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- Special Feature -

Mack Fire Apparatus

A Tribute to the Bulldog of All Fire Trucks

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Mack Fire Truck History

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CapeCodFD's
Mack Fire Apparatus Pages

- 01 -

- MACK FIRE TRUCK HISTORY -

"BUILT LIKE A MACK TRUCK"

THE MACK BROTHERS
Jack, Augustus, William, Joseph, Charles

The Mack Fire Trucks story began with several Mack brothers who worked
together in Brooklyn, New York  

John "Jack" Mack had begun working for a carriage and wagon manufacturing
firm in Brooklyn, NY in 1890.

In 1893 Jack and his brother Augustus "Gus" Mack bought that factory.

In 1894, a third brother William, who had previously operated a
wagon manufacturing company in Scranton, Pennsylvania joined
Jack and Gus building wagons and experimenting with steam and
electrical motor vehicles.

The brothers former the "Mack Brothers Company" in 1902
and set out to build the most durable and powerful heavy duty trucks in the world.

A fourth brother, Joseph joined them in 1905 as the headquarters and
main production plant moved to Allentown, PA.

The fifth Mack Brother, Charles, joined his brothers in 1910.

___________
 

"THE FIRST MACK WAS A BUS AND THE FIRST BUS WAS A MACK"
About 1900

By 1900, the "Mack Brothers Company" had established a company set on building
the most durable and powerful trucks and engines in the world. 
The development of motorized vehicles was still in its early years.

One of the first successful vehicles they built in 1900 was a bus. 
The early Mack slogan became
 "The first Mack was a bus and the first bus was a Mack." 
Mack continued building thousands of buses for decades.

The Mack brothers went on to build a wide variety of vehicles including buses,
railroad cars, locomotives, and commercial style trucks of all types for years.

From about 1904 to 1910, many of the Mack trucks were known by the
trade name of "Manhattan" at the time.

The Manhattan name was dropped and after 1910,
all Mack trucks would carry the "Mack" nameplate on the side of the hood.

___________
_____Mack_____

FIRST MACK FIRE TRUCK
1910

 The first Mack fire truck was built in 1910.
It was a motorized hook & ladder truck, for the city of Morristown, NJ.  

Mack would continue to build many types of fire trucks between 1911 and 1990. 
The reliability, durability, functionality, and design of Mack fire trucks
made them the "gold standard" for many years.


___________
_____Mack_____

THE MACK BULLDOG
Mack built many different trucks over the years.
The company used a variety of methods to identify the various types of vehicles.
Different models, series, styles, and versions were often identified by letters
or groups of letters and numbers for specific productions.
The "Bull Dog" symbol came along in 1922.

 

Mack Model "A" Series
 1914 - 1938
  One of Mack's first truck styles was the Model "A" series.
Some early fire trucks were built on the A series.
 

Mack Model "AB" Series
 1914 - 1936
  One of the first standardized Mack trucks was the  Mack model "AB" series
which was a chain driven medium duty truck that was built until 1936.



Mack Model "AC" Series
1916 -1938
 In 1916, Mack introduced the Mack Model "AC" series trucks.
The AC was also chain driven and had a very distinctive look.
As the story goes, during WWI, a number of Mack AC trucks were used
by the US government, and internationally by the British government.
It was the AC that gets the credit for having the "tenacity of a bulldog"
which at the time was also the symbol of Great Britain.
The Model AC Macks were built until about 1938.



The "Bulldog" Symbol
1922
 In 1922, Mack adopted the Bulldog as its corporate symbol.
From that time on, all Mack trucks have had a metal bulldog attached
to the cab of its trucks



Mack Model "Early B" Series
1927 - 1941
 Mack introduced a number of "Early Model B Series" trucks in 1927.
Models including the BJ and BB trucks had a different look than the AB/AC models.
These trucks were produced until about 1941.



Mack "Bulldog" Hood Ornament
1932
The now famous "Mack Bulldog" hood ornament was conceived in 1932
and went on to become a trademark on all Mack trucks to come.


___________
_____Mack_____
 

The Mack Model "E" Series
1936 - 1950
 Mack introduced its "Model E Series" trucks in 1936.
One of the identifying features of the "E" was the single piece
glass windshield which earlier Macks did not have.
The E series came in conventional cab styles and cab-over-engine styles.
The E had rather distinct fenders, round headlights between the fenders
and the hood, and a grill that had a slightly backward slant.
The Model E grills came in a variety of styles over the years.
The Model E was a popular fire truck between 1936 and 1950.


