I was saddened to read in your recent obituary of the passing of Harry Sproul at age 93.
As a 33-year retired veteran of the Westbrook Fire Department I would be amiss if I failed to say a kind word about Harry Sproul, the fireman’s friend.
My first day on the job as a Westbrook firefighter was in 1966 and Harry was there at the Cumberland Mills Fire Station to greet me.
Harry had been around for a long time and had lots of stories to tell. He could recall when horses hauled the fire wagons and a man named Rany was the fire chief and chief of police too.
Harry visited the fire station every day and stayed with us until the fire horn blew at 9 p.m. every night. Harry was always on time and you could set your watch by his comings and goings.
At Christmas time, Harry would be a bell ringer for the Salvation Army in Vallee Square. Whenever we would get a fire call and respond past his collection pot Harry would go into a ringing frenzy. I am sure he wore out more than one bell!
Harry would always run errands for the firemen and every fireman at the firehouse would give him a quarter for his service, some days Harry took home a few dollars.
One night Harry was coming to visit with us and as he crossed Cumberland Street he was struck by a pickup truck and was severely injured. Harry almost died that night and needed several pints of blood in order to survive. The next day the firemen were at the hospital with their sleeves rolled up.
Harry was never the same after that but he did go on to live at a special place where he was well cared for and loved.
The firemen still remembered Harry on his birthday (The 10 of May as Harry would say.)
God speed my friend – See you at the big one.
Clyde R. Chapman
Retired Westbrook Fire Department captain
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