In the spring of 1940, a new sound could be heard in Amityville area. It was the rising and falling of the tones of a siren which had been installed for the newly formed North Amityville Fire Company at the Shell Service Station at North Broadway and Smith Street.

The first alert occurred at approximately eleven o'clock one evening evoking a sense of thrill and excitement among the new vamps. But that excitement quickly subsided when the call proved to be false.

Concern for adequate fire protection for an unprotected section of the Town of Babylon had been expressed as early as 1936 when it was suggested that petitions should be circulated among the residents of the hamlet with the purpose being to organize a fire protection district.

In the prior years, the fire fighters in the Village of Amityville would respond to an occasional call for help in the sparsely settled region. But, as insurance laws became more restrictive, the village fathers ordered their fireman to refuse call for assistance in North Amityville.

During 1938-'39 two large conflagrations in the northern hamlet underscored the urgent need for some form of fire protection.

One of the fires destroyed a large house on North Broadway just north of Henry von Essen's farm. The other occurred where the Frontier Mobile park in located, today, destroying the large cow barn of the Rooney Dairy. Although fireman from Copiague and East Farmingdale responded, both structures were a total loss without sufficient sources of water to quench the roaring flames.

Initially, it was believed that residents in the hamlet would form a fire protection district and then enter into a contract with the village department for service.

Although the petitions were circulated in 1936, no formal actions were commenced until February, 1940. At that time a number of residents agreed to the formation of a separate fire company to serve the unincorporated section, known as districts five and six.

Fifty-nine names were signed to a Certificate of Incorporation on the fifteenth day of March, 1940.

To guide the new organization through the first year, five directors were selected. They were: Henry von Essen, John Weston, Oscar Egelund and Charles McCormick.

Meetings were held at the home of Oscar Egelund on Oakland Avenue (now a section of the Gildersleeve Mobile Home Park).

Receiving only $1,100 from the Town of Babylon, it was necessary for the members to raise funds to construct a firehouse and purchase needed equipment.

It was possible in 1940 for the company to buy from the North Bellmore Fire Department a 1926 G.M.C. truck, capable of transporting 250 gallons of water. The Village of Amityville presented the new company with a right-hand drive, hand cranked Johnson truck. The truck, which had been the first motorized fire apparatus in Suffolk County, had been retired by the village. The new company placed a 275-gallon water tank on the truck and returned it to service.

The G.M.C. truck was housed temporarily in Lawrence Dockendorf's Shell Service Station on Broadway at Smith Street. The Johnson truck was kept at Oscar Egelund's home.

With very limited funds, the members found a way to erect a firehouse on a site donated by Oscar Egeland at the north east corner of Rosewood and Coolidge Ave. A Melville farmer donated a barn to the new company. The vamps dismantled the structure and transported the used lumber to the site. Company members of various trades volunteered their time and talents to construct a headquarters building. Completed in 1941, the building consisted of a combination meeting and two bay truck room, a small kitchen and rest rooms. Around 1944, the structure was enlarged to provide space for a third truck, an army Ford with a 500-gallon capacity tank.

To assist the fireman, a number of wives came together, largely through the efforts of Vera Boquist, to form a Ladies Auxiliary in July 1940.Prior to the completion of the firehouse, Mrs. Boquist invited the group to meet in the basement of her home on Harrison Ave. The group, almost immediately, sponsored a card party where they raised $125 for the company.

An annual bazaar was held as a major fund raiser in the summer. War time restrictions forced the company to resort to unique activities in order to sponsor these fund-raising events. A "Blackout Bazaar" took place in a large tent adjoining the firehouse in 1942. Federal Government regulations prohibited any light to shine outdoors after dark as a precaution against possible air raids by the enemy.

The following year in 1943, with gasoline rationing in effect, the vamps prevailed upon member Henry von Essen to transport visitors to the bazaar at Broadway and Coolidge Ave from the village in his farm wagon pulled by a team of horses.

In the company's formative years most alarms were sounded for brush fires. The area was largely rural, consisting of several large farms along North Broadway Albany Ave and a large tract of woods to the north of the Amityville Cemetery. Most homes were located in the southern portion of the hamlet near the village line. Business establishments were few in number.

During the latter part of 1941 the men were called upon to assist the village of Amityville in fighting a major fire at the Brunswick Home. Ladies of the auxiliary responded, as well, serving coffee to the fire fighters. Two fires in the early days seemed to be unusual circumstances. At an Annual Dinner held in the Rosewood Ave firehouse, the kitchen caught fire. The village department arrived to extinguish the blaze and invited the members and their guests to continue the dinner at the village headquarters. A call to a Steele Pl address in 1948 resulted in the vamps having to await the arrival of the fire. Chris Leftenant's refuse truck was afire. He had alerted the firemen to meet him at his home. The vamps reached the scene before the blazing truck arrived.

By the 1950's the population of the hamlet was increasing rapidly and a number of businesses had been located in the area. The small firehouse was no longer adequate to house the additional equipment which was required. In 1955 a new two storied firehouse was dedicated on North Broadway just to the north of Harrison Ave. The new building provided space for additional trucks and a separate meeting room located on the second floor.

A rescue unit was organized in September of 1963 as a service to the community. During its first year of operation, more than one hundred calls were answered. The majority of the alarms sounded since 1963 have been for the rescue squad.

Increased service demanded increased space. Thus in 1969 the "new firehouse" was enlarged.

During the 1970's the entire northeast corner of North Broadway and Harrison Ave was purchased for 90,000 from William Coleman. The additional land area enabled the company to again enlarge its main building. The spacious new building including a three bay truck room, a large meeting hall and recreational lounge was completed in October of 1980.

As the company marked its semi centennial, a further expansion of its facilities has taken place. A new substation with a small lounge and space for two fire trucks was dedicated on Sunday, December 3, 1989.

Located on Commerce Blvd, the new building has enabled the vamps to continue their tradition of excellent service to the hamlet of North Amityville.