Phil Egan

Much of Sarnia’s commercial core was damaged by disastrous fires that broke out in 1866 and then again in 1867, the year of Confederation.

And in both cases the community was forced to rely on a fire brigade from across the river in Port Huron to help extinguish the flames.

So, in January of 1868, town council agreed to invest in a steam fire engine – the same Clapp & Jones engine manufactured in New York and used in Port Huron.

The townspeople of Sarnia had witnessed its effectiveness multiple times after the American firefighters had come to their rescue.

Bonds were issued to cover the $4,000 (U.S.) cost and an Engine House was built on the river at the foot of George Street.

Permanent water tanks were placed at London Road and what’s now Brock Street, with a third located in the South Ward.

And in the newly constructed St. Andrew’s Presbyterian Church on Christina Street, a bell was installed with a special fire alarm attached. The church’s fire bell became the key signal for alerting firefighters in an emergency.

The steam engine arrived in March and was taken to the Market Square with great fanfare for a test. The goal was to see the engine cast a stream of water a distance of 230 feet through a 1-1/4 inch nozzle, with 100 feet of hose.

It didn’t work.

The steam fire engine, it appeared, was a little trickier to operate than the older hand-brake engines. The fire brigade tried again the following Monday and this time had more success.

But another test lay ahead. Sarnia’s ‘Blazing ‘60s’ weren’t over yet.

The old Methodist Chapel, built in 1837 under the supervision of Rev. James Evans, had been moved from its original location to Lochiel and Brock streets, where it was used as a juvenile school and meeting place for the Dialectic Society and the fraternal lodge of the Good Templars.

The Methodists didn’t like ornamentation in their churches. Sarnia’s was made of white brick with no steeple and no organ, which church members believed were ostentatious.

On April 14, 1868 a fire broke out that destroyed the old Methodist Chapel. While its architectural value wasn’t high, the chapel represented one of the town’s most historically significant structures.

It was a loss even the town’s new steam fire engine couldn’t save.