New Jersey & New Mexico Gamewell Alarm Systems

[Box 2565]

Information Taken From A Represenative List of Gamewell Installations in the United States as of 1941.  
   
Does anyone out there have any of the following information? Which towns still use their street box system?  How many boxes are in the system and are gongs still used in the fire houses?    
     
If the system has been removed, when was the system discontinued?  What became of the fire alarm boxes, registers, and gongs?  Are any of these items still owned by the town where they could potentially be sold to collectors?  

New Jersey

Asbury Park
Atlantic City
Bayonne  See Reply Below
Belleville
Belmar
Belvidere
Bloomfield
Bound Brook
Bradley Beach
Bridgeton
Burlington
Butler
Caldwell
Camden
Cape May City
Carlstadt
Clifton
Cranford
Deal
Dover
East Newark
East Orange
East Rutherford
Edgewater
Elizabeth
Englewood
Fair Haven
Freehold
Garwood
Glen Ridge
Gloucester
Hackensack
Haledon
Harrison
Hasbrouck Heights
Highland Park
Hoboken
Holly Beach
Irvington
Jersey City
Kearney
Keyport  See Reply Below
Lakewood
Linden
Little Ferry
Long Branch
Lyndhurst
Maplewood
Margate City
Millburn
Millville
Montclair
Moorestown
Morristown
Neptune City
Neptune Township
Newark  
Newton
North Arlington
North Bergen
North Plainfield
Nutley
Ocean City
Ocean Grove
Orange
Palisades Park
Passaic  See Reply Below
Patterson
Perth Amboy
Phillipsburg
Piscatawaytown
Plainfield
Pompton Lakes
Rahway
Raritan
Red Bank
Ridgefield
Ridgefield Park
Ridgewood
Roselle
Rutherford
Somerville
South Amboy
South Orange
South River
Summit
Trenton  Check post for  Trenton Fire Alarm Information
Union City
Ventnor City
Verona
Vineland
Weehawken
West Long Branch
West New York
West Orange
Wildwood
Woodbridge Township
Woodbury

New Mexico
Albuquerque
Clayton
Clovis
Deming
Las Vegas City
Las Vegas Town

 :idea:

[Box 2565]

Passaic NJ
An email I received on 01-13-02.  Just goes to show that these boxes and sytems won't be around forever.  Wish somebody had saved a trace of the Passaic system!  Another one bites the dust....

Dear Steve,

Your records were correct, we did use the gamewell boxes. These were in service until about 1981-1982. I came on the job in 1974 and we were still counting rounds then. We changed to an EVRS (emergency voice response system)and the Gamewell street boxes were removed to the basement of Fire Headquarters. The Chief at the time thought he was going to make some huge sum of money selling these boxes to towns for parts etc. He had no clue that we were probably one of the few remaining intact systems and that these boxes were only of interest to collectors. We switched HQ buildings and the boxes remained at our old one rusting away. Eventually the all "disappeared" one by one and that was the end of them. The gongs were replaced with electronic tones and It was much easier on the nerves than a 16" bell going off next to you. (Every room-dorm,kitchen, bathroom, apparatus floor) had at least one of the gongs. Hope this answers your questions.

Stay Safe, Nick.

Bayonne NJ
From an email I received from Kevin Fitzhenry ("mailto:fire@bayonnenj.org") on 01-27-02.

Yes, the BFD does still use a Fire Box System.  There are between 250 and 300 boxes in the City of Bayonne.  The gongs are not sent to the firehouses anymore, they go directly to the Communications Center and then dispatched to the fire houses.  The BFD does maintain the capability to ride by bell if the Comm Center does have a failure.

Hope this helps. Be safe.

Keyport NJ
From an email from Jim McTernan ("mailto:gayle-jimmy@worldnet.att.net").

Its nice to get a question to answer, I talked to Tim and this is what we know.

