By DAVE CLARKEOf The Star CourierKEWANEE - A fixture of smalltown summer parades from Annawan Fun Days to Kewanee's Hog Days are fire engines.
The connection to the first fire truck is that a Howe Pumper, made in Elmira, N.Y., was purchased by the village the same year. Basically, a wagon carrying a wooden barrel and a pump for putting water on a fire, the apparatus was pulled by a team of horses. Assistant Fire Chief Rick Clancy said the aged firefighting vehicle was removed several years ago from the Neponset Fire Department’s branch station in Osceola. It was restored, researched, run in a few parades, and is now on permanent display in the Neponset Historical Society Museum.
According to a sign lettered in red which hangs on the side of the pumper, the original wooden wheels were replaced in 1928 with rubber truck tires. The sign states that the important piece of Neponset history was salvaged and painted by Gordon E. Burnett, owner before it was returned to the fire department.