Slaton Volunteer Fire Department

Duane's take

Here's my telling of what the official marker has to say about the Slaton Volunteer Fire Department. The Santa Fe Railroad established Slaton in 1911, and from the very beginning, a town like that needed people willing to show up when things went wrong. Well, 1919 rolls around, and the residents decided they weren't going to watch their homes and businesses burn without a fight.

They established a bucket brigade. Now, just let that image sit with you for a second. Buckets of water, drawn up from wells, and chemical tanks.

That was the arsenal. And leading this outfit was a man named Alex DeLong, serving as fire chief. The year after that, the city got to work on something bigger, a water system and fire mains, because folks had seen enough of hauling water hand over fist.

Then in 1922, the city bought its first fire truck. That right there was a turning point. The volunteer fire department kept growin, in manpower and in equipment both, and for a while they operated out of City Hall, which, if you think about it, says something about a community that treats its firefighters as the business of everybody.

But by 1928, the department had earned a place of its own, a dedicated fire station. From bucket brigade to fire station in less than a decade. Today those volunteers serve not just Slaton but the surrounding communities too.

Started with a bucket and a willing neighbor. Turned into something that outlasted everyone who built it.

What the marker says

The Santa Fe Railroad established Slaton in 1911. In 1919, residents established a bucket brigade to help fight fires. Alex DeLong served as fire chief of the group, which used chemical tanks and buckets of water drawn from wells to extinguish fires. The following year, the city began work on a water system and fire mains, and in 1922 the city bought is first fire truck. The volunteer fire department grew over the years in manpower and equipment, operating first from City Hall and then from its own fire station beginning in 1928. Today, the firefighters serve Slaton as well as surrounding communities. (2005)