POMEROY — It was in 1847 — 165 years ago this month — after a
major fire struck Pomeroy, that a small group of men got
together to organize the Pomeroy Fire Department, one of the
first volunteer units in the State of Ohio. Those first
dedicated volunteer fire fighters, who had watched as a section
of Pomeroy burned, set up stations in four sections of town, and
for the next 50 years operated what might be described as a
bucket brigade to fight fires that occurred. Near the turn of
the century, The Barckoff Organ Co. moved into town and built a
factory just off Spring Avenue in Pomeroy, which was then a
growing and prosperous community. Barckoff wanted good fire
protection, and to get it, his company provided the first real
fire-fighting equipment for the Pomeroy Fire Department. It
consisted of a steam pumper and a hose wagon and reel. The
equipment was stored in the ward houses, and the horses to pull
it were stabled at the rear of the old Pomeroy Village Hall
located on a lot adjacent to what is now the Ne