IslandVibesIOP.com 23 ty’s spirits. Having met the multitude of challenges that had come with the hurricane, the island’s emergency medical technicians were trained just two years later to use automated external defibrillators (AEDs) and became the first fire department in Charleston County to acquire such authorization. This achievement ushered in an entirely new era of life-saving measures that we rely on today. The transformation of the Isle of Palms police and fire departments over the last seven decades has been admirable. But just as they did when our small community was first starting out, the island’s 22 police officers and 40 trained fire department personnel dedicate their lives to the safety of island residents and visitors. Both have proven over the years that they are up to the challenge of making the Isle of Palms a great place to live and play safely. department of one, and police protection was up and running. An allowance was made to provide Anderson with a .38 service revolver, and his salary was set at $3,000 per year. He would receive an additional $600 annually for the use of his own car which the city would retrofit with a siren and the newly approved city seal painted on the side. One of Anderson’s responsibilities was to enforce the new requirement for businesses to purchase city licenses. He was also given the task of monitoring streetlights and reporting those not working to the power company and filling large holes in paved streets. Supervision of garbage collection as well as managing payroll for garbage collectors were also among his official duties, and he was responsible for monitoring concessioners on Front Beach to ensure they kept their properties free of trash. By the end of the year, council voted to add a volunteer detective force. City council also looked to improve fire protection for island residents. It appropriated $4,200 to the volunteer fire department with the “clear understanding” that the title to the department’s sole fire engine – which was kept in a resiHISTORY It’s that time of year that we all dread. No, not hurricane season, although that is always cause for anxiety. Summer is coming to an end. True, the beach crowds thin out, but September also brings shorter days and less leisure time for the fun and frolic of vacation days. Labor Day signals the official end of summer, just as Memorial Day kicked it off back in May. Many of us will celebrate the holiday the same way with cookouts, picnics or a day at the beach – mostly small gatherings and family affairs. But a century ago, the Isle of Palms hosted a massive public farewell to summer with a variety of activities that were sure to be crowd pleasers. Since there were no roads on the island at the time, transportation to and from the festivities would have been by Summer send-off IOP’s Labor Day party past By Mary Coy First of the first responders Shoring up public safety on the island By Mary Coy trolley. Its cars were likely packed with visitors arriving from downtown Charleston and Mount Pleasant, anxious spectators and competitors for the day’s full schedule of various races offering cash prizes. There were swimming and foot races, of course, but one of the main attractions was a motorcycle race, drawing contenders from as far away as Augusta and Savannah, Georgia. The race was held in front of the pavilion on the beach, with the bikes riding up and down the viewing area 10 times for a total of 20 miles. It’s anybody’s guess how the motorcycles got to the island in the first place! The barge race must have been a big hit as well with military servicemen competing. The crew of the USS Atlanta, which was homeported in Charleston, raced against reservists from Texas and South Carolina who likely put up some stiff competition. But where were the soldiers from Fort Moultrie? They may have been called into service elsewhere in the music hall, performing with Carl Metz’s “full military band.” The orchestra was a favorite among locals and always drew a crowd at its regular performances downtown, including those at the bandstand at the Battery. But his band’s performance on the island on Labor Day was sure to provide additional excitement for the annual event. The Sea Shore Hotel at the Front Beach resort would have served local favorites for the dinner hour, and as any traditional Charlestonian will tell you, that was at 3 p.m. So, with plenty of food and music all day long, a good time was likely had by all. After the summer’s last hurrah, as the season drew to an end, the revelers could return home to their workaday lives, looking forward to next year and the “fish fray” that was sure to bring a curious crowd to see that unusual freak of nature. (Note: The above-mentioned “fish fray” references one of the day’s activities listed on the advertisement. It was likely a typographical error – but maybe not!) It seems hard to imagine that there would have been enough crime on the Isle of Palms back in 1953 to necessitate hiring a police officer. After all, there were only a few hundred full-time residents back then and not many tourists. The island’s early residents relied on county patrol officers to maintain order in an emergency, but an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure, right? So as the island’s population began to grow, a consistent police presence on the island would be a deterrent to mischief and give the residents a sense of security. Nobody locked their doors – but better safe than sorry. When the city was incorporated, the issue of establishing a police department was paramount. At the second city council meeting held in February 1953, an ordinance was passed to establish a municipal police department. That’s where island resident A.W. Anderson comes in. He was appointed by the mayor and unanimously approved by council as the city’s first police chief. Two weeks later, council voted to appropriate $3,447 to the newly formed police dent’s garage – would be transferred to the city. Then the city would pay off the remaining $1,060 owed on the truck which had been purchased earlier by the volunteer force with funds donated by the Isle of Palms Exchange Club. Council would use city funds to pay to install a siren on the truck, and a fire hydrant was soon added on the corner of 4th Avenue and Carolina. The volunteer fire department eventually transitioned to a half-and-half system, with paid personnel working alongside volunteers in their crucial mission. It wasn’t until 1987 that the city hired Larry Britton as its first full-time fire chief. Britton was a lifelong Charleston-area resident and had been a volunteer firefighter as a teen growing up on Johns Island in the 1970s. He came to the Isle of Palms just two years before the storm of the century. There’s nothing like trial by fire – or in this case, wind and flooding – and the island’s recovery would be challenging. Both fire stations on the Isle of Palms were destroyed by Hugo’s wrath, and the fire department was forced to operate out of mobile homes with fire trucks and rescue boats stowed in large tents. Britton oversaw all daily operations of the department as the city slowly recovered from the colossal amount of damage inflicted on buildings and infrastructure. He even played a part in planning a concert by The Beach Boys to not only raise funds to help rebuild the island’s fire stations but to also lift the communiThis photo from 1955 features the island’s second police chief, Eddie.
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