Tag Archive | Kensington Volunteer Fire Department
August 16, 2025  

Kensington’s First Fire Truck Turns 100

1925 Dodge-Graham Firetruck

A fully restored 1925 Dodge‑Graham Brothers chemical pumper—nearly identical to Kensington’s original fire truck, delivered by Reed Brothers Dodge in August 1925.

One hundred years ago, on August 16, 1925, the Kensington (Maryland) Volunteer Fire Department received its first fire truck from Reed Brothers Dodge at a cost of $5,000, marking a pivotal step forward in the town’s public safety infrastructure. The truck itself wasn’t off-the-shelf—it was built using an innovative system known as the “Truck Builder”, a basic passenger-car platform that allowed customers to custom-design a truck to suit their needs. This approach, pioneered by the Graham Brothers and marketed by the Dodge Brothers, helped revolutionize utility vehicle manufacturing in the 1920s.

From the Kensington Volunteer Fire Department’s history webpage:

1922 was the birth of the Kensington Volunteer Fire Department. With little money, a Dodge truck was purchased from Reed Brothers Dodge in Rockville. A custom fire body was then built and fitted on the truck by Jacobs Brothers in Gaithersburg who ran the Wheelwright Shop on East Diamond Avenue. To raise money, the volunteers held carnivals. The Fire Department incorporated in 1925, and two years later moved into a permanent home in the basement of the National Guard Armory.

This article in the Evening Star, August 16, 1925, describes the fire engine ordered by Kensington.

This milestone reflects not only a key advancement in firefighting capability, but also the essential role of Reed Brothers Dodge, one of the oldest Dodge dealerships in the United States. Founded in 1915 by Lewis Reed, the dealership became a trusted name in Montgomery County for nearly a century.

As we reflect on this centennial anniversary, it’s a testament to how innovation, public service, and family-run enterprise helped shape the heart of small-town America—one custom-built fire truck at a time.

October 10, 2020  

First Kensington VFD Fire Truck Purchased from Reed Brothers Dodge

The first piece of fire apparatus purchased by the Kensington (Maryland) Volunteer Fire Department was a 1925 Dodge-Graham fire engine purchased from Reed Brothers Dodge at a cost of $5,000. It was not a complete truck when purchased, however.

From the Kensington Volunteer Fire Department’s “History” webpage:

1922 was the birth of the Kensington Volunteer Fire Department. With little money, a Dodge truck was purchased from Reed Brothers Dodge in Rockville. A custom fire body was then built and fitted on the truck by Jacobs Brothers in Gaithersburg who ran the Wheelwright Shop on East Diamond Avenue. To raise money, the volunteers held carnivals. The Fire Department incorporated in 1925, and two years later moved into a permanent home in the basement of the National Guard Armory.

Kensington VFD first fire truck

The Evening Star, 16 Aug 1925

A bit of Dodge-Graham Brothers history: Dodge trucks actually began with three brothers named Graham. In reality, it is the story of two companies – the Dodge Brothers Company and the Graham Brothers Company. In 1916, seeing the need for a good, dependable truck to serve people, the Graham brothers entered the truck body business. By 1919, they had produced the “Truck-builder,” which is a basic platform from which a customer could spec a truck according to his or her needs. The Truck Builder was essentially a truck conversion that began with a passenger car.

In 1921, Dodge Brothers began to market Graham Brothers medium-duty trucks through its dealerships; in turn, every Graham vehicle utilized a Dodge engine. This partnership provided Dodge dealers with a full line of trucks to sell in addition to the highly regarded Dodge passenger cars, and the resulting sales increases prompted Dodge to buy the Graham Brothers Company.

The Dodge trucks would carry the Graham Brothers nameplate until 1928 with a few of the designs lasting as long as the 1930s.

Pictured below is not the Kensington engine, but a fully restored 1925 Dodge-Graham Brothers Era Chemical Pumper that was probably very similar to the original one that was used.

Fully Restored 1925 Dodge-Graham Brothers Era Chemical Pumper

Fully Restored 1925 Dodge-Graham Brothers Era Chemical Pumper

 

June 12, 2019  

75 Years Ago: Fire Destroys Barns on Rockville Farm

Seventy five years ago, from the pages of The Washington Evening Star newspaper for the first week of September 1944.

Members of the Rockville Volunteer Fire Department fought a fire on the farm of Mrs. Rose Veirs, a mile and a half west of Rockville, which destroyed three bars, a silo, livestock and grain. Barn and brush fires were very difficult to control and complete loss of the buildings or fields was usually inevitable. This was the case with Mrs. Rose Veirs who lost three barns, a silo, livestock and grain in a fire in 1944. The farm was associated for 70 years with the prominent Rockville family, the Veirs.

These previously unpublished photographs taken by Lewis Reed show scenes during the fire and extent of the damage.

1944 Rockville Fire

Fire destroys building on the farm of Mrs Rose Veirs. Photo by Lewis Reed.

From The Evening Star, September 07, 1944:

$25,000 Damage Done As Volunteer Firemen Fight Blaze for 5 Hours

Three barns and a silo were leveled, 2 horses and 7 calves were killed and 1,500 bushels of barley and 115 tons of hay were destroyed last night by fire on the 250-acre farm of Mrs Rose Veirs, a mile and a half west of Rockville, Md. Damage was estimated at $25,000 and was partially covered by insurance.

Four pumpers and a rescue wagon from the Rockville Volunteer Fire Department and two pumpers from the Kensington Volunteer Fire Department fought the blaze for five hours, although handicapped by a lack of water.

A small pond was drained, and the pumpers went back to Rockville several times for water. A pump on the property was put to work, but the fire had too far advanced to save the buildings.

L.M. Kennedy, foreman on the farm, discovered the fire about 8:10 p.m. J. Vinson Peter, son-in-law of Mrs, Veirs, manages the farm and gave the estimate of damage.

1944 Rockville Fire

Fire destroys building on the farm of Mrs Rose Veirs. Photo by Lewis Reed.

Organized with 51 men in 1921, the Rockville Volunteer Fire Department now has a diverse complement of over 270 volunteers supported by almost 100 Montgomery County career firefighters. The call volume has increased tremendously over the years, from the 1920’s where the Department responded to about 200 incidents a year to the present, where they responded to over 25,000 incidents in 2017.