The History of Cape Cod Brush Breakers

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CAPE COD BRUSH BREAKERS

HISTORY - IN REVIEW
Brush & Forest Fire Apparatus History
BARNSTABLE COUNTY

~ THE STORY ~
~ HISTORIC CAPE COD FOREST FIRES ~
PAGE 3
Page Updated March 8, 2022

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Cape Cod Brush Breaker
Barnstable County Forest Fire Service No.1 - 1957 Ford/Maxim

PAGE CONTENTS

M - Map
01 - The Cape Cod Forest Fire Problem
02 - Historical Cape Cod Forest Fires
03 - One Large Cape Cod Forest Fire - 1946
04 - Cape Cod Forest Fire Jumped Route 6 - May 1965
05 - Plymouth County Forest Fires
06 - Some More Recent Forest Fires
07 - The Fire Danger - Firefighter Memorial
08 - Fire Prevention - Only You!
09 - Public Education - Smokey Bear
10 - Spotting Fires - Fire Towers
11 - Spotting Fires - Fire Patrol Planes
12 - Locating Fires - Fire Patrol Trucks
13 - Early Firefighting - By Hand
14 - Early Fire Apparatus
15 - First Brush Breakers
16 - Barnstable County Brush Breakers
17 - State Forest Fire Trucks
18 - On The Islands - Brush Trucks
19 - Plymouth County - Brush Trucks
20 - Brush Breakers Working
21 - The Hey Day of Brush Breakers
22 - Tankers and Other Support Apparatus
23 - Forest Fire Training
24 - Small, Medium, and Large Brush Trucks
25 - The Newest Brush Trucks
26 - The END TIMES

MAP

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CAPE COD & THE ISLANDS

BARNSTABLE COUNTY

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1 - THE CAPE COD FOREST FIRE PROBLEM

Forest fires raging through pine forest.

Cape Cod and other areas of Southeastern Massachusetts are known for the many serious brush and forest fires that struck communities over the years.

In 1780, an early morning lightning storm started a fire in the woods. Clouds of dark smoke filled the sky to the west of Sandwich in what was called "The Dark Day." It had been for generations, the practice to "fire the woods" each year as the Indians had done, usually in April, to burn off the grass and
seedlings. This practice kept wide stretches of the forest clear of underbrush but did not damage the large standing trees.

In 1887, a huge forest fire burned over 25,000 acres from the Pocasset section of Bourne to Sandwich. This fire destroyed approximately 600 cord of stacked wood at the Sandwich Glass Company as well as several stands of oak and pine ready for cutting. The Glass company was forced to then purchase and burn coal in its furnaces at a substantial financial cost. This, along with a labor union strike, ultimately contributed to the
demise of the Sandwich Glass Company, one of the Cape's largest industrial businesses between 1825 and 1894.

On May 30,1923 a fire began in the woods in Pocasset village. By the end of the day, it was thought that the fire was out. By morning however, it picked up again, burning through the day. Once again, it was believed that it was under control by nightfall, only to flare up again and again for 7 days. An area of approximately 25,000 acres, between Pocasset village, Sagamore, Sandwich, East Sandwich, and South Sandwich was left blackened.

The State Commissioner of Conservation stated that "something was radically wrong" adding that the fire could have been contained to about 1,000 acres if it had been properly handled since it was not even a "fire day." Following this fire, the state purchased hundreds of acres of burned over forest in Bourne and Sandwich and created the Shawme State Forest in 1923. The name was changed in 1938 to the Shawme-Crowell State Forest, honoring Lincoln Crowell for his long dedication to the Cape's forests. Crowell was killed in 1938 when the patrol truck he was in was struck by a train in Brewster.

"A concerted national fire prevention program (dealing with wildland fires) did not follow, until two experiments in 1928.... The Cape Cod Forest Fire Prevention experiment and the
Southern Forests Education campaign... The Cape Cod program involved 110,000 acres of scrub oak and pitch pine. The experiment was intended to compare the costs of prevention and pre-suppression with those of suppression...." This statement in "Fire in America" by Stephen J. Pyne c.1982, demonstrates how serious the forest fire situation on the Cape was at that time. The Smokey the Bear program grew out of these early fire prevention efforts.

Forest fires can be extremely dangerous, especially when fought by hand. One of the worst fires ever on Cape Cod struck on April 27, 1938. A number of fires were burning on the Cape and in Plymouth County, when another fire began in Sandwich Bourne Deputy Chief Gibbs took a crew of young men, volunteers, with him in to fight the fire west of what is now Route 130 in Sandwich. 40 mile per hour winds fanned the flames and the men were soon trapped by the fire. All received serious burns. Three men, Thomas Adams, age 43; Gordon King, age 34, and Ervin Draber, age 28 died that day fighting this forest fire. A memorial stands today near the site where they died.

1780 - THE DARK DAY
In 1780, an early morning lightning storm started a fire in the woods. Clouds of dark smoke filled the sky to the west of Sandwich in what was called "The Dark Day." It had been for generations, the practice to "fire the woods" each year as the Indians had done, usually in April, to burn off the grass and seedlings. This practice kept wide stretches of the forest clear of underbrush but did not damage the large standing trees.

1887 - 25,000 ACRES
In 1887, a huge forest fire burned over 25,000 acres from the Pocasset section of Bourne to Sandwich. This fire destroyed approximately 600 cord of stacked wood at the Sandwich Glass Company as well as several stands of oak and pine ready for cutting. The Glass company was forced to then purchase and burn coal in its furnaces at a substantial financial cost. This, along with a labor union strike, ultimately contributed to the demise of the Sandwich Glass Company, one of the Cape's largest industrial businesses between 1825 and 1894.

