July 23, 2023 - Some time prior to 1940 the town of San Augustine, Texas purchased a fire siren, and placed it atop the city hall building. This building, which still stands, housed two fire trucks. The purpose of the siren was to alert the citizens and the volunteer firemen of an emergency, usually a fire. It said to everyone that somebody needed help.
When the people in town heard the siren, it told them that there’s an emergency going on somewhere. It also warned the people to be alert for volunteers responding to the firehouse, and to watch out for fire trucks.
Sometime before 1799, the siren was invented by the Scottish natural philosopher John Robison. His sirens were initially used as musical instruments. Specifically, they powered some of the pipes in an organ.
During the Second World War, the British civil defense used a network of sirens to alert the general public to the imminence of an air raid. A series of tones denoted an air raid. A single tone denoted an “all clear.”
As a young lad I can recall hearing the fire siren’s wail way out to our home on Highway 147 North. Being curious, I would sometime go to my Grandfather’s house and ring the telephone operator to find out where the fire was located. The operator would generally tell me.
I recall that the siren was blown once at twelve noon every day but Sunday. I can remember that when the siren was blown two times, it indicated a fire inside the city limits. When blown three times, it indicated a fire outside the city limits.
I recall, when I was in town, watching as the fire truck would roll slowly through downtown so that the volunteers could jump on the truck before it sped away.
In recent years, our fire department upgraded their equipment to include pagers. Most firemen carried a pager with them at all times so that they could be immediately notified when they were needed. Cell telephones are now used to notify the fireman. However, these new devices do have a down side.
Batteries die, pagers and cell phones are not on the person, text messages and smart phones are often delayed. But, the fire siren would get the firefighters’ attention at any time. But, for good or bad, the fire siren is no longer used. It now finds its resting place at the current fire station at City Hall. I stopped by recently to take a look at the siren that I heard for many years, and I had a wave of nostalgia come over me. Like me, the old reliable siren has been retired after years of faithful service.
