Circleville Fire District Station No. 2

The Circleville Fire Company was founded in 1947, and by the late 60s and 70s, there had been tremendous residential growth in the Scotchtown section of the fire district. [1] In 1974 voters were asked to approve a $195,000 bond issue to remodel the fire house in Circleville. The proposal was defeated by the voters with the largest turnout in district history. Opponents of the measure, mostly new home-owners in Scotchtown, wanted the district to provide a substation in the Scotchtown area. [2]

After looking at many potential locations, the commissioners decided on a parcel of roughly two acres on Goshen Turnpike belonging to Gordon Hasbrouck. Ground was broken in early 1975 and work continued through the summer. Station No. 2 was officially occupied as a fire house in December. In 1976 a flag pole was installed at the station in memory of deceased fireman Ed Youngs. [3] In the fall of that same year, some residents of Scotchtown sent a petition to the State Water and Air Resources Board protesting the noise level of the newly installed siren at Station No. 2 and many residents wrote letters to the editor of the Times Herald-Record to give their opinions on the issue. [4]

In the late 70s and early 80s, the Town of Wallkill Ambulance Corp. rented a bay from the fire district to house their ambulances in the Scotchtown substation. They remained here until they built their own facilities on Route 211E near the town hall. In late 1996, an agreement between the fire district and Mobile Life brought an ambulance back to Station No. 2. According to the firefighters of the district, “Their ambulance, manned by paramedics and on duty approximately 18 hours a day, has been a big plus to the Circleville Fire District and surrounding areas. They have shaved many minutes off the response time to MVA and EMS calls for us, as well as Silver Lake, Washington Heights and Bullville.” [5]

Copyright © 2007 ScotchtownHighlander.com


[1] Dorothy Hunt-Ingrassia, Images of America: Town of Wallkill (2006), 120

[2] “History of the Circleville Volunteer Fire Company” Retrieved November 6 2007 from http://circlevillefire.com/history1.pdf; See also “Scotchtown firehouse siren to stay at high noise level” Times Herald-Record, November 22, 1976

[3] “History of the Circleville Volunteer Fire Company” Retrieved November 6 2007 from http://circlevillefire.com/history1.pdf, and http://circlevillefire.com/history2.pdf

[4] “Residents protest Scotchtown siren” Times Herald-Record, November 17, 1976; “Scotchtown firehouse siren to stay at high noise level” Times Herald-Record, November 22, 1976; “Not everyone against sirens” and “Grateful for fire protection”, Times Herald-Record, November 27, 1976; “Scotchtown siren too loud” Times Herald-Record, December 3, 1976

[5] “History of the Circleville Volunteer Fire Company” Retrieved November 6 2007 from http://circlevillefire.com/history2.pdf