Fire Engines - USA and Canada: Books: History and Models (1)

Big City Fire Trucks (1): 1900-1950

Clear the smoke with this definitive source on the mighty machines of America's heroes. They were a force to be reckoned with. And now you can meet them face to face. Hundreds of trucks and their specialized equipment are illustrated in this massive book dedicated to the machines of large city, full-time professional fire departments.
"Big City Fire Trucks, Vol. 1" is the only book of its kind to trace the technological developments of city fire trucks through the decades. You'll see these fascinating changes in never-before-published photos. More than 500 authentic historic photographs of old-fashioned wagons, monster trucks, exotic equipment and unique apparatus arc accurately captioned to include:
- Year of manufacture
- Commercial outfitter
- Make of truck chassis
- Type of equipment and more!

Each chapter in Big City Fire Trucks is dedicated to an individual decade from 1900-1950. And so you can thoroughly understand and appreciate the significant contributions these machines have made to fire fighting technology, each chapter introduction sets the facts straight and provides important historical background for the photographs.

There are two complete indexes:
- Find trucks and equipment by checking the manufacturer index.
- Turn to the location index for engine and apparatus listings by city and state of use.

"Big City Fire Trucks, Vol. 1" is your guide to the most prolific period in modern fire fighting history.

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Big City Fire Trucks (2): 1951-1996

This book picks up the torch from Volume I, with bigger machines fighting bigger fires in bigger cities. You'll witness the basic pumpers of the earlier years grow into quads, quints, rescue squads and special duty vehicles as the big rigs race from 1951 to 1996.
Team up with the large city, full-time professional fire departments of the last 45 years through:
- 600 captioned, historic photos of all styles of rigs and equipment
- Detailed information on truck chassis makes, year of manufacture and commercial outfitters
- A special color section of the more unique vehicles and apparatus.

Each chapter in "Big City Fire Trucks, Vol. II" focuses on an individual decade from 1951-1996. You'll get briefed on the latest technological advances of each particular time period so you can trace the important firefighting contributions.
You can also round out your knowledge with a manufacturer index to all equipment and a detailed bibliography of the best fire engine information available.

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Fire Trucks of the 1950s

American motor fire apparatus design reached its high-water mark in the 1950s. Every one of the nation's major fire apparatus manufacturers boasted uniquely individual custom fire truck designs. Unlike the look-alike cookie-cutter shoeboxes of today, back then a fire fighter could instantly identify these makes a block away.

From conventional Fords to the custom rigs of fire apparatus manufacturers, all the most popular, unique, and industry-changing designs and innovations are featured in this long-overdue tribute to the fire trucks of the Fabulous Fifties.

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Fire Trucks of the 1960s and 1970s - An Illustrated History

During the 1960s and 1970s, the fire apparatus industry saw unprecedented revolution, innovation, and parity. The long admired conventional models gave way to the contemporary archetypes that are the genesis of today's fire trucks.
Most notably, this period saw a ''changing of the guard.'' Legendary fire apparatus manufacturers still included the likes of American LaFrance, Mack, Maxim, Pirsch, and Seagrave. However, an aggressive new generation was being led by Pierce, Emergency One, Grumman, FMC, and Saulsbury. The new faces of fire apparatus eschewed old school materials and construction by using aluminum or stainless steel and modular construction, some delivering apparatus in half the industry standard or sooner.

Whereas the classic manufacturers had been relegated to their standard lines, the new class threw standard out of the window, developing expansive portfolios of fire apparatus for every type of incident imaginable on practically any chassis the customer requested. A new collection of custom chassis-only providers such as Hendrickson, Pemfab, and Spartan also aided smaller body builders into becoming competitive. This new generation was the future of fire apparatus.
Author Kent Parrish covers over 100 manufacturers and outfitters through detailed captions and over 300 outstanding images. A must-have for any fire apparatus buff.

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Modern Fire Trucks: An Illustrated History from the 1980s Forward

The progression of American fire apparatus since the romantic horse-drawn era has truly been amazing. The elementary steam engines and wagons of yesteryear have evolved into a multitude of technologically advanced modern rigs.
The roles of today's fire service have expanded to include Emergency Medical Services, Hazardous Materials, Urban Search & Rescue, and Wildland. These modern disciplines required a new breed of specialty apparatus and even the classic fire truck has transformed into multi-purpose rescue-pumpers, pumper-tankers, and an array of aerial trucks.

An industry long dominated by legendary names is led by a new generation that includes Pierce, Rosenbauer, KME, Ferrara, E-One, and many others. The old guard that ultimately failed to modernize, inexplicably chose to leave the fire apparatus industry, or simply caved under bad business include the likes of American LaFrance, FMC, Grumman, Hahn, Mack, Maxim, and Young.
Since 1980, there have been no less than 100 companies manufacturing, outfitting, or converting a vehicle for fire service use. This photo-heavy history focuses on the highlights of fire apparatus development during the 1980s and dives deeper into the progression of modern fire apparatus from 1990 to today.

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Evolution of the Cab-forward Fire Truck

In 1938, American LaFrance pioneered the first cab-forward fire apparatus, then revolutionized the concept in 1945 with the classic 700 Series. In the 1950s, legendary names such as Ahrens Fox, Crown Firecoach, Mack, Maxim, Pirsch, and Seagrave began offering their own cab-forward versions. The cab-forward design became the glamour queen of fire apparatus.

This volume traces the evolution of cab-forward fire apparatus from its fathering to today's industry giants, with a brilliant selection of black and white and color photographs with historical commentary and technical data.

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Firefighting Tanker Trucks and Tenders Photo Gallery

Tanker trucks, also known as tenders, are used by more than 65 percent of all fire departments across America. Early tankers were converted from oil, fuel, milk, or chemical tank trucks. Some of these converted units were semi or tractor-trailer trucks, others were smaller, local oil or milk delivery trucks.

Large fire apparatus manufacturers started to manufacture water tanker fire trucks in the late 1950s, but it wasn't until the 1970s that custom-made water tankers became popular.

Shown are tankers by all the major and minor fire apparatus manufacturers and regional builders, among conversions built by local shops. Included are tankers from Mack, Ford, GMC, Chevy, International, White, Brockway, Diamond T & Reo, Autocar, Kenworth, Peterbuilt, Freightliner, Volvo, UD, Marmom, Western Star, Crane Carrier Corp, FWD, Oshkosh, AMC, and others.

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