The Dodge Brothers - -
Somers Fire's First Engine
Centered in this 1977 line-up of Somers Fire Apparatus is the first fire engine Somers owned: 1934 Dodge Brothers. It was purchased new from the Peter Pirsch Company of Kenosha, Wisconsin in 1934. This purchase was the first of more fire engines purchased from the "Hometown" fire apparatus manufacturer, as each of the fire engines pictured above are of Pirsch orgin. This photo was taken some time after 1975, when the ladder was purchased, and before 1981, when the tanker to the far right was replaced with the last Pirsch ordered for the Department. It was not until 1985, when Somers purchased its first engine from a different manufacurer, Pierce Manufacuring, Inc. of Appleton, Wisconsin.
1934 Dodge Brothers - - Ron Doerring Photo
In 2009, after 75 years of service to the people and visitors of Somers, the Somers Fire Department has come full circle with the purchase of a new 2008 Dodge one-ton chassis for a new grass rig. Seventy-five years separate the first and the newest apparatus, and they both are of Dodge origin. Ironically, the original 1934 and the 2008 are almost the same size, with the 1934 being a first-line fire engine in 1934 and the 2008 being a grass rig. Times change, and Somers Fire Department had to change with the times. The original 1934 is now housed in the Kenosha History Center