SincebecomingWellston fire chief in late 2021, Todd Beesley had thought about what could happen to “the old 48.”
The 1948 fire engine had been out of service for decades. It had been parked at the water plant, moved to the fire station and later stored in a town-owned shop building north of the station.
“In my mind, I always thought, boy, it would be so cool to refurbish that truck,” Beesley said. “But I knew it would be a very expensive project that we just didn’t have the funds for.”
The project began to seem possible after Beesley connected with an instructor in the paint and body program at Francis Tuttle Technology Center.The instructor came to Wellston, looked at the truck and said students could work on it.
That connection also brought the project back to Wellston in another way. Francis Tuttle, a pioneer of Oklahoma’s modern career tech system, was born and raised in Wellston.
Engine 48 is believed to be Wellston’s first brandnew fire engine. Beesley said the story he has been told is that another community ordered the truck but did not have the money to purchase it, so Wellston bought it instead.
“It was used all the way up, from what I’ve been told, until the late ’80s, maybe even to the early ’90s,” Beesley said.
The truck is a 1948 F-5 cab and chassis that was built into a fire truck. Beesley said some of its lights may still have the original bulbs, and some still work. The original motor is also still in the truck, and only has about 8,000 miles on it.
Although the paint was in “horrible shape,” the truck itself was in better condition than expected. Beesley said that after it was sandblasted, students found only a few rust spots and minor dents.
“They’ve had to do very little body work to the vehicle,” Beesley said.
The restoration work includes painting, rewiring lights and restoring the truck’s pinstriping.