📷 Hays' first fire engine carries a century of department history

Members of the Hays Firefighter Relief Association take a picture with the original 1921 REO Speed-wagon, which was the first firetruck for the city of Hays. From left: Luke Scoby, Tim Detrixhe, Allen Leiker, Roger Rife and John Dreiling. Photo by Alin Hett/Hays Post

By ALIN HETT
Hays Post

The first fire engine in Hays still has its bell, whistle and other features from another era. Today, the restored red 1921 REO Speed Wagon is on display at the Hays Firefighter Relief Association Museum at the Ellis County Historical Society, where it connects the city’s modern fire department to its earliest days.

The city of Hays bought the truck after the deadly Standard Oil Fire of 1919, a deadly fire that exposed the limits of the equipment firefighters had at the time: a hand-drawn cart called a “Prairie Belle” and a bucket brigade. According to the department's history, two firefighters died in the fire.

Tim Detrixhe, Deputy Chief for the Hays Fire Department, said firefighters Stephen H. Tourtillot and Nicholas Arnold, along with 8 civilians, passed away in the fire.

A picture from 1919: Before the Hays Fire Department had a fire truck, they used a hand-drawn cart called the Prairie Belle. Courtesy photo of Hays Firefighters Relief Association. — A picture from 1919: Before the Hays Fire Department had a fire truck, they used a hand-drawn cart called the Prairie Belle. Courtesy photo of Hays Firefighters Relief Association.

The city commission decided it needed better equipment and purchased a one-ton chemical engine from the Weile Motor Company for $3,500 ($68,167 in 2026 dollars).

A picture of the lantern that comes with the truck, attached on the side. Photo by Alin Hett/Hays Post

A Hays Daily News account published Aug. 5, 1920, described the new truck as a “glittering red and green REO speed wagon.”

The article said it had been purchased the previous month and was being kept in a garage in Hays. The truck’s hood today bears the original year: 1921.

A picture showing the hood of the 1921 REO Speedwagon, showing the original 1921 year and an original 1921 Kansas Plate. Photo by Alin Hett/Hays Post.

The truck’s first recorded call came Aug. 5, 1920, when it responded to a grass fire north of the railroad tracks, believed to have been started by a passing locomotive. Its maximum speed is about 50 mph, and it has five 35-inch tires.

Detrixhe said the truck represents the tradition of firefighters teaching those who follow in their footsteps.

“It’s a humbling experience,” Detrixhe said. “ A lot of the fire service is based on learning from those who came before us."

First-person view of the detail and artistry that went into the 1921 REO Speedwagon, including ladders and a spare 35-inch tire. Photo by Alin Hett/Hays Post

“This truck is kind of like the physical embodiment of it,” Detrixhe said. “This truck came first, and then that truck over there came, and then this one, and now we’ve got a 2024 Rosenbauer Freightliner sitting in Station One right now.”

Detrixhe said the modern 2024 truck carries 1,000 gallons of water, a measure of how much firefighting equipment has changed since the REO was new.

Detrixhe also said that is impressive considering this 1921 REO Speedwagon engine did not use water to extinguish fire. Instead, it used chemicals, similar to vinegar and baking soda.

The chemical tank sits in the front of the engine. Firefighters would place a glass jar in the top of the tank and turn the crank. The jar would tip out the reactive agent to activate the chemical. Pressure would build and then the chemical would spray on the fire through the hose. Photo by Alin Hett/Hays Post<br> — The chemical tank sits in the front of the engine. Firefighters would place a glass jar in the top of the tank and turn the crank. The jar would tip out the reactive agent to activate the chemical. Pressure would build and then the chemical would spray on the fire through the hose. Photo by Alin Hett/Hays Post

“So as time goes on, things change,” he said. “But this is the history. This is the history of the fire department here. It’s incredible.”

Detrixhe said the City of Hays sold the engine and spent nearly 80 years without anyone knowing where it went.

A former Hays Firefighter, Rich Shubert, spent a sizeable portion of his life trying to track it down. He became aware of its potential existence at a fire museum in Wichita Falls, TX in which the engine was completely restored by that museum.

Detrixhe said Shubert met with a curator down there named Brad Corley.

"Mr. Corley and Mr. Shubert met, did some research, and determined the truck to be the original 1921 REO Speedwagon from Hays, Kansas. It was brought back for the Thunder on the Plains Car Show in 2016 after which John Dreiling, owner of Dreiling Field Service, worked with Mr. Corley and purchased it. He kept it, with the hopes of keeping it Hays and to preserve our history."

Detrixhe went on to say that money was raised to purchase the truck from Mr. Dreiling and donate it to the Hays Firefighters Relief Association Museum, so the engine can stay in Hays forever, which was accomplished in 2026.

Before the truck was passed over, Dreiling acted as its caretaker for seven years.

Detrixhe said the truck still runs and has appeared in parades. In 2019, firefighters dressed in vintage helmets and coats rode it in the Fourth of July parade in Hays.

The REO was restored by Brad Corley, with the work believed to have been completed around 2012. It returned to Hays in about 2016, according to the interview with the relief association.

According to Detrixhe, much of the truck is believed to be original, though its tires, seat coverings and some lighting components have been replaced.

A view of what the back of the fire truck looks like, including its 35-inch tires. Photo by Alin Hett/Hays Post

The 1921 REO is one of the first three motorized fire vehicles the Hays Firefighters Relief Association acquired.

Detrixhe also mentioned that retired firefighter Rich Schubert, who has since passed away, conducted extensive research into the truck and the department’s collection.