HomePick of the Day1922 Stoughton Fire Engine

1922 Stoughton Fire Engine

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The Stoughton Fire Engine is from the first year the Wisconsin company produced fire trucks
The Stoughton Fire Engine is from the first year the Wisconsin company produced fire trucks

Antique firetrucks are wonderful things, flashy and brassy and honoring brave firefighters who rush into burning buildings to save people. There is a small but dedicated niche of firetruck enthusiasts who love and collect these mammoth pieces of Americana. They all have one thing in common: lots of storage space.

Here in Phoenix, we have the Hall of Flame museum, which despite its quirky name is one of the most-significant collections dedicated to vintage firefighting equipment. It’s open to the public and worth a visit.

The truck comes fully equipped with firefighting equipment
The truck comes fully equipped with firefighting equipment

The Pick of the Day would fit in well at the Hall of Flame, a rare 1922 Stoughton Fire Engine, which represents the first year that the Stoughton, Wisconsin, company built firetrucks.

This beauty has been completely restored to its original service specs, according to the dealer advertising the Stoughton on ClassicCars.com. It is one of just 14 Stoughton firetrucks known to survive, and the only known model from 1922, the seller says.

“All equipment in photos comes with the truck, including hoses, reels, ax, extinguisher, ladder, siren, flag, bell, etc.,” according to the listing. “Two 3″ binders are included with extensive restoration pictures and detailed documentation on this and the other surviving Stoughton fire trucks. Material includes copies of vintage manuals, parts lists and build sheets.”

This firetruck was in active service for the Dresser, Osceola, Garfield Fire Association in Dresser, Wisconsin, from the 1940s to about 1980, the seller notes, and has been in private hands since. During restoration, the original engine was replaced with a 1936-37 Ford flathead V8, which provides more power than the original, linked with a Borg-Warner four-speed transmission.

The fire engine would be a hoot to drive
The fire engine would be a hoot to drive

Fully equipped with its working water pump, lights and a 1940s electric siren that replaces the hand-cranked original, the Stoughton stands as a fully functional 95-year-old fire engine that could still fight a blaze, if called upon. Additional restoration work recently was completed by Doug Klink of the Reliance Fire Museum to make the truck all ready to roll, the ad says.

This brilliant piece of American history is priced at a modest $28,900, which the seller notes is way less than the cost of restoration. The fire engine looks impressive in the ad’s photos, and most assuredly would be the hit of any Fourth of July parade.

To view this listing on ClassicCars.com, see Pick of the Day

Bob Golfen
Bob Golfen
Bob Golfen is a longtime automotive writer and editor, focusing on new vehicles, collector cars, car culture and the automotive lifestyle. He is the former automotive writer and editor for The Arizona Republic and SPEED.com, the website for the SPEED motorsports channel. He has written free-lance articles for a number of publications, including Autoweek, The New York Times and Barrett-Jackson auction catalogs. A collector car enthusiast with a wide range of knowledge about the old cars that we all love and desire, Bob enjoys tinkering with archaic machinery. His current obsession is a 1962 Porsche 356 Super coupe.
  1. I like your write up and photographs of the Stoughton truck. However, your information is not entirely accurate. I purchased this truck at auction in the late 1980s, which was one of several Stoughton fire trucks I have owned. The first was originally delivered to Antioch Illinois in 1923, purchased at the John Kress Estate sale in 1988. I had the truck restored by Marty Scott, Indian Head, Maryland in 1996 and returned the truck to the Village of Antioch in June, 2007. The second Stoughton I purchased served the Village of Mundelein, Ilinois. The truck you advertise as a 1922 is a 1923 Stoughton Community Firefighter. I sold this truck to the late Captain Edward Bosanko. Following his death, his brother in law moved the truck to the Memphis, TN area and later sold it to someone in the midwest who restored the truck. I do not hold myself out as an expert on Stoughton fire trucks, however, I probably have the most extensive collection of data, photographs and information on Stoughton Wagon Works, Stoughton fire trucks and a register of where several Stoughton fire trucks are located. I also have a tape recordng of one of the four Stoughton Wagon Works employees who purchased the assets in the mid 1930’s and established Stoughton Cab and Body.

    Stoughton Wagon Works made Liberty trucks for the US Army during WW I and made a variety of trucks, including buses, dump trucks and fire trucks. A Fire in the early 1920’s forced Stoughton Wagon Works to purchase chassis’s from Peter Pirsch and delivered Stoughton fire trucks to Monroe, Wisconsin and Stoughton, Wisconsin in 1921.

    I have been gathering material for a book on Stoughton trucks for nearly 30 years. It looks like I might get the book finished this year. My email address for the past 29 years has been [email protected] or [email protected]. The “nschsto” is an acronym for “In Search of Stoughton”/

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