City of Fort Worth
Fort Worth has always been a town that straddles the line between tradition and rebellion, where cowboy culture meets rock & roll attitude. It's a place that respects the past but isn’t afraid to break a few rules along the way. And nothing embodies that spirit quite like its fire trucks.
For nearly a century, the fire engines rolling through Cowtown’s streets haven’t been red. They’ve been white. A bold, clean break from tradition that turned into an institution. And like all great legends, the origins of Fort Worth’s white fire trucks come with a mix of fact, myth, and a touch of Texas-sized flair.
It all started around 1903 or 1904, when Fort Worth’s fire department set its sights on the Texas State Fair’s annual “Pumper Races.” The competition was simple: race a hose wagon down the street, drop a nozzle, lay a 150-foot line to a hydrant, and get water flowing faster than anyone else. Hose Company No. 5, led by Captain Star Ferguson (who would later become Fire Chief Sandifer Ferguson), won the right to represent Fort Worth. But there was a problem—their reserve wagon was an absolute eyesore.
Determined not to embarrass their city, the firefighters asked for $45 to repaint it. The city council, in a resounding “Nope,” refused. But these guys weren’t the kind to take no for an answer. They passed the hat, collected the money themselves, and took the wagon to E.E. Lennox Reliable Carriage Works with a simple request: “Make it the prettiest wagon at the fair.”
A few days later, they returned to find a dazzling, gold-lettered, white wagon gleaming in the Texas sun. It was a showstopper—so much so that the firefighters nicknamed it “The Circus Wagon.” And when they took it to the fair, they didn’t just win first place and a $250 cash prize. They made history.
When the Circus Wagon returned to Fort Worth, the townspeople couldn’t take their eyes off it. It wasn’t just a fire truck—it was a statement. Chief James Maddox, seeing the reaction, made the call: from that moment on, all Fort Worth fire trucks would be white with gold trim.
And that’s how a rebellious decision became a signature tradition.
By the time the 1950s rolled around, Fort Worth’s white fire trucks weren’t just about looking good. Studies showed that white was more visible than red, especially during those critical dawn and dusk hours. The trucks weren’t just unique; they were safer, too.
The signature white-and-gold scheme lasted until the early 1980s, when a blue stripe was added for a little extra swagger. But at their core, Fort Worth’s fire engines have stayed true to that century-old moment when a group of firefighters decided they wouldn’t settle for less than the best-looking truck at the fair.
