OUR HISTORY

In 1798, Judge Samuel Hinckley of Northampton, Massachusetts, drew the  72nd draft in the land lottery held by the Connecticut Land Company and  received 15,305 acres in Township 4, Range 1, for which he paid  $12,903.23, less than one dollar per acre. The area had been inhabited  for many years

by trappers, missionaries, and Native Americans. One of  the earliest settlers was James McMullen, who acquired the first  160-acre parcel from

Hinckley in 1801. Brookfield Township became the  crown jewel of Hinckley's holdings. Hinckley named Brookfield after a  city in England and

set aside land for the village green and the  cemetery stating that they were for public use forever. During the  mid-1820s the Overland Stage Line

had a run through Brookfield, linking  it to Salem, Warren, and Youngstown in Ohio and Erie, Pennsylvania and  Dunkirk, New York.
In 1823 a company of light infantry militia was organized in Brookfield  under the command of Captain Willis Finzel and 1st Lieutenant Chad Bromley. It consisted of farmers who furnished their own muskets and dress uniforms and held held drills several times a month, mostly on the village green. Brookfield remained  mostly agricultural until coal was discovered in the 1830s. In the early 1900s, Frederick Masury manufactured explosives in the southeast  section of the township, which now bears his name. The business closed  with the demise of the coalmines in 1930. Township change continued when  Yankee Lake Village became incorporated in 1934 to allow for Sunday  dancing. Today's Brookfield is a mixture of rural, residential, and  industrial areas creating a good community in which to live, work,  visit, and recreate, in the land first described by local Native  Americans as "Menshadowa Crebo" meaning "Land of Many Springs."

The Brookfield Township Police Department was founded on June 1, 1975

Formed in 1948, we currently have 7 Full-time Firefighters (members of IAFF Local 3443), 30 Part-time Firefighters and 6 volunteers.

We have 3 stations 18,27,51. Our dispatch frequency is 154.250 and we operate on Channel B 151.1675.


History of Brookfield Township Fire Department:
In the spring of 1948, several hundred Brookfield Township residents met at the high school to formulate plans for a township fire department.

The Township Trustees were asked to provide a fire truck and a place to house it.


In June of 1948, the truck was ordered to be delivered in February of 1949. The fire station was located at the center to centrally serve all sections of the township. The trustees appointed  Rhinold Schultz the Fire Chief. A committee was set up to organize a  volunteer fire department composed of men from all sections of the township.


In August of 1948, about 50 men met in the Town Hall and proceeded to organize the Brookfield Township Volunteer Fire  Department. Officers were elected and a state charter was applied for. When the truck arrived, the men quickly learned to operate it.


The charter was received in June of 1949. In August of that year, the firemen sponsored the first annual homecoming to help raise necessary funds for equipment. Though hampered by inexperience and a shortage of finances and sufficient help, the affair was a success (in spite of many power failures). With the proceeds, a small army surplus truck was purchased. This the men repaired and equipped to fight grass fires. They also purchased a resuscitator. Also, in the early days, the chassis from an old school bus was used in building a tanker to carry extra water to supplement the pumper.


Remember the big snow of 1950?? The firemen were at the fire station for three days, working with the road crews to clear the roads, delivering milk to stores, and supplying fuel to people caught unprepared. Broken equipment was brought to the station for repairs. Some homes had to be evacuated. In one case they had a race with the stork. Brookfield was the first volunteer department in the area to acquire a two-way radio system. In September of 1954, John  Powell was appointed Fire Chief when Chief Schultz retired because of ill health. In May of 1965, Chief Powell left his job at General  American to become a paid full-time fire chief.


Later in January of 1972, Captain Nick Bartolin also left the mill to be a full-time firefighter. The station was manned from 8 am to midnight, 3 days a week. Nick Bartolin was then appointed to fire chief in 1974, where he served in that position until December 31, 1981. In March of 1982, Keith Barrett was appointed Fire Chief and served until he retired in December of 2017. In October 2018 Chief David Masirovits was appointed the Fire Chief and is currently still serving in that capacity.  


In 1994, a study was conducted to see if the township could support an  Emergency Medical Service operated through the fire department. Through the hard work of many people and the cooperation with the board of trustees,  the fire department started with 2 paramedic squads in November of  1995. As the calls grew in numbers, more personnel were added, both part-time and full time to grow to where we are at now with 7 full-time, 25 part-time, and approximately 15 volunteers. The department still consists of approximately 70 volunteer dues-paying members who support the department in many ways. Since the start of the paramedic service in the fire department, the calls directed to the department have risen dramatically.


In 1949 the department answered 36 calls and in 1998, 2095 calls were answered. The department's mission is to provide the citizens and visitors of Brookfield Township with the highest quality fire education and suppression with the best resources and training available to the department.


Brookfield Fire now operates out of 2 Stations 18  located on St. Rt. 7 NE, which has 1 Ladder, 1 Engine, 1 Rescue, 2  Squads, 1 Brush Truck, and Station 51, Location on the Corner of Addison  Rd and St. Rt. 82, which has 1 Engine, 1 Squad, 1 Brush Truck. Brookfield Fire is dispatched via Trumbull County 911 dispatched on 154.250 and operates on Channel B 151.1675. Career Firefighters are members of IAFF  Local 3443