TINA L. SCOTT
EDITOR
On Thursday, Mar. 18, at 6:00 p.m., the extended Merrill Fire Department family gathered to dedicate their new display barn. Fire Chief Josh Klug acted as the Master of Ceremonies, and Pastor David Szeto led the past and current members of the Fire Department, City officials, and members of the public gathered behind the Merrill Fire Department, 110 Pier Street, Merrill, as they joined together in prayer.
Then Fire Chief Klug began to speak. “Frederick ‘Fritz’ Heller, Deputy Chief of the Merrill Fire Department, started with our Department March 3rd, 1958,” Chief Klug said. “He was promoted to Lieutenant in 1979, and in 1982 was promoted to the rank of Deputy Chief. During his time with the Department, he was involved in many significant events in the Department’s history, including the J.C. Penney explosion, the Lincoln Wood fire of 1961, the Badger Hotel fire in 1967, and the Lierman’s Ballroom fire in 1984. He served the Merrill Fire Department and his community until his retirement on December 31st, 1986. At the time, Fritz was the oldest living retiree, and we were fortunate enough that he attended many of our Department’s monthly breakfasts.”
Merrill Fire Department historian Dave Johnson shared his fond memories of Fritz and the activities they shared together over the years, and he also told the history of the ladder wagon, which was made by Pierce in 1892 and ended up in the Merrill Fire Department in the early 1900’s. “It’s been with us ever since that time,” Johnson said.
Originally, it was pulled by horses and also by men, as was the hose cart. he said. On special occasions in the 20th century, it was pulled out at the Fair time and also pulled in some parades, by men, horses, and even a team of oxen. He told the story of how one year, when a team of oxen were pulling the ladder cart in the parade, and they had a new truck, the oxen got startled and backed up into the truck, putting two big dents in it and breaking off the tips of the ladders.
When the idea of refurbishing the ladder cart was first introduced, Johnson said, “We talked about bringing it into the station, and the guys just jumped right on it.” He said they replaced lumber on it, sanded and painted all the ladders, polished the brass, and really refinished it. He recalled painting all the nail heads on the wheels with a tiny little brush and a little pot of paint. That was back in 1998, when talk of refinishing the ladder cart and putting it on display first began. At that time, the idea was to display it near the Fire Department in the Sixth Ward in a glass case to preserve it. And while previous members of the Fire Department did refurbish the ladder wagon at that time, the display case never happened.
“And now, because of the Heller family,” Johnson said, “It’s going to happen. And it’s gonna be here for the Merrill Fire Department, and the whole city of Merrill will benefit from this. This is quite the day … and something Fritz would be so proud of.”
Johnson described Fritz as a religious man, a loving man, a family man, and someone who would help anyone. He told beautiful stories of watching Fritz with his wife in later years and talked of how he and Fritz went out to eat often and then later came to the Fire Department breakfasts. Fritz passed away on October 6, 2019.
Chief Klug explained that after Fritz’s passing, the Heller family contacted him and asked for a wish list of things the Fire Department might like or need.
“It was kinda nice; it felt like a kid putting together a Christmas list,” Chief Klug said with a laugh.
The display barn for the ladder cart was on the wish list, and that caught the Heller family’s interest. After considering all the different options, and learning the cost of a glass enclosure would run around $300,000, the Fire Department and the family together considered some other options. Ultimately, they contacted Baker Barns in Gleason and had them design and build a custom barn to protect and display the cart. The display barn features a glass display door and display windows all along one side.
That display barn was graciously donated by the Heller family in memory of Fritz, Chief Klug said.
But the family didn’t want the dedication plaque to be only in memory of their beloved Fritz, he explained. Instead, they wanted it to encompass all the other firefighters who have served the Merrill Community.
Chief Klug read the dedication sign aloud: “In dedication to firefighter Frederick “Fritz” Heller and all previous, present, and future firefighters for your service and sacrifice. You shall always be remembered. – The Family of Fritz Heller”
“And we greatly appreciate that donation,” Chief Klug said.
Steve Heller, one of Fritz Heller’s sons, spoke on behalf of the family and shared how much support the firefighter family and Chief Klug have provided to their family. “Our family would again like to express our very deep and sincere appreciation for all of their support,” he said. From childhood on, coming to the Fire Station was a special treat, he recalled. And the firefighter family has been there for them, through both the good and the not-so-good times, he said.
After the funeral, when the family sat down to see how they could express their thanks and appreciation, he said, “We were looking for a way to remember Dad, but we also did not want it to be totally about Dad, either. I’m sure Dad would agree that he never really liked to be the center of attention. After a short discussion, we decided that the display building should be dedicated not only to Fritz, but to all of the past, present, and future firefighters. To be a firefighter, it takes a lot of dedication and sacrifice, both on the firefighter’s part, as well as their family’s. We hope this building, with its special content, will stand tall and supported, to help all of us remember all of the special people that have built, and continue to build, the Merrill Fire Department,”
He went on to thank all of the Merrill firefighters for all of their hard work to make the building and the display a reality.
Then, at the invitation of Chief Klug, all of the firefighters present, along with the Heller family, joined together to roll the antique 1892 horse drawn ladder wagon into the new display barn at the conclusion of the ceremony.
“The ladder wagon is a treasured piece of Merrill Fire Department history,” Chief Klug said. He said the wagon has been used on occasion in parades and was stored inside the Fire Station for years. Until now.
The display barn cost approximately $11,000 and was built locally in Gleason, Wis., by Baker Barns. The barn was delivered to the Fire Station on Nov. 30, 2020. Power was eventually run to the building, and display lights were installed by Nienow Electric.
