Colchester Hayward Volunteer Fire Department

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The Colchester Hayward Volunteer Fire Department was established by the borough of Colchester, Connecticut as a result of a petition presented on February 6, 1854 (around one o'clock in the afternoon) in the basement of the First Congregational Church. The petition was introduced by some of the prominent business owners of the day. The borough set up a committee led by Nathaniel Hayward to form a fire company. Hayward proposed to donate 200 feet of hose if the borough would purchase an engine and it was voted upon and Hayward was thanked.

The committee shopped around and settled on Hunneman and Company of Roxbury, Massachusetts. On October 7, 1854 they presented their findings to the rest of the wardens and burgesses who then approved the purchase. It is unknown when the department took delivery. The following September, the same committee was employed to build a permanent "Engine House". They picked a location on Main Street and construction was completed by December 1855. Shortly after, the hand pumper was removed from the temporary "Engine House" on Mill Street and Park Street (Lebanon Avenue). Hayward was committee chairman until 1856, when the formal position of Chief Engineer was established. The first chief engineer was Charles Barker.

By July 1884, the firemen were tired of the disorganization and formally petitioned the borough to create a separate organization still governed by the borough. The borough approved the petition and established the Hayward Fire Company with its own leadership and bylaws. The first foreman under those bylaws was Fred E. Baker. In May 1885, the first annual meeting took place, which continued as such until it was moved in 1997 to January.

In 1913 the first gasoline water pump was purchased from the Lawrence Manufacturing Company of Massachusetts. It was mounted on a cart and was deemed unreliable by many of the men. In 1924, the hand pumper was retired and the first modern fire truck, a REO Chemical Wagon, was put into operation. One fire truck was bought every decade until the late sixties and seventies when more were needed to keep up with the growing town. Roland Clark was the first Chief elected under new bylaws in 1958.

In 1974 the first paid firefighter, Dan Rowland, was hired. Also in the seventies, the fire department began to respond to medical calls and 911 was activated. The 1980s saw massive changes and an "Engine House" that was outgrown. A second paid firefighter had been hired; a new firehouse was built by the members and dedicated in October 1989. In 1993, the fire department absorbed the Inter-County Ambulance Association and added two more paid personnel to the staff.

The new century saw a fifth person to the staff in the form of a department secretary, Janice Legrega. In 2004, the volunteer chief, Walter Cox, became Colchester's first paid chief.

[edit] Cadets

The Colchester Hayward Cadet Fire Department (CHCFD) was formed in March 1963. The cadets perform many important rolls at the fire scene such as retrieving equipment, organizing tool, making hose connection, and fire suppression. The cadets are vital around the fire house cleaning the bays, washing trucks, and sitting in on senior drills. One of the first cadet programs started in Connecticut.