Firefighting in Hopkinsville

Organized in 1832, the Hopkinsville Union Fire Company represented the first attempt to provide fire protection for the town of Hopkinsville, which had 1,260 residents at that time. Succeeding volunteer groups (called runners) were created through the remainder of the 19th century. By 1900, a paid, professional fire department had been established with the members and equipment housed in the old town market house. In 1905, the city completed the new Central Fire Station which was destroyed by fire 19 years later to much local comment. A new station was built on the original location and served as the headquarters until the mid 1960s when a new Main Station was erected. Local historians and fire buffs are active in the restoration of the original fire station, soon to be opened as the Woody Winfree Fire-Transportation Museum.