1923 - 25,000 ACRES
On May 30,1923 a fire began in the woods in Pocasset village. By the end of the day, it was thought that the fire was out. By morning however, it picked up again, burning through the day. Once again, it was believed that it was under control by nightfall, only to flare up again and again for 7 days. An area of approximately 25,000 acres, between Pocasset village, Sagamore, Sandwich, East Sandwich, and South Sandwich was left blackened.

1923 - STATE FOREST CREATED
The State Commissioner of Conservation stated that "something was radically wrong" adding that the fire could have been contained to about 1,000 acres if it had been properly handled since it was not even a "fire day." Following this fire, the state purchased hundreds of acres of burned over forest in Bourne and Sandwich and created the Shawme State Forest in 1923. The name was changed in 1938 to the Shawme-Crowell State Forest, honoring Lincoln Crowell for his long dedication to the Cape's forests. Crowell was killed in 1938 when the patrol truck he was in was struck by a train in Brewster.

1928 - CAPE COD FOREST FIRE PREVENTION
"A concerted national fire prevention program (dealing with wildland fires) did not follow, until two experiments in 1928.... The Cape Cod Forest Fire Prevention experiment and the
Southern Forests Education campaign... The Cape Cod program involved 110,000 acres of scrub oak and pitch pine. The experiment was intended to compare the costs of prevention and pre-suppression with those of suppression...." This statement in "Fire in America" by Stephen J. Pyne c.1982, demonstrates how serious the forest fire situation on the Cape was at that time. The Smokey the Bear program grew out of these early fire prevention efforts.

APRIL 27, 1938 - 3 FIREFIGHTERS KILLED
Forest fires can be extremely dangerous, especially when fought by hand. One of the worst fires ever on Cape Cod struck on April 27, 1938. A number of fires were burning on the Cape and in Plymouth County, when another fire began in Sandwich Bourne Deputy Chief Gibbs took a crew of young men, volunteers, with him in to fight the fire west of what is now Route 130 in Sandwich. 40 mile per hour winds fanned the flames and the men were soon trapped by the fire. All received serious burns. Three men, Thomas Adams, age 43; Gordon King, age 34, and Ervin Draber, age 28 died that day fighting this forest fire. A memorial stands today near the site where they died.

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2 - HISTORIC CAPE COD FOREST FIRES

Historic forest fires raged across Cape Cod many times.
Aug 1907 Fire

Going far back in history, large forest fires have impacted communities and industries.

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3 - ONE LARGE CAPE COD FOREST FIRE - 1946

The 1946 Forest Fire burned about 15,000 acres

A 1946 Forest Fire in the upper Cape burned for days. It covered about 15,000 acres. A documentary film was made showing the progress and response to the fire including the use of brush breakers of that time.

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4 - CAPE COD FOREST FIRE JUMPED ROUTE 6 - MAY 1965

1965 Fire jumped Route 6 in Sandwich

A rapidly moving forest fire that started in the Otis/Camp Edwards Military Reservation raged to and jumped over the Mid-Cape Highway (Route 6) in Sandwich on May 1, 1965. It scorched and blackened many acres of forest visible for a number of years.

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5 - PLYMOUTH COUNTY FOREST FIRES

Map showing some of the historic Plymouth County Forest Fires.

There is a map inside the Myles Standish State Forest District 2 Headquarters showing some of the many significant fires that have struck Plymouth County over the years.

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6 - SOME MORE RECENT FOREST FIRES

The PAVE PAWS Forest Fire burned in the 1988.

A large fire known as the PAVE PAWS Fire occurred on April 22, 1988. It burned about 1600 acres around the radar site. Photo taken from Fire Patrol Plane P18.

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7 - THE FIRE DANGER - FIREFIGHTER MEMORIAL

Firefighter Memorial Route 130 in Sandwich

A forest fire on April 27, 1938 burned out of the Camp Edwards National Guard Camp, eventually covering a 5 mile wide by 12 mile long area toward Sandwich into what would be the Shawme Crowell State Forest. Three of the firemen who battled the blaze were trapped, burned, and killed by the fire. The memorial remembers Thomas Adams, Ervin Draber, and Gordon King who were lost that day.

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8 - FIRE PREVENTION - ONLY YOU!

The prevention of forest fires became a major effort.

"Only you can prevent forest fires."

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9 - PUBLIC EDUCATION - SMOKEY BEAR

Smokey Bear

Public education and fire prevention go hand in hand.

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10 - SPOTTING FIRES - FIRE TOWERS

Fire towers, like this one in Barnstable in 1919, were staffed by spotters who
overlooked the Cape and other areas looking for smoke as fires started.

Fire towers became a vital part of combating forest fires. The earlier the fire could be detected and reported, the sooner it could be contained.

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11 - SPOTTING FIRES - FIRE PATROL PLANES

Barnstable County Fire Patrol Plane P-18

Barnstable County and Plymouth County both operated Fire Patrol Planes for many years. Going back to at least 1954, and perhaps before, these planes could provide assistance in locating fires and advising chiefs and personnel on the ground how to safely access them.

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12 - LOCATING FIRES - FIRE PATROL TRUCKS

Fire Patrol Trucks were also a vital aspect of battling wild fires.

Before many fire departments were staffed, there were staffed Fire Patrol trucks that would be in contact via radio with fire towers and the fire patrol plane and often reached fires first. Shown here around 1958 at the Marstons Mills Airport are the Town of Barnstable Patrol truck 210 and the State Patrol Truck Car 3, as well as some chiefs.

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13 - EARLY FIREFIGHTING - BY HAND

In the beginning, fires were fought by hand

Many of the largest fires were fought before there were many motorvehicles

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14 - EARLY FIRE APPARATUS

Photo

Info

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15 - FIRST BRUSH BREAKERS

Photo

Info