A photo taken about 1995 of the Gratz Area Fire Company building located on south Center Street in Gratz, Dauphin County, Pennsylvania. The volunteer fire company was established after the Great Gratz Fire of 1924. Prior to that disastrous event, Gratz relied on volunteer bucket brigades to extinguish fires – or had to depend on neighboring communities to come to the aid of the town. Also important in fire fighting in Gratz was that after the big fire, a water department was established and fire hydrants were placed throughout the town.
Today, the Amish residents of Gratz and Lykens Township are a large contingent of the volunteer force.
The building shown above was built about 1948. Before this modern facility was built, the company was housed in a small, garage-like structure next to what was originally the I. O. O. F. Building, later Reed’s Fine Furniture, and currently The Grand Entrance. The first fire house still exists today and the exterior has been restored to its original appearance by its present owner.
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