Northern Fire Apparatus Company

The Northern Fire Apparatus Company was an American fire apparatus and pump manufacturer located in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The company was best known for its rotary pumps.

History
Early in the 20th Century the Northern Fire Apparatus Company was building horse drawn and motorized combination chemical / hose wagons. The company also sold its chemical tanks to other manufacturers. In 1912 Northern introduced a rotary pump for use on motorized pumpers. This pump soon gained a positive reputation and the company shifted its emphasis from building complete apparatus to supplying pumps to other manufacturers.

The Northern rotary pump was a 4 lobe design available in capacities of 300 to 700gpm. These pumps were frequently used by other manufacturers including FWD, White, Mack, Boyer and Pirsch.

Competition from other pump makers, the rising popularity centrifugal pumps and the depression all took their toll on the company. The Northern Fire Apparatus Company went out of business in the late 1930s.