Cape Cod Brush Breakers

The story of how the Cape Cod brush breakers came about starts with an understanding of what Cape Cod was like in the "old days." This feature tries to document and explain how the fire departments on Cape Cod and in southeastern Massachusetts adapted vehicles to battle forest fires that burned thousands of acres of woods each year.

As the story goes, prior to 1937 or so, grass, brush, and woods fires were battled by hand, with hose lines that could reach a fire from a road. The alternative was to use hand tools and pump cans, but this was only good for smaller fires.

By 1937, vehicles had apparently become large enough and powerful enough to be enhanced with steel bars, sufficient size water tanks, and pumps to go off road and reach fires deeper in the woods than previously possible. By accessing fires quicker, while still small, they were able to reduce a great deal of danger and damage.

The fire chief in Osterville, Bernard S. Ames also served as the forest fire warden (common in those days). He and some of the other men, including Carl Starck who owned the local garage, and others no doubt, got together and turned a 1937 Ford COE (Cab Over Engine) chassis into a vehicle that came to be known as a "Brush Breaker" by welding steel bars and chassis protection to a truck with a large (believed to be about 800 gallons) tank and a pump.

The truck was not even finished according to stories, when it responded to its first fire, a large woods fire in Hyannis. The paint wasn't even dry, and surely no one had any experience driving it. The truck got caught in the fire and burned at the first fire it responded to. It was of course rebuilt and became an example from which other departments designed and built trucks for their own communities.

There continued to be many, many wildland type fires over the years and a number of generations of brush breakers have come and gone over the years. Each generation brought new innovations and adapted to changing conditions. Teams of brush breakers working together on Cape Cod established what became a mutual aid system and helped reduce the damage done by large out of control fires.

Brush breakers are designed to literally go off road, push over trees as needed, to enter a forest or wildland area to reach a fire and extinguish it while it is still small enough to put out. The alternative is to allow the fire to grow substantially larger as it burns and destroys until it eventually reaches homes or other populated areas. The innovation of this apparatus worked here on the Cape because of the terrain, type of forestation, and other factors somewhat unique to the area.

Brush breakers are still in use today and while the larger fires have been less often, the potential for them continues to exist. New apparatus continues to be built in anticipation of future fires. These pages show the development and use of apparatus used in battling brush and forest fires around the Cape.

The "First" of Cape Cod's Brush Breakers.
Built by the Town of Barnstable Forest Fire Department in 1937 on a Ford Chassis.
It was built at Carl Starck's Garage on Main Street, Osterville.
Designed by T.O.B. Forest Warden and Centerville-Osterville Fire District Chief Bernard .S. Ames
it had all wheel drive, an 800 gallon water tank, steel bars, and a Leonard fire pump.
This unique apparatus was badly damaged by its first major fire, in Hyannis on May 5, 1937,
even before it was officially in service. It was rebuilt and served until 1952 at the
Osterville Fire Station.

Photo showing early trials or training with the new brush breaker in 1937.

A ROUGH START
The 1937 Ford brush breaker was called to one of its first fires before it's paint had even dried.
This fire in the Ridgewood Avenue area of Hyannis on May 5, 1937 burned over 2000 acres into the Cummaquid area of town.
This newspaper clipping shows the raging fire as it destroyed the brand new brush breaker.
The truck was rebuilt and served until 1952.

1937 Ford brush breaker in Osterville.

EARLY FOREST FIRE TRUCKS

Early forest fire department apparatus in most towns was a pickup truck with a supply of fire extinguishers,
pump cans, hand tools, and brooms. Eventually small tanks and pumps were installed on these small apparatus.

1930 Forest Fire Truck from Edgartown, Martha's Vineyard

Plymouth forest fire truck c.1930s.
(Plymouth FD collection)

Plymouth Engine 6 with fire extinguishers c.1930s. .
(Plymouth FD collection)

STATE FIRE TRUCKS
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts Forest Fire Services operated a number of these 1939 Ford 1-1/2 ton cab over fire trucks.
Each truck had a 400 gallon water tank and a PTO pump, and carried about 2000' of hose.
The Sandwich truck remained in service until 1966.

BOURNE FIRE STATION
Several of the State trucks were assigned to the Cape area. One in Brewster
at the state forest, one in Sandwich, and one on the Vineyard. The Sandwich
truck was later stationed at the Buzzards Bay Fire Station c.1941. (above).

STATE FIRE TRUCK
One of the 1939 era Massachusetts Department of Conservation fire trucks
at the Roland C. Nickerson State Forest in Brewster.

One of the former State 1939 Ford 1-1/2 ton forest fire trucks.turned up in the 1990s
and it was hoped that the vehicle could be refurbished. It did not turn out that way.
These photos taken at Shawme Crowell State Park.

This 1939 Ford Forestry Truck was recently salvaged and brought to
Shawme Crowell State Park to be refurbished.

A number of these 1939 style Ford fire trucks apparently served across the state.

NOTE
Photos in this series are from various sources
including fire department and personal collections.