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| The Nanjemoy Volunteer Fire Dept. was organized in October 1949. Prior to this time, fire protection for the community was provided by the LaPlata Volunteer Fire Department, some 20 miles away and by the State Forestry Department's Forest Wardens. Building fires were usually total losses by the time help could arrive. Following the loss of two homes in the area in 1949, the people of Nanjemoy felt the urgent need for local protection. From a meeting held at the Nanjemoy School, the Nanjemoy Volunteer Fire Department was born. The zest and zeal of its members, some 40 strong-willed men and women of the area, proved real, and within two months approximately $1500 had been raised by door-to-door solicitation. A used 1941 World War II fire truck was purchased from Owings Mills Fire Department and placed in service. The first few months after receiving the fire truck, the Department housed it in Mr. Scott's garage by night and wrapped it in blankets to keep the pump from freezing during the day while Mr. Scott used his garage. After Mr. A.M. Scott donated the land for the original fire house, construction started on a 30-foot by 45-foot one-story cinder block building. Money was scarce, but enthusiasm was high, and with aid of Mr. S.C. Linton, Sr., a loan was secured to procure necessary materials to complete the building. Formal "moving in" took place during the summer of 1950. In 1951, we started receiving $1500 a year from Charles County. In May 1952, we joined with the other Volunteer Fire Departments in the County to form the Charles County Firemen's Association. It was also in 1952 that we purchased our second piece of fire equipment, a 1952 Ford truck onto which we mounted an 800-gallon tank and a 500-gallon-per-minute Barton-American Front Mount Pump. Total cost of this unit with equipment was $5,686. After 21 years of faithful service, it was sold for $2,000. Through correspondence with one of its members, we heard it was serving the town of Evening Shade, Arkansas, as their first due piece of equipment. The rest of the fifties found us "putting on" the annual fund drives, having dinners, bingo, etc. to meet our expenses and to supplement the annual funds from the County. We also had approximately 75 percent of the active members complete the sixty-hour Basic Training Course provided by the Fire Extension Service of the University of Maryland. In 1960, the Department purchased a used pickup truck through the State Surplus Agency and equipped it as a light duty brush unit. An addition was added to the fire house by its members to house the unit. Members of the Department actively worked with the other volunteer firemen of the County through the Charles County Volunteer Firemen's Assn. Along with the monies from the Fire Tax came standards and controls to upgrade the fire service in the County so that the overall fire protection system provided everyone better coverage. In order to meet the new requirements, we purchased a used Class A Pumper from Vienna, Va. After re-certification by Insurance Underwriters, this unit, a 1952 Maxim-Ford 500 GPM Pumper, was placed in service in 1963. In the fall of 1965, a new 1965 Young-Ford 4 wheel drive Brush Truck was purchased, and within a few months we "kissed" the original piece of fire equipment goodbye. It had served the community well and was sold due to its age and the difficulty in finding replacement parts. In 1967, we placed an order with Young Fire Equipment for a new 750 GPM Class "A" Pumper to be delivered in the spring of 1968. After receipt of this unit, we applied for and received an Underwriters Fire Insurance rating as a Rural Fire Dept. In 1968, we also acquired the land on which this fire station was built. |
| NANJEMOY VOLUNTEER FIRE DEPARTMENT, INC. ENGINE CO. 4 |
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| Past Chiefs from 1949 to 1987 |
| E.W. Mitchell........................................1949-53 R .Kenderick...............................................1954 C.K. Rye......................................................1955 T.G. Davis, Sr..............................................1956 H.G. Robey.............................................1957-58 C.R. Perry.Jr................................................1958 E.W. Mitchell...............................................1960 |
| D.H. Summers.....................................1961-64 W.M. Golden.........................................1965-69 J.C. Rye.................................................1970-74 A.L. Vandegrift..........................................1975 J.C. Rye......................................................1976 A.L. Vandegrift.....................................1977-86 C.R. Perry, III............................................1987 |
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| Photo on left: Truck on right was NVFD's first firetruck, a pre-World War II piece of apparatus. Photo was taken on Nov. 1 1952. |
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| Our History From 1949 to 1968 |
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