SANATOGA PA – What began with a simple advertisement about a decades-old used truck for sale has become a new promotional asset, and a point of pride, for firefighters in Lower Pottsgrove Township’s Sanatoga Fire Company.
Using private funds, several company members have reclaimed a currently disabled but treasured piece of Sanatoga’s past. They purchased, from a New Jersey-based owner, a 1967 van that was manufactured in Boyertown and served as a Sanatoga emergency vehicle until 1999.
They plan to spend more of their own money, a ton of time, and plenty of hard work to make it road-worthy and usable for special occasions.
The van is considered “a special piece of Sanatoga Fire Company history” that “is finally returning home,” says Firefighter Nathan “Nate” Hawkins.
Hawkins and his brother, fellow firefighter Justin Hawkins, spotted the ad that prompted several months of research and negotiation. They also received the help and support of fire company Chief Eric Linsenbigler, and other company members interested in the project.
The van, hauled from Rio Grande NJ to Lower Pottsgrove on the back of a truck provided by Hawk’s Towing and Recovery, arrived Nov. 26 (Wednesday). It made for a Happy Thanksgiving, several other firefighters said, as they surrounded the van on the back lot of the East High Street firehouse.
A Van Current Firefighters Remember Driving
A handful of Sanatoga members have been part of the fire company for years longer than the van was in use. They recall, and tell stories about, driving the vehicle on company duties. That’s only part of what Nate Hawkins calls “a fascinating backstory.”
His research shows the Chevy P-30 Boyertown-body fire van was built by the Boyertown Auto Body Works while it operated in what is now the home of the Boyertown Museum of Historic Vehicles. It was purchased “brand new,” Hawkins reports, from the former Keiser Chevrolet dealership on East High Street in downtown Pottstown.
It went into service as an “emergency unit” that carried people and equipment, depending on the need, Hawkins explains. But the van aged and fire company requirements changed; it was sold before the start of the new century. Its owner then put it into service as a “work van.”
More years passed until the van was found by Rio Grande resident Bill Reiss. A retired FBI agent in Philadelphia, Reiss envisioned spending time to restore the van, according to Hawkins.
After buying the vehicle and beginning to drive it home, though, a spindle that was part of the van drive train broke. Reiss towed it the rest of the way. He worked on it over several years, but recently decided a full restoration probably wouldn’t happen.
It resulted in his advertisement, which was discovered by the Hawkins brothers and ultimately led to the purchase.
A Difficult Job Ahead
An important first step in the restoration, those who have volunteered to do the work agree, is replacement of the broken spindle. It won’t be easy, Hawkins concedes. Manufacture of that van model was limited, and its parts are scarce. The team, with Linsenbigler’s help, is likely to have a new spindle custom-made by a machine shop.
Other items on the to-do list are less consequential, Hawkins admits. The new private owners – it is not fire company property – will need to find money and time to complete them. With luck, once it’s cleaned up and running, they hope the van will be a fixture at fire company social and public events.
Right now, fire company members are happy the van is back … where it belongs, again.
Photos by Travels With The Post
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