You may have noticed the rusty red truck sitting next to the Richmond Hill History Museum recently.

It is believed to be the first fire truck of Ways Station, as Richmond Hill was known in its early days.

The 1937 vehicle was manufactured by Ford Motor Co. — naturally — and donated by Henry Ford.

Earl Futch, who owns Earl’s Auto Craft on Clarktown Road, is the grandson of a firefighter pictured (top left) along with the truck that is on display at the museum.

“We did some research and discovered the truck was sitting in a shed in Midway,” said Christy Sherman, president of the Richmond Hill Historical Society. “Apparently Richmond Hill sold it to the city of Midway at one point.”

Midway recently sold the truck for $1 to the historical society — legalities prevented the city from giving it away — and now the society is in the midst of raising $50,000 to refurbish it.

“The location where Ameris Bank is was the original fire station (bottom left photo), so we want to build a structure to house the truck that will be a replica of it,” Sherman said.

The society will take donations and have the fire truck on display at Cars & Coffee, its monthly gathering held the first Saturday of each month from 9-11 a.m.

Sponsorship levels include:

Fire House: $10,000
Commissioner: $5,000
Fire Chief: $2,500
Assistant Chief: $1,000
Battalion Chief: $500
Firefighter: $250
Lifesaver: $100
Dalmatian: $50

To make a donation, call the historical society at (912) 756-3697 or visit www.richmondhillhistoricalsociety.com.