|
Claiming to be 'the South's only fire truck manufacturer', this company
built mainly equipment on commercial chassis, but in 1949 they introduced
their own custom chassis using 190 and 240bhp engines. Some components were
of Corbitt origin. By 1963 they were using a custom chassis made by Duplex
with Cincinnati cab. In 1974 Oren-Roanoke was acquired by the Howe Fire
Apparatus Co. of Anderson, Indiana.
The Oren Roanoke Corporation of Roanoke, Virginia built fire apparatus
from 1940 to 1980 when it was absorbed by Grumman, according to information
from the Virginia Museum of Transportation, where this 1955 pumper is
displayed. One of two manufactured for General Electric, it was delivered to
the GE plant in Salem, Virginia in December 1955. It has a Ven Pelt pump
that delivers 400 GPM at 120 pounds pressure, and carries six CO2
extinguishers on each side of the truck.
Many trucks released by the Willys factory as pickups or "stripped
chassis" were adapted by after-market manufacturers including the Oren Roanoke Corp. of Roanoke, Virginia. These conversions also included Forward Control fire trucks built from
the cab-over-engine trucks produced by Willys from 1956-65.
|
