1938 Mack Model E Type 505 Fire Truck

Description

The AACA Museum at Hershey is truly America’s transportation experience. The 71,000-square-foot museum in Hershey, Pennsylvania, opened on 26 June 2003 and since then has displayed vintage automobiles in a truly unique way. Visitors walk through eight decades in time while traveling from New York to San Francisco with iconic settings revealing vehicles from generations of American motoring. The AACA Museum at Hershey ranks among the top automotive museums in the world and has been recognized by the Smithsonian as an Affiliate Museum. Hagerty Marketplace is again honored to offer this collection of exceptional and unusual vehicles from the AACA Museum at Hershey.

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OFFERED WITHOUT RESERVE

This 1938 Mack Model E is a Type 505 City Service Ladder Truck built on Mack’s Model E chassis, measuring roughly 38 feet in length and equipped to carry 2,000 feet of hose—specifications that place it firmly in the “service ladder” class, a configuration built for long-reach ground ladders and auxiliary water supply rather than an aerial platform.

Mechanically, the truck represents Mack mid-transition: the Model E series, produced from 1936 into the 1950s. Type 505 models were powered by a Mack L-head inline six producing around 123hp, backed by a 5-speed manual transmission.

This 1938 Mack Model E was purchased new by the South Plainfield Fire Department, serving that New Jersey community until 1970. Hook & Ladder No. 14 was sold to a private individual who parked it in the woods and let it deteriorate for 16 years. Joe Bertino purchased it and discovered it was not only a hook and ladder, but also a pump and tanker, an uncommon dual-purpose firefighter. It also featured both CO2 and foam fire extinguishers since it served a nearby military airfield.

An extensive six-year restoration ensued, with the help of Mack historic documentation, and it is now equipped as it was when purchased by the South Plainfield Fire Department. Joe Bertino donated it to the AACA Museum at Hershey in 2017.

This 1938 Mack Model E City Service Hook & Ladder No. 14 is now represented at no reserve by a Broad Arrow Specialist with a clean Pennsylvania title in the current owner’s name.

Highlights

• Offered from the AACA Museum at Hershey

• Purchased new by the South Plainfield Fire Department, New Jersey

• Hook and ladder/pump and tanker configuration

• Mack L-head inline-six engine

• 5-speed manual transmission

Factory Equipment

• Open-cab driver compartment

• Rear-mounted hose bed

• CO2 and foam fire extinguishers

• Period-correct red livery

Known Imperfections

• Images detailing the condition of the 1938 Mack Model E City Service Hook & Ladder are presented in the gallery

Ownership History

This 1938 Mack Model E City Service Hook & Ladder has been on display at The AACA Museum at Hershey since 2017.

Included Items

• All firefighting apparatus as originally equipped

Additional Information

A Broad Arrow Specialist is working as an agent on behalf of the seller of this listing. As such, the purchase transaction will be facilitated by Broad Arrow, including vehicle payment, applicable taxes required to be collected by the seller or Broad Arrow, and title/ownership reassignment. Broad Arrow is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Hagerty.

Contact: Donnie Gould Phone: 954.647.0779 email: dgould@hagerty.com