The Moultonborough Fire Department traces its roots back to the late 1920s when a few pieces of firefighting equipment were purchased by the town. This followed a string of bad fires in Moultonborough throughout the decade—when fires struck the town, it was up to citizens alongside the departments of neighboring Center Harbor or Meredith to put them out. A 1927 Chevrolet truck and a 1930 portable pump were acquired and put under the supervision of the Board of Selectmen for a time, with the truck being housed in a garage behind the post office.
In 1932, the Moultonborough Volunteer Fire Department was created and a two-story, single bay firehouse was built on town hall property on Whittier Highway the following year. The department added an additional fire truck to the roster in 1937, a GMC/Collins Motor Corporation pumper with 500 GPM pump and 20 gallons of water. Ten years later, the department took an International chassis and married it with an old oil tanker tank to create its first tanker truck.
In 1951, the department signed on as a charter member of the LRMFA.
By 1957, the department was too large for the current station and a new three-bay brick station was built on Holland Street. This housed the 1937 GMC pumper, department-built tanker, as well as a new 1957 FWD/Scott Machinery pumper for Engine 1. Around this time, it was decided that additional fire protection was needed on Moultonborough Neck during the summertime months. The department put the 1927 Chevy in that area during the tourist season, located at a cider mill. By 1960, the department had decided to build a permanent station on Moultonborough Neck. This was erected in 1962, a two-bay building that would house the 1947 tanker and a future apparatus—the Chevrolet pumper was retired at this time and sold in 1966.
In 1965, the town was deciding what to do with the original wooden station that was no longer used. The department ran a campaign to keep it from being torn down, and it was moved behind the station on Holland Street. In 1968, Engine 4, an International/Farrar 4WD pumper with unknown GPM and unknown gallon tank, was delivered. This was housed at the Moultonborough Neck station. The town also repurchased its original 1927 Chevrolet fire engine. In 1972, Engine 5 was delivered, a Ford/Maynard pumper.
From at least 1974, Moultonborough utilized the Kemp-Symonds Ambulance Service, part of the Kemp-Symonds Funeral Home, for medical transports. In 1976, one of the apparatus was sent out for refurbishment by Moody, and in 1977, a utility truck was added to the fleet. It was also around this time that the department’s first fire boat was donated to them by a resident.
In 1981, they sold the an unknown apparatus (possibly the 1937GMC/Collins?) upon delivery of a Ford/Farrar pumper for the Neck Station. This would be assigned to Engine 2. By 1982, the department had also added three forestry units to the roster: a 1953 Dodge, 1965 Chevrolet ex-military truck (both listed as Forestry 2 in town reports), and a 1971 AM General as Forestry 1.
Sometime between 1972 and 1982 the department began running medical calls; medical expenses began showing up in town reports around 1979. In 1984, the town switched ambulance providers from Kemp-Symonds to Stewart’s Ambulance.
In 1985, the department once again moved the original fire station, this time to its current location off of Whittier Highway by the library. A 1985 International/E-One with 1000 GPM pump and 1000 gallon tank was delivered for Engine 1, replacing the 1957 FWD. The following year a Chevrolet Suburban was delivered for use by the chief of the department, and mention was made of selling an unknown apparatus to an unknown department or private buyer. In 1986, a Chevrolet with 200 gallon tank was delivered for use by Forestry 2. And in 1987, the utility truck was sold to Blue Hill, Maine for just over $10,000. This was replaced by a 1987 International/American Modular Body Company rescue truck for Rescue 1. In 1988, Engine 5 was refurbished.
In 1990, a Ford F-250 was purchased at no cost to taxpayers, through savings and donations of residents, to create a light-rescue utility style truck known as Rescue 2.
In 1992, an additional two bays were added to the Neck Station, providing additional space and wider bays for larger apparatus. The following year in 1993, Engine 4’s International/Farrar was transitioned to a forestry rig with the arrival of a 1993 Freightliner pumper, assigned to Engine 3. In 1994, the town’s first full-time fire chief was appointed, and he was assigned a new Chevrolet Suburban in 1997. The 1981 Ford for Engine 2 was refurbished in 1997 and Rescue 1 was refurbished the following year.
In 2001, the 1972 Ford/Maynard was sold after the delivery of a 2000 HME assigned to Engine 4. This truck had a 1500 GPM pump and 1200 gallon tank. In 2003, a new main fire station was built on Whittier Highway just around the corner of the then-current central fire station; this modern building had four drive-through bays able to house the majority of the department’s equipment, as well as the contracted unit from Stewart’s Ambulance that would serve Moultonborough, Center Harbor, and Sandwich. The building shares a common entrance with the Moultonborough PD.
The department added multiple pieces of apparatus during the first decade of the new millennium, including a 2001 Chevrolet Suburban for Rescue 3, a 2004 Chevrolet Suburban for the chief, a 2006 snow machine for use on the lake in wintertime, and a 2007 HME with 2000 GPM pump and 1000 gallon tank for Engine 1.
In 2010, the department entered into an automatic aid agreement with Center Harbor, with both departments responding to fire-related calls around the town border on New Hampshire Route 25. Throughout the rest of the decade, a number of apparatus replacements occurred:
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- In 2011, the department purchased a new fire boat, a ??? with 1000 GPM pump. This was housed at Lee’s Mills at a dock during the spring and summer months.
- By 2012, Rescue 1 was in need of repairs and instead of refurbishing it a second time, the department ordered a 2013 HME heavy rescue.
- In 2015, an old Ford F-350 pickup from the DPW was upfitted into a utility truck, designated Utility 1.
- A 2015 Ford/HME with 1500 GPM pump and 400 gallon tank was delivered for Rescue 3.
- A 2017 International tanker with 2000 GPM pump and 3000 gallon tank was placed into service as Tanker 1.
- In 2018, HME delivered another engine to the department, this time equipped with a 1500 GPM pump and 1600 gallon tank, for Engine 3, replacing the 1993 Freightliner.
- Also in 2018, the 1971 AM General forestry truck was sold to neighboring Sandwich.
- In 2019, a Ford identical to the one used by Rescue 3 was delivered and assigned to Rescue 2.
In 2021, a Ford/Kimtek forestry unit with 400 gallon tank was assigned to Forestry 1. Sometime around this time, a new Ford pickup was assigned to Utility 1, with the previous truck being outfitted as a brush truck for use by Forestry 2 at the Neck station.
Following a tragic snowmobiling accident on Lake Winnipesaukee in 2017, the department was gifted an Air Rider AR-45 hovercraft by the Mark O’Connell Foundation for Lake Winnipesaukee Safety. This would allow Moultonborough to provide quicker response times to all areas of the lake when frozen over in the winter months.
