April 10th 1964 New 85-foot aerial ladder from the Mt. Kisco Fire Department mutual aid to Mahopac.

In the early morning hours of Friday, April 10, 1964, the Mahopac Volunteer Fire Department, in its 50th year anniversary, would
respond to a fire that many members and residents believed would never occur. At approximately 3:45 a.m., Donald Conway, an employee of the Grand Union Grocery Store on Main Street, noticed fire and smoke coming from the top floor of the five story hotel while he was passing on the way home from work. Carmel Police Officer William Mead also spotted the fire and radioed police headquarters immediately before entering the hotel, awakening the caretaker to leave the building. The Mahopac Volunteer Fire Department arrived within minutes with three fire engines under the command of Chief Vernon Barrett, who immediately summoned assistance from the Mahopac Falls, Carmel and Somers Volunteer Fire Departments, and later Croton Falls, Brewster and Lake Carmel Volunteer Fire Departments, including a new 85-foot aerial ladder from the Mt. Kisco Fire Department. The Carmel Fire Department had just acquired a new aerial ladder truck and Chief Barrett hoped a master water stream from the aerial ladder would control and stop the spreading of the fast moving fire. Immediately upon arrival, several Mahopac firefighters made a gallant effort to internally attack the fire with two hose lines. The brave firefighters weaved their way through heavy smoke up the staircase to the fourth floor in an attempt to control the fire, but due to the intensity of the flames and the dangerous conditions, they had to withdraw to the floor below. Soon thereafter, Chief Barrett realized that it would take much more manpower and equipment to fight this massive structure fire, so he discussed the tenuous situation with county Fire Coordinators Harold Turner and William Vockerath. In total, eight fire departments were at the scene with 15 pieces of apparatus and 180 volunteer fire- fighters, with four fire departments on standby at various firehouses. At the height of the spectacular fire, there were seven fire engines pumping water from the shore of Lake Mahopac supplying 28 hose lines, some tied to the trees next to the hotel. Deluge water guns were also placed into action putting large volumes of water on the fire. The efforts of the firemen kept the blaze from spreading to the east wing of the hotel and nearby structures, however, they were unable to save the main section of the 100 room building, which was once the premier tourist hotel in Mahopac. The hotel had been unoccupied since 1962 and damage was stimated at over $250,000. Shortly thereafter, the remains of the hotel were torn down and removed, and a supermarket was built in its place in 1966. The fire was fought by several firefighters through Friday night and was finally extinguished on Saturday, April 11, 1964. Mahopac’s 1937 Mack fire engine pumped for 30 hours before being returned to the firehouse on Saturday. Carmel’s American LaFrance fire engine blew a piston in the motor while pumping and had to be towed back to Carmel where it was repaired. The Mahopac Volunteer Fire Department publicly thanked several Ladies Auxiliaries and the many organizations that assisted at the fire and sent letters of recognition. The Hotel Mahopac was originally called the Thompson House, which was built in the early 1800’s by Nathanial Thompson on what was known as the Drake Farm. In 1869, after several additions to the structure, the hotel could accommodate 300 guests. On July 6 during the height of the tourist season, the large hotel was destroyed by fire. Mr. Thompson immediately built a much larger, more luxurious hotel in one year. In 1883, Emerson Clark, who later served as Commissioner for the Fire department, purchased the hotel and made further additions to what it was in 1964. At the height of its tourist business, the hotel could accommodate 400 guests and became known as the showplace of Mahopac for its facilities, location on the lake and the proximity to the railroad station on Buckshollow Road, once known as Thompson’s Run. The hotel changed ownership three times before it met its demise in the great inferno on April 10, 1964. This year, 2014, the Mahopac Volunteer Fire Department is celebrating its 100th Anniversary and there are a few active and past members who still reside in the community who remember fighting one of the worst fires in Mahopac’s history, 50 years ago.