The Mack Model "L" Series
1940 - 1954
In 1940, Mack introduced the Model "L" series trucks.
The cab and windshield of the "L" was wider than previous cabs.
 The 2 piece glass windshield was relatively perpendicular to the hood.
The L had a distinctive fender style with a distinct space between the hood
and the fenders, some distinct headlights, and a more straight upright style grill
from the Model E series which preceded it.
The Model L was used for fire trucks until about 1954.
 

The Mack Model "B" Series
1954 - 1966
The very popular Mack Model "B" Series came out in 1954.
The "B" also has a double glass windshield, but it is noticeably
at more of a slant than the "L" windshield.
The B was a heavier duty truck, with a significantly changed design
with the rounded fenders filling in the gap between the fenders and hood on previous
models, headlights installed in the fenders, and an upgraded grill design.
Some of the first "Thermodyne" diesel motors were introduced with the
B models including the first diesel fire truck, a 1960 B85F Pumper
delivered to Hamilton, Bermuda.
 

___________
_____Mack_____
 

The Mack Model "C" Series
1956 - 1967
 The "cab forward" style fire truck cab known as the Model "C" series
came out in 1956.  There were both open and closed cab versions.
The cab style was bought by Mack from Ahrens Fox that first introduced
the "Cincinnati" style cab with the engine located behind the front seat.
The cab forward had a rounded cab look.
The Model C replaced the very popular long run L series.
Model C fire apparatus became the new standard and were built
until 1967 when the CF cab came out.



The Mack Model "MB" Series
1963 -1978
 Mack introduce the Model "MB" series cab which was used for a variety of
purposes, including use for fire apparatus. It was a cab over style
that worked well for shorter apparatus needs.



"Super Pumper System"
1965 - 1982
 The FDNY had been using Mack fire apparatus for many years.
The concept of a "land based fireboat" had been looked at for some time
and around 1962 the FDNY began working with Mack to develop what would
eventually become known as the "Super Pumper System."

One of the busiest days in FDNY history, April 20, 1963, known as "Black Saturday"
saw the city battling multiple drought caused conflagrations which ravaged sections
of Staten Island. Severe water supply problems resulted in many companies unable
to fight fires due to lack of water.

In 1965, Mack Trucks, Inc. delivered the "Super Pumper," a Mack "F" series tractor
drawn pumper capable of over 8,800 gpm at 350 psi.

Mack also delivered a second piece of the system was known as the "Super Tender."
The "F" tractor trailer tender carried approximately 2,000 feet of 4.5" hose and was
equipped with a huge 8" Stang monitor mounted behind the cab, capable of a 10,000 gpm
powerful stream that could reach 600 feet. It was stabilized by hydraulic outriggers.

The Pumper and Tender were housed in a firehouse in Brooklyn.

The system included 3 "Satellite tenders" built on Mack C chassis.
Each was equipped with 4,000 gpm  6" Stang monitors and 2,000 feet of 4.5" hose.
The 3 Tenders were assigned to various parts of the city and assisted in laying hose
and operating large powerful streams on fires.

The Super Pumper System was around for "The War Years" (1970-1980)
as "The Bronx Burned" along with much of Harlem, Brooklyn, and other sections
of the city.  The Super Pumper retired in 1982 after 17 years of service and
over 2,200 major battles.

___________
_____Mack_____

Mack Model "R" Series
1966 - 1990
 Mack introduced the Mack Model "R" Series to replace the long serving B model.
The R model also had an easily recognized style and would be used for many
fire trucks over the years through 1990.

 

Mack Model "CF" Series
1967 - 1990
 The Mack "CF" (Cab Forward) series cab was introduced in 1967.
It replaced the "C" series cab in use since 1956. 
The CF cab had a little more squared off look than the C.
The powerful Mack "Maxidyne" diesel motor was also introduced in 1967.
The Mack CF would continue to be the standard for
fire truck cabs until Mack stopped building fire trucks in 1990.



Mack Model "MC" and "MR" Series
1978 - 1987
 The Mack Model "MC" and "MR" series trucks replaced the MB cab
in use since 1963.  The chassis and cab style made popular by refuse and
other trucks, was also very popular with fire trucks for years.
They would be built from 1978 to 1987.

Mack "Mid-Liner" Series
1979 -
 A lighter duty Mack "mid-Liner" chassis was introduced in 1979
with a definite Renault influence and style. It was used for some fire apparatus.


___________
_____Mack_____

END OF AN ERA
During the late 1970s and 1980s, Mack experienced some financial challenges.
The result over the next decade was the introduction of the Renault and Volvo
influence over the corporation and truck production.

By 1990 Mack stopped building its custom fire apparatus
which had been the gold standard for some 80 years. 

Many of the Mack fire trucks built over those years have been preserved and
are still as "tenacious" as they ever were.

This feature displays some of those great Macks and what made them special
to many firefighters over generations.