Stories of Historic Walpole – Great Fires, Part 1

Long before Walpole had a permanent fire department, like many towns it relied on on-call volunteer firefighters. Volunteer firemen were alerted to fires by whistles located at the center of town, South Walpole, and East Walpole. Kendall, Bird, and other businesses had their own fire whistles and in-house firemen. Walpole has had more than its fair share of fires, including the Union Training School in 1938 and 1939, the Shaffer Fire of 1957 and more. Katie Birtwell of the Walpole Historical Commission tells us more.