A Brief History
Prior to 1849, the bucket brigade and wet blankets were the only means to fight fires. In 1849 Hudson organized the first volunteer fire department in Summit County. Later that year, a two-wheel hose cart was pulled by 16 men to battle a blaze. Hudson and North Akron handled all the firefighting in Summit County until 1886 when other departments began forming.
In 1859 Hudson purchased a horse drawn pumper, the first in Summit County. When the bell sounded, a team of horses pulled the engine; if no horses showed up the firefighters would pull the engine. It took 16 men to operate the hand pumper. This was in service until 1911.