Plainfield Fire Territory Celebrates 100 Years
Writer / Melissa Gibson
Photography Provided
The Plainfield Fire Territory celebrates a momentous occasion this year – 100 years of service.
While many fire and police departments have a vague idea of when they formed, for Plainfield, the department was formed after a tragic and serious incident.
Plainfield Fire Chief Brent Anderson says fires were handled by “neighbors helping neighbors” prior to 1923.
A group of men would gather and work to extinguish any fire in the community out of their own care and concern for the town.
They were equipped with a wagon, metal buckets, a couple of ladders and a 1912 water system with little pressure.
On May 7, 1923, tragedy struck as a fire erupted, destroying 10 buildings and damaging two more.
With a lack of equipment and even water pressure, the Plainfield volunteer department had difficulty extinguishing the flames. They called for Danville and the town didn’t think their equipment would make the trip.
The Indianapolis Fire Department soon sent several trucks to Plainfield and provided the assistance that finally put the fire out. If not for them, the damage would have been far worse.
The tragedy prompted the same men who had volunteered their services to officially form the fire department for the Town of Plainfield, naming Edgar Milam the first fire chief.
Though the story of what happened on that fateful May day in 1923 has been told among the fire department and community for years, the history of how the department has grown and flourished isn’t as well-known.
Jim Tharp, a local historian regarding the Plainfield Fire Territory, was able to fill in many of the gaps as he worked on the 2023 book, “History of the Plainfield Fire Territory: Then and Now.”
Tharp’s father helped form the volunteer fire department in Cartersburg in 1954, instilling a lifelong love for the fire department and its history.
“My dad would go down to the fire station, get the truck and bring it home on a Sunday afternoon to wash it, and I’d ride back with him,” Tharp says.
Tharp worked for the department as a reserve beginning in 1982 for decades, before retiring and putting his efforts toward detailing the history of the department.
As a young man, he purchased a 1935 fire truck, made necessary repairs and shared it with many in the community. The truck was featured in the 1986 film “Hoosiers” during the parade scene as part of the fictional Hickory Volunteer Fire Department.
Over the years Tharp has collected a large array of antique fire department memorabilia, including metal, rounded-bottom buckets firemen would use to pass water down the line, and brass tools used to open the fire hydrant and on the firehose. He’s collected antique fire extinguishers and, of course, his 1935 fire truck.
Tharp displayed some of his collection at the 100th anniversary celebration over the summer, and will bring them to the Plainfield National Night Out event in October, giving the public one more chance to enjoy.
Even through the 1960s much of the department was formed with volunteer men.
Tharp was one of them.
“We didn’t have that many full-time people or people on staff at all,” Tharp says. “One night all of the ambulances were out. I was the only one at the station and a call came in about a residence fire.” Heading out alone, Tharp made sure the Mooresville Fire Department was en route and happened to pass one of the Plainfield ambulances, making the crew three-strong without assistance.
“Even throughout the 1950s and ’60s the department operated this way,” Tharp says. “The full-time people drove the fire engine and the volunteers supplied the manpower. When I came on in 1982 I was cleared to drive the fire engine, a 1961 truck. They were still using these old engines and equipment.”
With a love for the fire department and its history, Tharp makes it clear that his research and subsequent book belongs to the community.
“It’s not ‘me,’ it’s ‘us’” he says. “This is our history. These are my brothers and sisters. The book is for the public to use as they’d like.”
Today there are 88 full-time employees at the Plainfield Fire Territory and as one might imagine, their experience is quite different from 1923 and even the 1960s.
There are currently three fire stations and a fire headquarters for the Town of Plainfield. There are three engine companies, one ladder company, three transporting paramedic units and one command vehicle staffed 24 hours per day.
The Plainfield Fire Territory also has a support truck to pull a rescue boat, and a specially equipped all-terrain vehicle to assist with emergencies.
Anderson came to the Plainfield Fire Territory in 2002 and was promoted to lieutenant in 2008. In 2012 he was promoted to assistant chief and accepted the position of fire chief in 2020.
Anderson has been following a dream since childhood, and is proud of all he and his staff have accomplished.
“For me personally, when I was a kid my dad was into chasing firetrucks,” Anderson says. “My brother joined the volunteer fire department, and when I was 15 I was a cadet at Clayton. Back then the volunteer department was short on manpower and I got my training when I was 16. I was allowed to go on calls and could do everything but drive a truck and actually go inside the fire.”
The Plainfield Fire Territory answered 8,500 calls in 2022, and 70% of those were emergency medical service calls.
With close proximity to Indianapolis International Airport and Marion County, the Plainfield Fire Territory is the busiest fire department in Hendricks County.
“Firefighting is really a small part of what we do,” Anderson says. “You have to know a lot about life and a lot about general stuff, and typically someone on the truck has had a similar experience.”
In addition to quality apparatus and equipment, the high emphasis on multimodal training ensures that the department can handle all hazards.
They participate in the Hendricks County Rescue Task Force through the Hendricks County Fire Chiefs Association, created to enhance response among all fire departments across the county.
The staff is trained in all disciplines but takes the county leadership role in water and ice, rope, confined space, as well as vehicle and machinery extrication.
“We do everything from cats in trees to water leaks to suspicious odors,” Anderson says. “We can’t show up and say, ‘We can’t handle that.’”
It’s one of the biggest benefits of a diverse and educated team.
All staff members are trained in firefighting and emergency medial technician duties.
Ten percent of their team is female, and in late February it was announced that Station 123 was staffed by all females, led by Captain Kathy Pennington – a first in the department’s 100-year history.
Perhaps it’s the teamwork and family atmosphere that Anderson enjoys the most.
“I compare it to sports,” he says. “I’ve always been a big sports fan and this is the closest you’ll ever come to teamwork and camaraderie without playing a sport. Our staff is dedicated, passionate and always ready to serve.”
For more information, visit townofplainfield.com/156/fire-territory.
