Daryl Schroeder had a special reason why he wanted to purchase a FWD fire truck, but he didn’t know that acquiring one truck would lead to a whole collection.
Schroeder’s father, David, had worked as an engineer for FWD for 42 years but had never driven an FWD truck, even though he had several opportunities to do so before his retirement. For one reason or another, he never did.
Several years after his dad’s retirement, Schroeder had the idea to purchase a FWD fire truck and give his dad the fun of at least riding in one of the trucks he had likely worked on. That’s how his hobby of collecting FWD trucks and fire trucks began.
Today, Schroeder and his brother, Garry, are the proud owners of more than 20 different FWD trucks. Many are in running condition, but all are needing some tender loving care to bring them back to full operation.
Schroeder found a 1956 model FWD fire truck in 2008 to begin his collection, and it has grown from there.
While Garry owns two of the fire trucks, it is Daryl Schroeder who has the greatest passion for the trucks.
Schroeder is a primary caregiver for his father and can only work on his trucks when time permits.
A couple of years ago one of the trucks was stolen from a garage lot in Embarrass and taken for a drive. It was later found in the ditch near Clintonville.
In the summertime, Schroeder recruits friends to drive some of his antique trucks in parades for Embarrass Fun Daze, Manawa Rodeo and Clintonville Firemen’s Festival. As a member of the Sons of the American Legion, Schroeder usually has the trucks decked out with patriotic flags to honor veterans. Schroeder also displays flags on the trucks as a tribute to his sister’s stepson who was killed in Iraq nine years ago.
After 1990, FWD manufactured Seagrave trucks because they were best for marketing, Schroeder said.
“The Seagrave name is actually older than FWD, especially in the fire fighting industry, but FWD grew into the larger company at one time with plants in Kitchener, Ontario and Portland, Oregon, and purchased Seagrave in 1963,” Schroeder said.
The collection of FWD trucks includes mostly fire trucks but also plow/highway trucks along with the Blue Ox. Schroeder locates these trucks all over the United Stats from the East Coast to the West Coast. He found one from an air base out west and another in the Lake Erie snow belt of New York state. He shops eBay and Craigslist or auctions. He is always looking for more rare trucks.
With his connections to the Four Wheel Drive Foundation Museum, Schroeder hopes someday to include some of his vehicles as part of the museum’s collections.
Schroeder works to assist the foundation in adding to its collection as well. In the past year, he has aided it in the acquisition of three trucks, including a rare complete model from 1937.
Schroeder can be found at the museum many Saturdays when it is open during the summer, showing visitors the history of FWD/Seagrave, Clintonville and the surrounding area.
Schroeder’s goal is to eventually witness a parade with as many FWD and Seagrave trucks as possible.
“When I was younger, I remember seeing all sorts of different undelivered trucks from FWD Corporation in the city parades. I would like to recreate that as much as I can,” he said. “I think my collection has had an effect on others as there are more local people who have old FWD and Seagrave trucks now.”
You can see some of Schroeder’s FWD fire trucks in the Firemen’s Parade in Clintonville on Saturday and at the FWD Museum which will be open following the parade.
