A recent photo taken of the fire engine. Conditions under the hood of the fire engine from the 1930, while no longer functioning, remain entirely intact. Submitted photo

The Mandan Historical Society is finishing up its feasibility study on a possible project to restore a 1930s-era fire engine. Members have found some answers, but in some respects that has only raised more questions.

But circumstances are going to force a decision in the near future. Mike Britt, a volunteer firefighter in California and a member of his local chapter of Society for the Preservation & Appreciation of Antique Motor Fire Apparatus in America, contacted the Mandan Fire Department and the Historical Society back in September 2009. He noticed a rusted hull of a fire engine in a junkyard near Fontana, Calif., while he and a friend were salvaging parts for their restoration project. Mandan Fire Department lettering was still legible after more than years of exposure to the elements.

According to the Mandan Historical Society, only two cities in U.S. history have been named “Mandan.” The mining ghost town in the upper peninsula of Michigan was abandoned in the early 1910s after the two area copper mines played out. While this information suggests that the truck was from North Dakota, it does not explain how it wound up on the West Coast.

The most engaging element of the story, however, remains how the vehicle wound up in California. The wife of the 80-year-old California salvage yard owner, Bernie Long, was from Reynolds, a small North Dakota town. In the 1950s and 1960s, the couple made frequent trips back to North Dakota to visit her family. On a highway near Cooperstown, he saw this old fire engine from the road several times over several years. Long operated a salvage yard which specializes in trucks. He approached various rural residents and bought collectables to fix and resell it. Or if he could not restore it, he planned to part it out and scrap the rest. He always attended auctions up and down the west coast buying up old trucks and other vehicles.

On one of the trips to North Dakota, he stopped and checked out the old Mandan fire engine. On a later trip he came back and bought it and hauled it back to his yard. And there it has sat ever since.

The current sense of urgency stems from the fact that his wife died late last year. Now that Long is alone and his own health is failing, his kids and grandkids are encouraging him to start selling his stockpile. He is placing ads in truck magazines and selling things off one at a time.

What makes the fire engine that much more rare is the fact that in the 1940s, many antique vehicles were sent off to iron blast furnaces to make war supplies during World War II. The fact that it survived that era makes it that much more worthy of restoration.

Three members of the Mandan Historical Society are compiling information on the truck assess local resources to restore the vehicle.

Bob Porter, with the assistance of city officials, located a photo of a ’30s-era Mandan parade featuring three fire engines including a “modern” 1931 model. The wheel spoke count suggests the salvage yard is the current home to a 1930s model rather than the 1920s. But the photo does not match the current configuration of the engine. This has led to consideration that this at the junkyard was a second engine purchased by the city of approximately the same age.

Bryen Birkholz has been approaching area businesses and vintage vehicle collectors for assistance with the possible project. To date, storage space has been offered to perform the restoration, and a professional fundraiser has offered his services. David Kroll is spearheading communications with the gentlemen in California. Britt recently revisited the salvage yard. The engine is complete and has not been stripped of parts. But most of the instrument cluster and whatever else made up the dash is gone. All the metal pieces and levers are there, but most everything that was wooden or leather has rotted away long ago and will have to be recreated.

The engine is complete and has not been stripped for parts. The carburetor, starter, generator, oil pump, distributor, spark plugs plus fan belt and fan are all there.  The wiring has deteriorated so new wiring will be required.  The steering column and steering box are also complete.

Pretty much everything that was wooden or leather on the fire engine has rotted away long ago and will have to be restored.

Britt remarked to the historical society, “Hopefully you have some good mechanics willing to volunteer lots of hours to what could be a big project – but at least it is all there to work with.”

While purchase price negotiations have started, only the initial asking price is beyond current commitments, much less transportation back to Mandan or restoration costs. If the project is to move forward, resources will have to be identified in the next month so interested members can visit and verify the condition of the vehicle.

Kroll is serving as the contact for any residents or businesses interested in assisting with the project or willing to help offer financial donations.

You can reach him at 663-4831 or via email at fire-engine@mandanhistory.org.

-Brian L. Gray