Our town no longer uses the Gamewell system, it was removed in 1984 and until 1991, when we started with the pager system we had 7 phone alarm boxes around town.

The only gong to survive is still in the firehouse belonging to Eagle Hose # 4. We are hoping that when we open our fire museum one will show up.
The ticker tape registers are still in the firehouses (6) but they were disconnected a few years ago.

We actually had Gamewell boxes as early as 1912 (5) and I think the 1941 reference is from a large purchase from Gamewell.  In 1984 when they were removed they went right to a town auction, most bought by firefighters and are still around but none for sale at this time.

Newark
Box 4854 - Beth Israel School of Nursing

[Anonymous]

In Rutherford we were able to save our system. They wanted to pull it out about 2 years ago because the supper was retiring. I got a few fire fighters together and we went to the Mayor and Council and asked them to give us a chance, So they gave us 6 months to get it working. Off we went taking off the black garbage bags and firing up the old gamewell forum four. Well, we had 6 box circuits and 2 bell circuits. Make a long story short with in 4 month we were 100% in services. We abandoned the bell circuits because they us to operate the fire horns, That were taken out of services in the early 90's because someone sued the town because it was to loud. Well, now I am the part time fire alarm superintendent we have 59 boxes and adding master boxes on town owned buildings and stopping privet fire alarm monitoring. We have a new office building going up and they want a digital master box. If your in the Northern New Jersey area and need help with your system you can contact me and I can hook you up with the guy that taught me and continues to help. He is a whizz. Thank you John JcityFire@aol.com
PS. how can I post some pictures I have a few from our system?

[Anonymous]

BELLVILLE  NJ pulled their system a couple of years ago. From what I gather from the seller, a couple of BFD firefighters bought the entire system, then removed the boxes themselves, and resold them at flea markets,etc.


MONTCLAIR  NJ scrapped their system a few weeks ago. Apparantly, the equipment was auctioned (I'm told the going rate for boxes was $20!, limit 5.  Evidently it was kept quiet enough so that buyers were FD members only.  The above mentioned duo also bought a large lot say my sources.   Town is closing a station, and sold off the basement contents (lotsa stuff) at the same time.
          And I missed it.

[Rutherford F-A Tec]

I also knew about Montclair. I was driving threw town and noticed boxes missing all around town. I made a few phone calls and was put in contact with DC of opps. We "RUTHERFORD" were able to get their Digitize forum four and a Digitize receiver. Then we bought two old cast iron pedestals, which are posted here under New Jersey pedestals. I was calling for a year and a half to see when it went to public auction, I didn't call all summer and I missed it also. O well I guess it wasn't ment to be. The town made out great with over $30.000 worth of Digitize equipment for under $2.000. Now the Rutherford system has a strong hart to replace the old 1947 Gamewell forum fore

[Rutherford F-A Tec]

Out of services                                         Still in services
Asbury Park                                              Bayonne.  
Atlantic City                                              Butler. Bloomfield                                                Garwood.
Belleville                                                  Hackensack.    
Belmar                                                     Irvington.
Bradley Beach                                          Kearney.
Caldwell                                                   Little Ferry.
Camden                                                   Newark.
Cape May City                                         Ridgewood.
Carlstadt                                                 Rutherford.
Clifton                                                     Teanack.
East Newark                                           South Amboy.
East Rutherford                                    
Edgewater                                                      
Englewood                                            
Fair Haven
Freehold  
Haledon
Harrison
Hasbrouck Heights  
Hoboken
Jersey City  
Lakewood
Long Branch
Lyndhurst  
Montclair
Neptune City
Neptune Township  
North Arlington
North Bergen  
Nutley
Ocean City
Ocean Grove  
Palisades Park
Passaic  See Reply Below
Patterson
Perth Amboy  
Red Bank---Bell circuits only
Ridgefield
Ridgefield Park  
Trenton  
Union City
Weehawken
West Long Branch
West New York  
   
   
   


   

[District5]

This photo shows the dispatch center for Camden County.

