Joseph W. Ruenzi was appointed as the first Fire Chief (called the Chief Engineer at that time) in 1880. Along with the fire chief, two Assistant Chiefs were appointed. Both of these individuals, Hubert Hacting and Herman Schaber, later held the position of Fire Chief. The three appointed individuals are believed to have been the first paid firemen in the City of St. Charles.
In 1892, the city installed its first municipal alarm system. The system used ten remote stations connected to the city water plant. When a call would come in, the steam whistle would be sounded to alert the firemen that they had a call.
The Union Fire Company was disbanded in 1904, and all fire protection was turned over to the Fourth Ward Fire Company. An additional paid firefighter was hired that same year to monitor calls coming in at the water plant.
The city purchased its first horse drawn fire equipment in 1908. Two combination fire department wagons were purchased for $946.00 and a horse team was purchased for $400.00. American LaFrance motorized pumpers brought an end to the horse drawn equipment in 1921. The two volunteer stations were closed and a more centralized station was opened at Sixth and Clark in 1926. The station is no longer in use, but still stands today. Firefighters waited another thirty years for a second fire station to be opened at 1000 Boonslick. Station 2 still stands, but is no longer an active fire station. They would only have to wait ten years longer for a third station to be built on Elm Street. Station 3 has been renovated and is still in operation today. That same year, 1966, the firefighters joined the International Association of Firefighters and established Local 757. The department at that time consisted of fourteen paid men.
In 1971, the City hired Chief Edward B. Underwood to head the department. He would remain Fire Chief until his retirement 29 years later. During Chief Underwood’s tenure as chief, the department realized a marked improvement in the services provided. Underwood enlisted department personnel to attend the state’s first paramedic program in 1973. His foresight in this area led the St. Charles Fire Department to become the first paramedic service in the state. In 1975, the department purchased its first hydraulic automobile rescue equipment, “Jaws of Life.” By 1977, the department had completed Station 4 and had hired several new personnel to staff the station.
In 1978, the department became one of the first to break the gender barrier by hiring its first female firefighter. That same year the “Firefighter Freddie” fire prevention program was developed for use in local elementary school classrooms. In 1979, the St. Charles Fire Department started the first Hazardous Materials Response Team in St. Charles County. By 1983, the need had risen to build a new Station 1, add a second ambulance and set up temporary quarters South of Interstate 70 for Station 5. The current Station 5 was constructed in 1991. Besides the engine company crew, the second ambulance was placed in service at the station.
March, 1999, the department began integrating advanced life support equipment on to each of its five fire apparatus. The end of this same year marked the retirement of Chief Underwood and the hiring of Fire Chief Frank C. Schaper. Chief Schaper remained as the head of the department until his departure in 2002. Fire Chief Ernie Rhodes was hired in October of 2002 and currently serves as Fire Chief and Emergency Management Director for the City of St. Charles. In 2003, the department promoted the first Battalion Chiefs in its history as well as hiring the first staff officer in charge of the department’s emergency medical services and a staff officer in charge of training.