At the October 1888 meeting of North Wales Borough Council the committee on fire hose reported a price of sixty-five cents a foot for 600 feet, and the time of payment to be one year from the time of purchase. This committee also reported the cost of a ladder at eighteen and three quarter cents a foot, for thirty feet.
The committee on hose carriage house reported that the foundation had been dug and some stones hauled to the place of building (the south corner of 3rd Street and Montgomery Avenue). The committee also reported that they had been looking around pricing carriages, but had found them to be too high in price. They stated that they were of the opinion that the carriage could be built at home cheaper than it could be bought abroad. The committee on hose, hose carriage and ladders was instructed to order the material pertaining to their respective businesses as soon as practicable.
On November 5, 1888, A. K. Shearer reported the fire hose had been received and was stored in his carriage house where they were hung up to dry.
Borough Council’s action for protection against fire was evidently not started soon enough, because on December 8 and 10, 1888, the borough suffered one of the worst fires in its history. This conflagration caused the entire destruction of the planing mill owned by A. K. Shearer and leased to Weber and Weikel, the grocery store of Percival Slough, Swartley Brothers Feed House and contents, and John W. Swartley’s coal yard. These buildings were burned on December 8.
Only two days later, on December 10th, the hay house and press of A. K. Shearer was destroyed by fire. These two fires aroused the citizens to send the following petition to council:
“The undersigned citizens of North Wales respectfully petition and request, that you call a town meeting of the citizens of the borough at an early hour tomorrow, Tuesday, to take certain measures as may prevent further fires, and to ,apprehend and punish the perpetrator of the same. Elias K. Freed, German Hamberger, Henry W. Moyer, J. K. Trego, S. R. Gordon, Isaac Wampole Jr., J. Martin Hunsberger, Jacob B. Overholt, Peter Lalley, J. F. Berger, William H. Staiger, Charles W. Keck, Mark B. Fretz, A. F. Matson, C. E. Bean, William Howland and John Weikel.”
In compliance with the above petition the council convened at 9 a.m. December 11, 1888. The meeting was called to order by President Anderman who stated that the object of the meeting was to call a citizens’ meeting in the council chamber this afternoon for the purpose of taking such steps as would prevent further fires and to apprehend and punish the perpetrator of the same. After some remarks on the subject it was moved and seconded to notify all the citizens to meet this afternoon at 1 o’clock.
The minutes of the citizens’ meeting read as follows: “A special public meeting of the citizens. of North Wales was held this afternoon to consult with each other in regard to the fires which have taken place in our borough within a few days, and to devise some means of preventing a repetition of them in the future. The meeting was largely attended by taxpayers and organized by electing Judge Hamberger, president, and Rev. George D. Faust, secretary.
“After a general discussion of the matter the following resolution was unanimously adopted as the sentiment of the meeting, and the officers of the meeting were instructed to present to you in writing that you may take it into consideration at the council meeting to be held this evening. ‘Resolved that this meeting composed of taxpayers of the Borough of North Wales respectfully request the town council of said borough to offer a reward of five hundred dollars for the arrest and conviction of any person or persons who may be proven to have had a hand in causing the recent fires in North Wales, or who may at any time in the future be found guilty of any incendiary act within the limits of the said borough.’”
Borough Council reconvened the same evening at 7.30 o’clock with President Anderman in the chair. The citizens of the borough presented a petition requesting the council to offer a reward of five hundred dollars, as requested by the citizens’ organization. (Adjusted for inflation, the reward is equivalent to $17,000 in 2025). After some discussion it was moved and seconded to adopt a resolution complying with the request. This motion was unanimously agreed to.
This post is sourced from a column entitled Early North Wales: Its History and Its People penned by long-time North Wales resident historian Leon T. Lewis. The article appeared in its original form in the October 27, 1959 issue of the North Penn Reporter