1958 Ford C500 Army Fire Service Truck

[Mark Minarik]

Thought you would like to follow along with this link.

http://imageevent.com/ron55/1956ford...&m=24&w=0&p=77

[rob love]

Nice photos Mark. Looks like a very worthy project.

I did manage to find a wajax mark 1 pump last winter thanks to fellow MLU member Grant Hopins. It was posted on kijiji in Quebec, and with the help of my wife who speaks french, a deal was struck with the seller.

[DeanJNickerson]

Hi Rob.
Is there a King-Seagrave serial number anywhere on your truck? I run the Canadian Fire Truck Archive (www.firetruckarchive.ca) that you referenced in the first post. I know the serial numbers and I know the bases, but I don't know which truck went to which base, other than Camp Picton's.

The number should be anything from 5715 to 5725 (5717 was the Camp Picton truck). If you're able to find it, really appreciate it if you could pass it along.

[rob love]

Dean
Sorry but no number that I can find. It would appear that someone pinched the King Seagrave plate from it. When I get to restoring the truck, perhaps something will show up.

[DeanJNickerson]

Originally Posted by rob love

Dean
Sorry but no number that I can find. It would appear that someone pinched the King Seagrave plate from it. When I get to restoring the truck, perhaps something will show up.

Rats. Thanks. I can't remember where it was on 5717 (saw it in 1999), but I remember that it wasn't hard to find. The Archives at the Canadian Museum of Science & Technology has KS delivery files, so they may have VINs. I'll check my records to see if I can access any other numbers.

[rob love]

As near as I can tell by the shadows, there was a King Seagrave plate on the bottom left front of the box. No idea if it had the serial number.

I do have the Canadian Forces Registration number of mine, as well as the other that was here at Shilo. Would love to be able to track which base mine was from. Please let us know if you have any luck with the numbers and which bases were which. Also let us know where on the box you found the KS serial.

[DeanJNickerson]

I checked some of the information I have in my files, which is a pile of documents photocopied from King-Seagrave company records. It's a sort of delivery list and some of the entries have engine or pump numbers, which could prove useful in this instance...except the truck isn't listed. There's a note on the first page indicating that trucks delivered to the Federal Government aren't part of the package. I checked and sure enough, no luck.

So...the Science & Tech Museum Archives may be the best bet. However, I haven't been there in years and I don't know if this is something they could/would check. The Archives have service files for King-Seagrave trucks donated to them by a former employee. They can be pretty comprehensive (some have delivery photos), but it varies from truck to truck. In this case, we don't know which of the trucks we're looking at.

In terms of the Regina delivery point, I assumed that it was for Dundurn. I realise that Dundurn is closer to Saskatoon, but thought there might have been a depot there or something. It's entirely plausible that these trucks were moved around from base to base - the Picton truck was pretty close to home, but that base was closed soon after unification. Anyway, if you found it close to Shilo, it makes sense that it was on the base there at some point unless Dundurn shipped their stuff there for disposal. For that matter, there's no guarantee that the Picton truck was delivered to Picton. Kingston is nearby, so maybe they were swapped at some point. Or for that matter, they could have loaded it on a railcar and shipped it from/to wherever.

The spot where you can see the shadow is almost certainly where the KS plate was. I don't remember where I saw it on the Picton truck, but I do remember that it was easy to find, likely on the body near the pump. So the person who removed it did a nice job of covering up the identity. I doubt there are any similar plates elsewhere. Newer rigs had one on the inside of the door, but not the 50s era trucks.

Final thing - I'm a newbie here, but I'm assuming that there's no way to track it using the CFR? I've seen CFRs on other fire trucks, so if there's a way to do that, it would be helpful.

[DeanJNickerson]

Originally Posted by Mark Minarik

Thought you would like to follow along with this link.

http://imageevent.com/ron55/1956ford...&m=24&w=0&p=77

Mark, I replied at the link but thought I would try here as well. I was wondering if there's a King-Seagrave plate on your truck. It would include a King-Seagrave serial number ranging from 5715 to 5725.

I see that you purchased it in Michigan. I have no idea which truck it could be or which base , but I have heard of a surplus truck that saw service with the Anderdon Township Fire Department near Amherstburg, Ontario. Amherstburg is just across the river from Michigan. I believe the Township FD had this truck in the 70s and/or 80s. I know of a guy in the area who might have more info about its time there.