DUANE
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Duane's take
Here's how the official marker tells it, and I'm going to give it the treatment it deserves. Way back in 1884, the good people of Round Rock got organized. They called themselves the Hose and Hand Pump Company, and they were Round Rock's very first fire department.
Now, that name alone should tell you something about the era. No engines rumbling down the street, no sirens wailing. Just hoses, a hand pump, and a whole lot of determination.
But here's the thing about determination. It doesn't pay for equipment. Money does.
And so the community got creative. Donations, picnics, dances, box suppers, and whatever other fund drives they could dream up. You want a fire department?
You'd better enjoy a good box supper first. They kept at it, kept raising funds, kept showing up, and by 1892 they had something to show for all that effort. The first building ever constructed for Round Rock's fire department was completed that year.
A real home for the department at last. Now, the story doesn't stop there. Move the clock forward to around 1934, and the department made a purchase that must have felt like stepping into the future.
Their first piece of motor-driven equipment, a Model T Ford chassis. From hand pumps to a Model T. That's a journey.
And through all of it, through the picnics and the dances and the decades, this department kept going. As one of the state's oldest volunteer fire departments, it continues to provide significant service to the citizens of Round Rock. Some legacies, it turns out, you just can't put out.
What the marker says
The Hose and Hand Pump Company was formed in 1884 as Round Rock's first organized fire department. Money for equipment was raised through donations, picnics, dances, box suppers, and other fund drives. The first building constructed for Round Rock's fire department was completed in 1892. About 1934, the department purchased its first piece of motor-driven equipment--a Model T Ford chassis. As one of the state's oldest volunteer fire departments, it continues to provide significant service to the citizens of Round Rock. (1984)