The Christiansburg Fire Company will celebrate 75 years of service to the community on Sunday, Sept. 24, hosting a special anniversary open house from 1 to 4 p.m. at the Christiansburg Firehouse.
Courtesy | Christiansburg Fire Company
Harmon’s Meat Market on the corner of North Main and West Second Street was one of several buildings involved in a fire that occurred in Christiansburg on Saturday, Sept. 11, 1948.
Courtesy | Christiansburg Fire Company
Citizens pushing the village’s only firefighting equipment, a 1923 two-wheeled Deluge Chemical Cart, into a garage at the corner of North Main and East First Street after the fire. The cart has been restored, and will be displayed at the open house on Sunday, Sept. 24.
Courtesy | Christiansburg Fire Company
Looking north on Main Street at the remains of the three buildings that burnt on Saturday, September 11, 1948.
Courtesy | Christiansburg Fire Company
By Matt Clevenger
mclevenger@aimmediamidwest.com
CHRISTIANSBURG — The Christiansburg Fire Company will celebrate 75 years of service to the community on Sunday, Sept. 24, hosting a special anniversary open house at the Christiansburg Firehouse on West First Street.
A ceremony to honor the fire company’s service will be held at 3 p.m., and the open house will also feature a guest speaker from the Ohio Fire Marshal’s Office.
“The open house is from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m., and then there’s going to be a small ceremony at three o’clock,” Assistant Fire Chief Trent Zerkle said.
The Christiansburg Fire Company was originally started in 1948, following a fire that occurred in Christiansburg on Sept. 11, 1948.
“A fire broke out in an apartment building on North Main Street and spread to the house next door, which then spread to the meat market on the corner,” Zerkle said.
At that time, the only fire-fighting equipment the village had was a small pull-cart.
“All Christiansburg had as a village was a little hand-pulled cart that had two 35-gallon tanks on it,” Zerkle said. “That’s all they had for fire protection.”
The fire spurred local leaders to action, leading to the creation of the Christiansburg Fire Company.
“The mayor called a town meeting on Monday, Sept. 13,” Zerkle said. “They raised money that night; pledges were made, and they began the discussions on forming a fire department.”
“By the end of the month there was a truck ordered,” he said. “A charter was signed and the fire department was formed, all within a few weeks.”
Seventy-five years later, the fire company has grown to include a total of 16 firefighters, and serves residents of Lost Creek and Elizabeth Township in Miami County and Jackson Township and the Village of Christiansburg in Champaign County.
“We have two engines, a tanker, a medic unit, a grass truck and a special operations rig,” Zerkle said.
The Christiansburg Firehouse is located at 10 West First Street. More information can be found online at www.christiansburgfire.org.
