History of Davis Corner Volunteer Rescue Squad

In 1942 a group of citizens in what was then the northern end of Princess Anne County began to recognize the need for fire protection. And so it was that in 1943 the Davis Corner Auxiliary Fire Department came into being. The first fire truck was a Dodge truck purchased for $500.00 from the Richmond Army Base. It was outfitted with a Chrysler engine, a Hale pump, and a 500-gallon water tank. The truck was parked at the restaurant of John Marr, who was a Charter Member. (Now B&F Tire Company at 5548 Virginia Beach Blvd.)

In September 1944, Mr. Marr sold the Department a piece of property at 316 Davis Street for $10.00. A cinder block building with its additions is still at that address.

For a long time the volunteers did not have a centralized method of receiving and dispatching calls. A list of members, in the order they were to be called, was distributed throughout the community. If someone had a fire they were to call the first firefighter on the list, working down the list if there was no answer. Eventually, an outside siren was installed that alerted the firemen when a call came in.

Sometime before 1955 the rescue aspect was added to Davis Corner. In August 1962, we became Davis Corner Volunteer Fire Department, Inc. And in April 1968, a second charter as Davis Corner Volunteer Rescue Squad, Inc. was added. These 2 charters were merged into one in November 1978, when we became Davis Corner Volunteer Fire Department and Rescue Squad, Inc.

The Department now has 87 active members. 12 are certified as First Responders, 51 as Emergency Medical Technicians, 3 as Shock Trauma Technicians, 2 as Cardiac Technicians, and 10 as Paramedics. Of the volunteer departments in the City, Davis Corner is 1 of only 2 that can man a fully volunteer fire truck.

Some interesting tidbits and statistics:

• 1961- 3 fire calls 33 ambulance calls
• 1963-cost of the annual banquet for 49 people was $199.00
• 1963-Town of Virginia Beach merged with Princess Anne County to become The City of Virginia Beach
• 1964-Our Chief, Vernon Wilson, became a casualty of Hurricane Cleo
• 1966-We obtained our 1st boat
• 1967-1st CPR classes taught in the city
• 1968-Lady Flame, our "fire Dog" came to live at Station 2
• 1973:April-Donna Slack became first female member
  July-1st career firefighters assigned to Station 2
  August-Chief John Scanlon among graduates of 1st CT class in the state
• 1979:July-Moved to present location on Haygood Road