Milestones

  • 1888 - Rogers Hose Company Number 1 founded to protect the citizens of the Rogers, Arkansas. John H. Rebholz is appointed fire chief.
  • 1889 - The first fire alerting system is installed for the city. A fire bell, manufactured by the Buckeye Foundry, was installed on February 7, 1889 at the city's first fire station on North 1st Street.
  • 1889 - The first uniforms are purchased for the department for its all-volunteer firefighting force.
  • 1889 - The RHC begins to rent a room for use at the Applegate Drug Store for $2 per month. This, technically, is the first fire station.
  • 1892 - WD. Baker is appointed as fire chief
  • 1894 - J.A.C. Blackburn is appointed as fire chief.
  • 1896 - A committee of members from the RHC begin researching the possibility of an electric alarm system in the city. The estimated cost of $100 make it an impossibility.
  • 1897 - John Rebholz is appointed as fire chief (for the second time).
  • 1898 - J.W Frey is appointed as fire chief.
  • 1903 - Only one fire is reported in Rogers during this year.
  • 1909 - A disastrous fire occurs in downtown Rogers destroying 7 buildings. A total of 7 volunteer firefighters worked to contain the blaze.
  • 1919 - The RHC’s first fire truck, "Old Hulda", is purchased from American LaFrance Fire Apparatus in Elmira, New York.
  • 1922 - The Rogers Hose Company Number 1 is reorganized as the City of Rogers Fire Department, an integral part of city government. Until this time the entire department is made up of all volunteers.
  • 1922 - Dr. George M. Love is appointed fire chief of the city fire department.
  • 1929 - A new Central Fire Station is opened on Elm Street, replacing the city hall and fire station on First Street with a more spacious occupancy.  This facility would serve as the department's main fire station until its closure in 1998.
  • 1923 - The first paid member of the RFD, Frank Jacobs is hired.
  • 1968 - The RFD assumes responsibility for EMS transport services.
  • 1974 - Fire Stations 2 and 3 are opened at 1907 South 17th Street and 400 West Hudson Road, respectively.
  • 1978 - A major downtown fire occurs in the Sears-Roebuck store on South 1st Street. Three buildings are destroyed and six more suffer smoke and water damage. A Springdale Fire Department snorkel truck and Fayetteville Fire Department ladder truck contribute to the containment of the blaze.
  • 1983 - The department converts a 1979 Mack CF pumper into its first ladder truck - a 65’ Telesquirt.  This truck now serves the community of Garfield as part of the NEBCO Fire District.
  • 1984 - The RFD transitions to advanced life support ambulance service.
  • 1990 - Enhanced 911 is installed and the police and fire dispatch centers are combined into the "Rogers Communications Division".
  • 1992 - Fire Station 4 opens at 2424 West Olive Street.  This is the first new fire station since the early 1970s.  
  • 1994 - The department’s technical rescue team is created.
  • 1994 - Fire administration moves from the Central Fire Station at 202 West Elm Street to 202 South 2nd Street.
  • 1997 - The department opens Fire Station 5 at 2525 South Pinnacle Hills Parkway.
  • 1997 - The department opens the Training Center at 3003 West Oak Street.
  • 1998 - A new Central Fire Station is opened at 201 and 301 North First Streets. The new station includes headquarter office space, a museum, and sleeping quarters for 14 firefighters under 25,000 square feet.
  • 2003 - Fire Station 3 is relocated from West Hudson Road to Etris Drive on the airport property to improve aircraft emergency response.
  • 2004 - Fire Station 6 is opened at 5701 South Bellview Road, protecting the city's rapidly growing west side.
  • 2007 - The department opens Fire Station 7 at 3400 South First Street.
  • 2009 - The department demolishes and reconstructs Fire Station 5 due to significant mold issues.
  • 2009 - The department changes its service delivery model to reduce "cross-staffing" of fire apparatus and ambulances.
  • 2010 - The department's training center is reconstructed to update it for future use within the department.
  • 2011 - The department becomes accredited from the Center for Public Safety Excellence.
  • 2012 - The Commission on Accreditation of Ambulance Services accredits the department for the first time.
  • 2012 - Rescue 5 (now Rescue 2) is permanently staffed with a grant from the Department of Homeland Security.
  • 2014 - The department completes its effort to eliminate "cross-staffing" of fire apparatus and ambulances.
  • 2015 - The department successfully attains an Insurance Service Office (ISO) class one rating.
  • 2015 - Fire Station 2 is relocated from South 17th Street to West New Hope Road.
  • 2016 - A new aircraft firefighting truck is purchased through a cooperative arrangement with Wal-Mart for Fire Station 3.
  • 2016 - The department becomes a PulsePoint connected community, implementing a technology-based app for community awareness and bystander CPR (www.pulsepoint.org).  
  • 2018 - Benton County enters into a contract with Mercy Ambulance for EMS coverage in rural Benton County, ending the RFD's coverage of the area for the first time in forty years.
  • 2020 - A new five-story burn building is constructed on the Training Center Campus.
  • 2020 - Fire Station 8 is opened at 7001 West Pleasant Grove Road.
  • 2020 - A 3,000 square foot expansion of the Training Center is completed, adding locker room and classroom space.