Many fire departments have a tremendous amount of history and tradition, and the Spencer Fire Department is no exception. The Spencer Fire Department in 1901 consisted of a reel team with volunteers grabbing a hand-hold of the reel’s long tongue and pulling the two spoke-wheeled reel loaded with hose to the scene of the blaze. The Fire Chief at this time was J.T. Morgan.

In 1903, the Spencer Fire Department was organized with W. H. Burton as Chief. It had 22 citizens as volunteer firemen, and its equipment consisted of a wagon loaded with lengths of hose. Horses were drafted when the alarm sounded by having any horse in the vicinity of the fire station hitched up to the hose wagon on the run to the fire. There is no record saying how the firemen got to a fire in the early hours after midnight when no horses were on the streets. The alarm was sounded by calling the power plant of the railroad shops. Whoever was on duty would then send out a series of blasts on a steam whistle, signaling the ward number where the fire was located. Later, a siren was installed at the fire department located at 116 Fourth St.

In the 1970s, all calls went through Salisbury’s Central Fire Department on East Innes Street. The dispatcher on duty would then set off Spencer’s siren. By this time, the firefighters also received the alarm at their home over large base monitors, giving the exact location of the fire. Today, an alarm is received from Rowan Communications via computer-aided dispatch (CAD) and an enhanced 911 system, and the firefighters are notified within seconds over pagers and cell phones of the type of call and its location.

In July of 1993, the Spencer Fire Department combined with the Spencer Police Department to form a First Responder program. The program provides basic life support to area residents until an ambulance arrives. The mission of the Spencer Fire Department is to provide the necessary equipment and well-trained staff for fire suppression and other related hazards to the citizens of Spencer. To accomplish this mission the department provides response to and mitigation of fires, rescues, hazardous materials incidents, and other emergencies as they arise. In 1995 the department answered a total of 219 calls. In 2001 the department answered close to 250 alarms. The department also has several mutual aid agreements with surrounding fire departments. These agreements may require Spencer personnel and equipment to respond to calls in other areas. Conversely, these agreements allow the Spencer Fire Department to call upon resources located throughout Rowan and Davidson Counties to assist with responses within the town’s boundaries.

In February of 1996, Lieutenant T. R. Bean and Firefighter T. S. Smith were conducting a primary search of a house that was on fire and were able to rescue a victim that had been overcome by smoke and burns. For their actions, Bean and Smith received the Mayor’s Award of Excellence. Also in 1996, the Spencer Fire Department hosted the annual Rowan County Fire Muster.

In May of 1998, a resident of 229 N. Yadkin Ave. was found unconscious, and rescued by Bryan Mills Terry Smith, Tony Bean, and Stacy Baker from a residential fire that was near backdraft conditions inside. The resident was able to make a full recovery and was very appreciative of the fire departments actions. On February 19, 2001, one of the largest fires in the county occurred at the Stoudemire Furniture Store. It took over 80 firefighters, 2 aerial trucks, 10 pumpers, 3 squad units, a command unit, and the Rowan Rescue Squad all working together to bring this fire under control. To the amazement of many, in March of 2002, just over a year later, Stoudemire Furniture re-opened for business in the same building.

In August of 2002, the department moved into its new station house on the corner of Third Street and Salisbury Avenue. On July 1, 2007, the department became a combination department with 22 volunteers and eight part-time staff. The part-time staff worked from 8 am to 4 pm seven days a week. In 2021, the position of Fire Chief transitioned from a part-time to a salaried full-time position. In May of 2022, three full-time captains were hired to assist in transitioning to a career department. They were accompanied by one part-time employee, working 24-hour shifts. In January 2024, the Board of Alderman unanimously approved adding three full-time engineers and three full-time firefighters. This monumental moment in our organization’s history ensures, for the first time in 123 years, that our citizens are guaranteed a fully staffed fire engine capable of mitigating any emergency they may have. The fire department staff work year-round to complete annual maintenance, which includes, pump testing, inventories, fire hose testing, and hydrant maintenance on the Town’s 200 fire hydrants. Each firefighter also has to maintain a certain amount of training hours to keep his or her active status on the department.