The Seagrave Fire Apparatus Company was started in Detroit, Michigan, in 1881 by Frederic S. Seagrave. Originally building ladders for use in harvesting fruit, Seagrave began building two-wheeled hand-carts for transporting firemen’s ladders, then later 4-wheeled, horse-drawn ladder carts.
By 1891 the company was producing a full line of horse-drawn fire apparatus including ladder wagons, hose wagons and chemical engines. That year the company moved from its offices at 418 Michigan Avenue in Detroit to a new, larger factory in on West Lane Avenue in Columbus, Ohio. In 1898 the name was changed to Seagrave Corporation and the company moved again, this time to a facility at 2000 South High Street in Columbus.
In 1902 Seagrave started building "spring-raised" aerial ladders which greatly simplified the operation of raising a ladder to its full extension. Another interesting development was the 1915 "Model K" tractor; a front-wheel-drive tractor outfit designed to convert horse-drawn steam engines and ladder trucks to motorized use. In 1935 the company started producing all-steel ladders and using a hydraulic hoisting apparatus on its trucks.
Further changes to the design and production of Seagrave fire
apparatus were introduced over the years. In 1963 Seagrave was
purchased by FWD Corporation. The next year it moved to the FWD plant
in Clintonville, Wisconsin where it was renamed the Seagrave Fire
Apparatus Company and from which it continues to operate to this day.