Haunted Thomasville Misc.

The John Triplett Fire Truck

Here is the transcription of an article from February 8, 1927.

Recently Discarded City Fire Truck Saw Many Years Service

Chief Porter Gives Some Interesting Figures on the Old John Triplett Truck Which Went Into Service in 1913.

The following is a brief history of the old John Triplett, (who died in 1914 and has a monument at the steps of the Courthouse), fire truck. The John Triplett truck responded to its first fire alarm at 9:35 a.m. , August 10, 1913 on West Jefferson Street. During the 13 years and 6 months of service, it answered 1,156 fire alarms and traveled a distance of approximately 5,500 miles over all kinds of rough streets at a high rate of speed and in all kinds of rough weather. The estimated distance the motor traveled in answering alarms and being warmed up in the station was approximately 70,000 miles.

Its service was practically one hundred percent perfect as it never failed to return under its own power three times, once being in a hard rainstorm when it was drowned out, once a bearing burned out, and third, on the 31st day of December, 1916, (these dates are wrong of course), at 4:30 p.m. being driven by former Chief Dawkins, it collided with a Ford car at the corner of Crawford and Monroe streets and was completely wrecked, killing Chief Dawkins and injuring four other men. It was rebuilt in the local fire department and was back in service in about 30 days. It responded to it last fire alarm at 3:04 p.m. on the 18th day of January, 1927 on Mimosa Drive.

It was driven out of the fire department on the morning of January 29th at 8:00 to start its long journey to Atlanta, GA., where it is to be rebuilt or junked.

Chief J. E. Porter, Fire Department

An odd coincidence, John Triplett would die August 19, 1914 in an Old Confederates Home in Atlanta after setting his bed on fire while smoking a pipe.

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