The classic American LaFrance 'bathtub" is probably the image many of us have in mind as the definitive firetruck. If you will pardon my saying - all fire trucks look alike these days, but certainly a LaFrance was identifiable from miles away!
One nice little department of the 1980s was Caribou, Maine, with an "all LaFrance" lineup. I happened to stumble across it on a day when they were swamping out the floors of the truck bays, and so had four rigs out on the apron. I am showing the Kodachrome slides, full frame:
1. The newest was this pumper with an extended roof canopy, but otherwise open to the weather. Those Maine firemen must have been tough.
2. Number 2 was an older model which seemed to have a back wall on the cab.
3. This monster conventional wore number 3. It probably had a Packard V-12 gasoline engine.
4. Number 4 was the oldest of the bathtub types in the hall.
5. Rounding out the roster on that day, was Number 8, a LaFrance tanker/pumper on a Chev 80 commercial chassis.
6. Old number 3 had the usual pump panel ahead of the firewall.
7. What can I add?
I now regret that I didn't copy any information on the trucks, so I would welcome any more details.
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