McLean Volunteer Fire Department Celebrates 100 Years Of Service

MCLEAN, VA — It was 100 years ago that the McLean Volunteer Fire Department was first incorporated. Many things have changed since then, from development and population growth to fire and rescue technology and the involvement of career firefighters. But what hasn't wavered is the volunteer fire department's commitment to serve McLean and surrounding areas.

The McLean Volunteer Fire Department is celebrating its centennial in 2021. The anniversary refers to its incorporation in 1921. The McLean fire station is known as Fairfax County Fire and Rescue Station 1 because it was the first in the county. Since then: it has been home to other firsts in the county: first county station to have a career firefighter, first with a female firefighter and first with an African American fire chief.

"I think it makes me feel really proud that we can be here and that we can do this so successfully," said Patricia Moynihan, president of the McLean Volunteer Fire Department, about the 100-year anniversary. "We hope to be here another 100 years."

While the station is county-run by Fairfax County Fire and Rescue personnel, volunteer fire department members put in hours to support the career fire and rescue personnel. Right now, the volunteer fire station has nearly 80 members. Members come from all kinds of backgrounds, putting in volunteer hours in between jobs in the government, military and private sector.

"It takes a lot of time and commitment," said Moynihan. "We ask our members to give 240 hours a year. We've got members that give over 1,000 hours of volunteer time."

The volunteer fire department also fundraises to pay for vehicles. Volunteer fire department ambulances are funded through the volunteers, but it splits the cost of the more expensive fire engines with the county. Fundraising also supports uniforms for volunteers, training and assistance with equipment and other needs.

The latest fundraising initiative at the volunteer fire department is funding a new medic unit, which will cost $308,000.

"We were lucky to be in a neighborhood where folks are really quite generous, and we've been well-supported over the years," said Moynihan.

Aside from providing staffing at the fire station, volunteers will also be present at events like McLean Day. The volunteer fire department also takes Santa around McLean each December atop the antique fire engine. Santa's schedule for 2021 is being shared on an ongoing basis. The station does a lot of other community outreach, but it has been curbed due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

History over a century

While there are no official records, current members believe the McLean Volunteer Fire Department was likely started between 1916 and 1922. Residents began to see a need for McLean to have its own fire department in earlier decades.

"Like many fire departments all over the country, probably in the world, late 1800s, early 1900s, there were some major fires in the area," said Mark Allen, a volunteer fire department member since 1966 and chairman of the history committee. "We didn't have any fire equipment. So we needed fire equipment. So the community groups got together started having fundraisers, bought equipment, some equipment was given to us."

There have been several stations since the volunteer fire department started. The original location was replaced by the location that is now the Old Firehouse Teen Center in downtown McLean in the 1940s. The current station at 1455 Laughlin Avenue has been there since 1988.

Technological advances have also been documented. In the early days of the station, the fire department used chemical engines, which used chemical reactions to create pressure and force the water out, according to Allen. Later on, chemical engines were replaced with pumping engines.

"All of these pieces of fire equipment in one sort or another, carry water, and obviously, as time progressed, there were pumps on them," said Allen. "Some of the water tanks have increased. Some of them are five more 100 gallons, 500 gallons."

Nowadays, EMS calls make up most of the calls to the McLean station. Allen added that advances of seatbelts and smoke detectors as well as the banning of outdoor burning in Fairfax County have been "major life savers" in terms of fires.

In the earlier days of the station, volunteers would respond to calls from their home, heading to the station and getting equipment to respond. When Allen was a kid in the 50s and first came to McLean, he remembers it being like a village and rural. Even Tysons, now a growing urban hub with its own fire stations, was once rural.

McLean and the region started seeing significant population growth after World War II, sparking the shift to career firefighters. The first Fairfax County paid firefighter was Samuel Redmond, first hired by the volunteer fire department in 1946. Two years later, Fairfax County began paying half of his salary, making him the county's first paid firefighter. The county's fire department began hiring its first firefighters in 1949 with an annual salary of $2,500.

Today, Fairfax County Fire and Rescue career personnel staff the station 24/7 while volunteers provide support as their schedules allow and as needed. Members range from college-age students to longtime members who in their 80s.

Allen believes the volunteer fire department has come a long way with diversity but is still working on it. When Allen was growing up in McLean, minority populations were virtually nonexistent in the community. Now, outreach helps the volunteer fire department continue to achieve greater diversity. Among those outreach efforts are from the EMS captain, also a NOVA faculty member, to students. The organization's vice president is Arabic-speaking and makes outreach to his community.

"It really is through that sort of outreach and just being an open and very diverse group as we are," said Moynihan.

The inclusion of women in leadership positions has improved recent years. The volunteer fire department's first female volunteer firefighter was accepted in the 1970s, and women have held leadership positions largely in the last 10 to 15 years.

For more information on the McLean Volunteer Fire Department and how to support it, visit www.mcleanvfd.org.