[Box 2565]

This card shows the box locations in Paterson in the late 1800's or early 1900's.
 :arrow:

[Box 2565]

A view of the Newark, New Jersey alarm office.

[Boxcom]

Updated Gamewell Out of Service List (as of 2/20/05)

RECENT REMOVALS
Kearny, NJ [Hudson Co.] (removed Sep-Jan '05)  unkn on if the boxes will be auctioned off.  -> Last system in Hudson Co.
East Newark, NJ [Hudson Co.] (removed early 2004).  Boxes auctioned off already.
Wanaque, NJ [Passaic Co.] (removed a few years ago).  Unkn on what happened to boxes.
Bayonne, NJ [Hudson Co.] (removed in 2004).  Boxes distributed to FD members and auctioned off
Maywood, NJ [Bergen Co.] (removed in late 90's).
Waldwick, NJ [Bergen Co.] (removed 4 years ago+). Unkn what happened to boxes.
Totowa, NJ [Passaic Co.] (removed 2 years ago). Unkn what happened to boxes.
Perth Amboy, NJ [Middlesex Co.] (removed a few years ago)

Still in service (as of 2/20/05)
BERGEN COUNTY
   Rutherford, NJ (adding boxes, primarily master boxes)
   Hackensack, NJ
   Teaneck, NJ  (also has wireless boxes)
   Bogota, NJ
   Ramsey, NJ
   Ho-Ho-Kus, NJ
   Ridgewood, NJ

HUDSON COUNTY
   None

PASSAIC COUNTY
   Little Falls, NJ
   West Paterson, NJ
   Pompton Lakes, NJ

ESSEX COUNTY
   Bloomfield, NJ
   Millburn, NJ
   Newark, NJ
   Orange, NJ
   Verona, NJ (2 master boxes, 1 on each firehouse (that I know of)).

UNON COUNTY
   Elizabeth, NJ
   Rahway, NJ
   Linden, NJ
   Garwood, NJ

Not sure about the remaining 16 counties.

[4everleatherhead]

Millville no longer uses the Gamewell system, though it was used as recently as 15 years ago.  The last box, a double sided Fire/Police on its own stand, came down several years ago and the register was removed a few years ago.  There are several call boxes (in various conditions) and the register system which were recently "shoved" into an old shed during a firehouse refurb.  The last turtle gong I had seen was taken from the wall and sent home with someone or another as recently as last month.  It is my understnding that there will one day be an exhibit, in which the register and a box, and possibly one of the previously removed gongs, will be returned to working status.  The old Gamewell console with siren controls and location dials was recently removed and held onto as well.

[Boxcom]

Is there an old Fire Alarm Box Listing still around for Millville?

[4everleatherhead]

I will ask next week.  I remember an old, huge board.  They tacked small plastic signs all over it, with the box number and location.  There had to have been printed lists, because some of the firemen I knew when I was a kid had those small bells installed in their houses and they would tap the location just like the station gongs.  I will post as soon as I know.

[Box 2565]

Box locations and signals in Summit, New Jersey - 1906.

[Boxcom]

Just an update (7/5/05) of systems STILL in service
BERGEN COUNTY
  Little Ferry.

Forgot about them.  They had removed their system some time ago.  About 2-3 years ago, they put 9 master boxes in service and a horn (not sure if it is new or if it was never out of service).  The nine master boxes are on town buildings (Town Hall, Library, 2 schools, 2 firehouses, EMS building, DPW building and 1 catholic school/church).  The horn is atop of the Marshall Ave Firehouse.  I heard it blasts 3 times today.  I think it was for its 6 o'clock test.  Not sure if its hooked up to blast the box number when it is pulled or if it even transmitted manually.

Hey 4everleather, any word on a box list for Millville?  Not sure if we talked about it or not beyond what was posted above.  Its been awhile and a busy few months.