Bible Hill in earlier times

Bible Hill in the early days was a busy place with stage coaches stopping on Main Street, on their way to Tatamagouche, Pictou, Amherst, Halifax and Truro. Then things changed.

The railroad came to Truro, the first board landing bridge was built and Bible Hill was a country living place; one store owner was named mayor and the population was about 2,200.

Fires soon became a problem, with a couple on Windsor Avenue. Men from the creosote plant were the main help out of a garage on Main Street, with other local men and the Truro fire chief.

Soon, local people decided it was time to do something for ourselves and Wallace Rockwell and a few local people bought some war surplus equipment from Halifax. A meeting was held in the Rockwell store to discuss a fire service for Bible Hill in June 1946.

The equipment included a used tanker, portable pump, hose and equipment and cost about $2,000. It was put to the people to organize a brigade for fire service, raise money to pay for it, and set up an alarm to activate in case of a fire.

If they didn’t want to get involved, the equipment would be sold to another district and we would be on our own again.

There was a good crowd and some clear thinkers and a fire commission was formed to become owner of the equipment for the Village.

A fire brigade was started with the younger lot in favour of the brigade and discussion of an earlier brigade, with only a few people, was going nowhere.

So now we had a fire commission of three people elected by the crowd and a fire brigade, with a lot of people in favour of it. Aubrey Ramsey was elected chief because he was a]truro member with some training and a uniform. Changes were made a bit later but we got our brigade and fire commission and a truck, pump and hose.

An alarm was mounted on the roof of the Rockwell building and inside, Sherman Smith was able to get the truck operating and keep in in repairs.

One of the first calls from there was a house fire on Pictou Road where the house and equipment were lost. The tanker was put on a lawn, down wind and an onlooker remarked “well, you saved the wood shed,” the only thing left.

We should have been on the driveway side and at least moved the new equipment from the kitchen before it burned, but we got a very good lesson on that unit.