Shortly after getting the truck, Bill found an article in the newspaper that said a fellow named Stevens had been suspected of being the Green River Killer, since the high-profile investigation was going on at the time. He paid for it, got the title and historical paperwork, and drove it (50 miles) back to Seattle. Luckily for Bill, the truck still had ladders, suction hoses, extinguishers, and other accessories that frequently are missing from old fire trucks. The Fire Department took it to their headquarters station where they washed it and filled the truck with used hoses that they donated. Led to a barn at Fort Warden where the truck had been stored, he saw it for the first time when it was driven out of the barn. So, Bill headed to Port Townsend with a cashier’s check to see his truck for the first time. After Bill bought it, he added a bell in front, two more red flashing lights, and a small seat behind the cab with seat belts, suitable for carrying children. Some time after delivery, it was modified with a post-mounted red flashing light and a rear-access ladder on the water tank. No photos were supplied of this truck as it was originally built for the Navy, although Bill has found some from the years it served Port Townsend. But this truck was supplied before those restrictions, so it has chrome lights, siren, and other trim, and the instrument panel is stainless steel rather than painted like on later deliveries.
The truck has always been red, specified as “official fire department red, with fine coach colors.” Fire apparatus built during WWII was generally devoid of chrome and other bright trim, due to wartime restrictions of strategic metals. The present owner added the small seat on top for carrying kids. The pump controls and the suction hoses are on the right side of older American LaFrance pumpers, the opposite of modern rigs. Right side US Navy markings are imaginary, since no photos exist of the original paint job.
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