Ahrens-Fox Fire Buffs' Association

Ahrens-Fox and AFFBA 

Ahrens-Fox fire engines were manufactured in Cincinnati, Ohio, from 1852 to 1977. These fire engines were hand-crafted to extremely high standards of quality, and their prices (both new and on today's collector's market) reflect that quality.

Any fire engine can exinguish an ordinary fire, but under extreme operating conditions, Ahrens-Fox fire engines were (and still are) renowned worldwide for superior performance. Many features common to modern fire apparatus were pioneered by innovative Ahrens-Fox designers and engineers.

The Ahrens-Fox Fire Buffs' Association (AFFBA) was founded in June 1970 by Ed Hass, Bob Ward, Jim Murray, John Orner, Lynn Fledderjohn, and Curt Nepper, to preserve Ahrens-Fox fire engines and the rich, colorful history behind them.  Although many of our founders have, unfortunately, passed away, Ed Hass and Jim Murray remain driving forces and active particpants in AFFBA, nearly 40 years later.

This web site, established by Ed Hass in 1995 and maintained by him ever since, provides information and photos about Ahrens-Fox fire engines, the fire departments that used them, the people and companies who built and sold these superbly crafted fire engines, and the museums and private collectors who preserve them.

Fire apparatus brand names included under the general heading of "Ahrens-Fox fire engines" consist of Latta & Shawk, A.B. & E. Latta's "Buckeye Works," Abel Shawk's "Young America Works," Lane & Bodley, Ahrens, American Fire Engine, Ahrens-Fox, Approved Fire Equipment, and Bickle.

In 2003, the web site expanded to provide information about other fire engine and commercial truck manufacturers, in addition to its primary focus on Ahrens-Fox fire engines.

What We Do

AFFBA was founded in June, 1970, with several stated goals:

• Preserve, restore, operate, and display Ahrens-Fox fire engines, at parades, car show, and other history-oriented and fire service events.
• Research and publish the history of the Ahrens-Fox Fire Engine Company, primarily through a printed quarterly magazine, The Silver Sphere, which was published from 1970 to 1990. Since 1982, our primary means of distributing information about Ahrens-Fox fire engines has been through a series of thoroughly-reserached books, which can be purchased on this web site.
•  Serve as a membership organization to unite all with an inteerst in Ahrens-Fox fire engines. The membership organization aspect of AFFBA ceased with the establishment of this web site in 1995, but Ahrens-Fox enthusiasts still continue to gather informally at numerous events around the world every year.
• Create and maintain a research library about Ahrens-Fox fire engines, which has now become one of America's largest repositories of photographs and documents about the history of the fire apparatus manufacturing industry and the fire service, again with primary emphasis on Ahrens-Fox fire engines.
• Educate the general public about the rich and colorful history of the fire service and of the fire apparatus manufacturing industry, in America and in other nations.

Contact Us

Please contact us anytime! We look forward to hearing from you, and we love to talk with other enthusiasts and historians about fire engines and fire service history.

Ahrens-Fox Fire Buffs' Association (AFFBA)
c/o Ed Hass
9315 East Lake Drive
Elk Grove, CA 96758
phone 916-271-3221
email: ehass@yahoo.com