of the Laurelton Fire District
Pardee School.
During this time, the rapidly growing Laurelton area relied on the
Ridge Culver Fire Department and the City of Rochester Fire Department for fire protection. Distance and response time were becoming a growing concern. This prompted the Laurelton residents to hold a meeting at the Pardee schoolhouse on June 19, 1925. This was the start of the creation the Laurelton Fire District.
Enrollment was opened to the residents of the fire district. The first elections were held on November 2, 1925. G. Herbert Pardee was elected Laurelton's first President of the Association. Arthur Lauterbach was elected Laurelton's first Chief.
After more than a year of planning and preparation, an attorney and engineer were appointed on June 1, 1926 to form the Laurelton Fire District. A petition to form the Laurelton Fire District was accepted by the Board of Supervisors on December 30, 1926.
The task of raising money to form an organization fell to the Laurelton Volunteer Fire Association. The early activities consisted of social affairs, dances at Hebing's Hotel, clambakes, moonlight excursions on Irondequoit Bay, motorboat races, card parties and carnivals.
The first Commissioners were elected on January 26, 1927. They were G. Herbert Pardee, George N. Sink, John Kane, M. Curt Snyder & Frank Gardner. In June of 1927, the district voters approved $70,000 for a firehouse and apparatus. For $10,000, the Commission purchased the old, two-room Pardee School, which had just been replaced by a new school at 500 Helendale Rd. Remodeling & construction began at once. On December 12, 1927, the new firehouse was dedicated. We have operated from that old schoolhouse ever since. Since that time, the Laurelton Fire District has employed Career Firefighters to complement the Volunteer Firefighters. We started with 2 Career Firefighters. In 1958 we increased it to 3 and in 1962 a fourth man was hired which is where we stand today.
Today, the Laurelton Fire Department operates as three separate entities. They are the Laurelton Fire District, the Laurelton Volunteer Fire Department and the Laurelton Volunteer Fire Association. Through fire taxes received by the district residents, the District furnishes the apparatus & equipment and maintains the upkeep of the firehouse. The Department itself has no monies. The Department is the firefighters who respond to district emergencies. The Association is still responsible for raising monies, as in the past. These monies go to additional equipment for the Department and for activities and outings for the members and their families to enjoy. The firefighters of the Laurelton Fire Department put their lives on the line for no pay. The Association is here to show the district's appreciation of the firefighter's hard volunteer work by throwing clambakes, banquets and Amerks outings among other things.
It is now time to add another chapter to our history. On October 1, 2004, we moved into our new firehouse. The old firehouse served us well for 75+ years, but it was showing it's age. We moved out of the old building on October 31, 2003 & it was razed in early December 2003. We look forward to a new era at Laurelton.
If you live in the Laurelton Fire District and would like to be a part of this great history (and our future), click on the JOIN LFD link to be contacted by our Chief.
Click here for more historical Points-of-Interest
To
all our District Residents...
Thank You from the Laurelton Fire Department.