Gaffney Fire & Rescue History & Images
Gaffney Fire Department History
In October 1899, the concern for the life safety and property conservation became apparent when the citizens of Gaffney met to discuss a fire department for their City. In March of 1900 the newly organized Gaffney Fire Department met for the first time to train with their new equipment, which was housed adjacent to the old city hall at the intersection of Limestone and Meadow Streets.
On May 2, 1913, Gaffney Town Council authorized building rooms and a stairway in the City Hall for its firefighters and installed a fire bell in the Courthouse. This single station served the City of Gaffney for many years until a second station was constructed on West Montgomery Street in 1968. The substation on West Montgomery Street was built to help provide fire protection in the area west of the railroad. In 1974, construction was completed on a new Gaffney Fire Department Main Station located a 205 North Limestone Street, site of the old City Hall. In 2002, the Overbrook Fire Station was constructed to replace the West Montgomery Street Station in order to better serve the western part of the City.
In January 2003, the East Gaffney Fire Station was completed to provide a quicker response and higher level of service to the densely populated and industrialized Greater Gaffney Area. The Gaffney Fire Department has developed from a volunteer department with only a hose cart to a paid department with 33 paid firefighters, 1 paid fire chief, 1 paid secretary, and 1 paid fire inspector operating 7 pieces of fire fighting apparatus.
