Engine 65 and Truck 24 were organized April 23, 1926, in a new station at 54th Street and Haverford Avenue in West Philadelphia. Rescue 3 was placed in service at the station on January 3, 1949, and remained there until June 5, 1953 when it moved to Engine 68’s station at 50th & Baltimore Avenue. Rescue 3-A was placed in service in the station during 1951. On April 8, 1957 Rescue 3-A moved to Engine 41’s firehouse. During 1957 Rescue 3-A was renamed Rescue 9. They moved back to Engine 65 on March 23, 1959, the same day Ladder 24 moved in with Engine 41. Engine 65 was disbanded on Saturday, June 18, 1988. Rescue 9 was moved to Engine 57’s station the same day Engine 65 was closed. The station still stands now operating as a community center.
Engine 65
About the Author: Jack Wright
Jack Wright (April 11, 1963-April 6, 2021) was a lifelong resident of Philadelphia, PA. As a child he was fascinated with fire engines in general and those of the Philadelphia Fire Department in particular. He chased them his entire life. From his early days of grammar school, he watched Engine 53 and Ladder 27 responding to alarms in his South Philadelphia neighborhood. Those scenes made an indelible impression on him. It was at that time that he began collecting photographs relating to the Philadelphia Fire Department.
With his interest in the Philadelphia Fire Department and its history, it was only natural that he found himself at the Fireman’s Hall Museum. In May of 1988 he began working as a museum volunteer. While working there he became involved in researching the department’s history, as well as documenting it. Some of his research has been used by the Philadelphia Fire Department to evaluate their operations and procedures and make changes where necessary. On October 14, 2007 Jack was named the official Philadelphia Fire Department Historian by Fire Commissioner Lloyd Ayers.
Jack served on the Board of Directors of Fireman’s Hall. He also was a contributing editor for Fire Apparatus Journal. Jack co-authored Hike Out, the only written history of the Philadelphia Fire department ever published. In addition, he published Philadelphia Fire Apparatus Volume 4. He wrote a number of articles relating to the department’s history that have been published in various magazines and newsletters and posts a history blog on the internet. Jack provided presentations to various historical societies in the Philadelphia area regarding the Philadelphia Fire Department.
Hollywood came briefly to Engine 65’s station, but decided not to stay. In 1994, locally-born actor Peter Boyle(the monster in “Young Frankenstein”) starred in a pilot for a TV series to be called “Philly Heat” which was shot in the vacant station which had closed in 1988. I’m not sure if the pilot ever aired, but for whatever reasons, was not picked-up by a network to become a series. Some years later the station became a senior citizens center. I think, although the 1st story’s exterior has been altered, you can still make out the arches of the apparatus doors. The exterior of the 2nd floor remains largely untouched from the original