Upon accepting the challenge by Chief Hobbs of writing the history of the Wichita Fire Department, the first thought to come to the minds of those involved was where will all the material come from. Any fears quickly diminished when it was realized that there were those who preceded us, as well as those who were still active, that had a great interest in the history of the department.

Much material had been gathered in by John Coslett for the Fire Museum in Cowtown. Through research of this and other material, the vast majority of the written text had been previously prepared by Bill Lauver for classes he attended at Wichita State University.

The last known attempt to provide a book such as this was made in 1911. We were able to obtain copies of this book, as well as one that had been printed in 1901, which recorded the highlights of the department's infant days. We were also blessed with many scrapbooks and pictures that had been kept by the early members of our department. Thanks to the knowledge and artistic ability of Rick McDonald, many photographs were preserved and copied for this book.

The list of those who provided material is quite lengthy, and we will not attempt to reproduced it here, but rather we would like to express a great big heartfelt "THANK YOU" to each and everyone for their support in this project.

Another overwhelming realization fell upon us when the sales campaign ended in such a successful manner; namely, that in excess of five hundred individuals had placed their faith, through their pocketbook, in this project without ever having seen the finished product. We can only hope and trust that the faith they placed in us has not diminished, and the product they received will indeed be an enjoyable and lasting memento for them and their families, now and in the future.

F.E. Hobbs
W.C. Lauver
J.E. Coslett
R.L. McDonald

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