Fire! Fire!

The 1880 Saugatuck Village Hall originally served as a fire hall with council chambers relegated to the second floor. A Colonial Revival facelift in 1924 removed the building’s bell tower.

One of the greatest perils facing local residents during the early days was fire. Many riverside fires were started by hot sparks from an overheated or exploding steam engine. Sparks falling on a wood-shingled roof quickly spread the fire to other buildings.

Saugatuck’s fire department was organized in 1871 and reorganized in 1891. The village fire fighting system was primitive and often ineffective — one time citizens mustered into service refused to work the hand pumps. In 1886 nearly half the commercial buildings of Saugatuck were destroyed by fire. In 1892 the Saugatuck harbor pier caught fire and much of the Fishtown settlement burned down. On the other hand, heroic fire-fighting action by local people in 1871 held the line against fires along the Allegan Hill and east to Goshorn Lake — the same Midwest fire disaster that destroyed most of nearby Holland and much of Chicago. It was not until 1904, when Saugatuck invested in a municipal water system, that fire fighters could rely on an ample supply of hydrant water.

To be clear, Douglas had similar woes — in 1902 their firehouse caught fire and burned up the fire engine.