THE FIRST fire brigade in
Bourne was formed in 1815, run by local fire insurance companies who owned
a manual water pump. Those who paid regular premiums for protection
against the outbreak of fire were given a metal plaque bearing the name or
logo of their particular company which was attached to the outside of the
building and could be easily identified by the brigade in the event of a
blaze.
This was an unsatisfactory arrangement because the appliance and equipment
were often poorly maintained and not all buildings in the town were
protected. In 1874, an Act of Parliament transferred responsibility for
the upkeep of the fire brigade to the Vestry Meeting which was then in
charge of parish affairs, empowering the overseers of the poor to pay out
of the local rate.
By 1900, responsibility for the fire
brigade had been taken over by Bourne Urban District Council when a
horse-drawn pump was kept underneath one of the arches of the Town Hall.
It was a manual appliance requiring crews of four men working each side of
the pump and delivering a single jet of water. When the firemen became
tired of pumping, bystanders were recruited to take over and paid one
shilling an hour although sometimes the volunteers were rewarded with beer
and a barrel was carried on the fire engine for this purpose.
The council later bought a new steam pump manned by twelve volunteers and
hauled by a pair of grey horses which were stabled in the yard of the Bull
public house next door but were also shared with a local undertaker who
used them to pull the hearse at funerals. Nevertheless, it was an
efficient service known to turn out to a fire within 11 minutes. When
there was an alert, firemen were called out by a brass bell on the chimney
of the Bull that was rung by pulling a rope dangling between the two
buildings but high enough to be out of the reach of mischievous children.
In 1928, a pump towed by a lorry was purchased but the vehicle to pull it
had to be hired from a local firm and in 1930, the brigade received its
first motor tender towing a trailer pump, an appliance with long ladders
on the top and benches alongside the tender on which firemen sat while
travelling to a fire. This remained in service until 1945 when the present
fire station was opened and within twenty years it housed three modern
appliances, each carrying 400 gallons of water, foam and breathing
apparatus.
The fire station was rebuilt in 1969 with a new appliance room, stores,
repairs, muster and watch rooms, a station office, social clubroom and
kitchen. There has been a continuous development to the modern fire
service we know today with constant upgrading of vehicles and equipment
and Bourne is now part of the Lincolnshire Fire and Rescue Service.
The station is manned by retained fire fighters, that is personnel who
also have full time jobs but are alerted by bleepers when there is a fire
or an emergency because the brigade also turns out for other disasters
including road accidents and air crashes. In 1989, Mrs Annette Jackman,
aged 27, a mother of two young children, joined the staff at the Bourne
station, so becoming the first retained firewoman in Lincolnshire.
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