Tulsa’s Fire Station 66 Welcomes a New, Old Friend
The “new” 1950 Pirsch fire truck parked in front of Fire Station 66 in Tulsa, Oklahoma.
The Tulsa Fire Department celebrated a return on Friday: a 1950 Pirsch 750 fire truck that served the City of Tulsa back when US Highway 66 was King of the Road. The vintage truck now sits in a place of prominence in front of Tulsa Fire Station 66, a literal welcome wagon to Tulsa’s stretch of Historic Route 66.
Several years ago, the Tulsa Fire Department began a project to embrace the history of the Mother Road at their fire station in east Tulsa. First, it was rebadged as Fire Station 66 and adopted the tagline, “Keepers of the Mother Road.” Then, a large Route 66 sign was installed near the street. Now, a vintage fire truck is parked by the front door to welcome those from around the world that travel the Main Street of America.
When the truck was still parked in Depew, during the summer of 2020/
Lt. Nick Swainston was instrumental in the effort to bring the truck back to Tulsa. “It was [originally] stationed at Station 9, on the west side of downtown,” he said. “It was the only truck retrofitted with a deck pipe…because it was a downtown station.” In the late 1950s, the truck moved to Station 23 where it eventually became part of the reserve fleet. In 1967, it was sold to the City of Depew and it operated as their front line truck. It was a faithful part of their department for decades; in fact, the truck wasn’t fully retired until 2007.
Tulsa’s Chief Baker and Depew’s Chief Tinsley pose in front of the 1950 Pirsch fire truck.
“It has never left 66,” said Depew Fire Chief Jason Tinsley. He served on the truck for many years, working his way up the ladder so to speak. When the time came for the truck to make a return trip to Tulsa, Chief Tinsley insisted that they skip the interstate and take Historic Route 66.
The Tulsa Fire Department garage worked to straighten out some dents and make sure it would be secure in its new home. The lights were repaired and the decking was replaced. Wizard Auto Works added new graphics and Poppy’s Patina finished it off with pin striping. If you look closely, you can still see the original, faded Tulsa lettering on the hood and the Depew Fire Department logo on the door, left purposefully to speak to the truck’s history.
Tulsa Fire Chief Michael Baker added that it was a “family project” between members of the Tulsa, Bristow, and Depew fire departments to restore and install the truck. “This is now, and has been for some time, a destination spot along Route 66…for folks to come by and experience this stretch of the Mother Road and the history of our department.” He also spoke of the educational value of the installation, adding, “It's important to recognize the safety that occurs along a developing city that has a transportation corridor is so critical to the nation. And so we're proud of the folks in the department that worked on this.”
Fire department members from Tulsa, Bristow, and Depew stand proudly with the restored truck.
When you cruise the Mother Road in Oklahoma, be sure to stop at Tulsa’s Fire Station 66, get your passport stamped, and check out this wonderful addition to Historic Route 66!
The Oklahoma Route 66 Association was proud to donate a framed magazine advertisement for the Pirsch 750 truck from 1950.
