As neigbourhoods sprang up, the township established a water works with new hydrants being installed (there is one in the picture to the left of the shed). Organized volunteer fire brigades were established in different districts. Three reel houses such as this one were placed in the Silverthorn district.
Prior to the construction of fire halls, firefighters would report to the closest reel house. These were generally constructed of wood and tin, and housed the hand-drawn reels, ladders, fire hose, and fire fighting gear. Often, these reel houses, or "sheds" were built on the very sites where fire halls would later be built, as is the case with Silverthorn, Mount Dennis and Fairbank halls. As the suburbs spread further north, new reel houses were constructed to augment the halls, as was the case in Beechborough (north of Silverthorn) and Lyons (later "Marlee") at Riddelle (north of Fairbank). The latter two reel houses were used into the mid 1930's, until made redundant by a larger full-time staff at the permanent halls.
At the scene, the firemen would unreel the hose, and connect directly to the hydrant to attack the fire. Teams from other districts could respond if necessary to help, but district rivalries did evolve. A fire reel which has been used as a lawn ornament at the former York Fire Hall #3 on Jane Street at Dundas is currently being refurbished.
"To put out fires we had formed a bucket brigade. When there was a fire we all grabbed a bucket and ran like hell. If the house was going good we did not have much of a chance to save it but tried to save anything around it. That was the best we could do. Later we got the two wheel hose reel to carry hose and a ladder on top on brackets. We had three hose reels and three corrugated buildings were built to house the reels. In front of the fire station were two poles with a cross bar and a bell. When there was a fire anyone could ring the bell to let us know. The fire stations were Silverthorn and Ewart, at the corner of Dunraven and Scott and Juliet and Keele. As the years past by we purchased an old Reo truck and converted it into a fire truck to carry more hose and ladder. We were proud of that because we made it up our selves. We had about twenty volunteers. They had rubber coats and rubber boots and a southwester for their heads. There was a fire board formed with three men and a secretary. Every year we had a field day on May 24. We had games of chance and competion between other fire departments of York Township. At the end of the night there was a fireworks display. We held our annual ball in the winter at Silverthorn School."