Resthaven Cemetery

Founded in 1857, this City Cemetery sits on 41.1 acres, and is included in the National Register of Historic Places as part of the Washington National Register Historic District.

Old School Cemetery

Old School Cemetery is an historic African American burial ground that dates to the early 19th century. The large number of unmarked graves at this site suggests this cemetery may date back to the plantation era, when graves would have been identified with simple wooden markers that would not have survived into the present.

City West Cemetery

Dating back to the early 20th century, City West Cemetery is on Tate Street. Some of the earliest burials go back to the 1920s.

History of Washington Fire Department

The Washington Fire Dept was organized in 1919 with eight volunteers. H.H. Johnson was selected as chief. In February of that year, the department received its first fire truck, an American LaFrance 750 Triple Combination, for $12,500. This truck served the department well until 1930 when there was a need for more equipment. The city purchased an AA Ford chassis and members of the department, under the direction of Chief Johnson, built the body and other needed accessories for a new truck. At the beginning of World War II, Chief Johnson was called into federal service, and J.R. Rider was elected chief by the department. He assumed duties of chief on Dec. 2, 1940. H.A. Wall was named assistant chief. By this time, the department had grown to 13 members. The city soon required new and upgraded equipment and purchased another LaFrance 750 Triple Combination truck. This unit was placed in service March 15, 1942, and made its first run to the store in the Nabors Building, where 23 years before, the older LaFrance made its first run.

The Race is On

After World War II, the department had grown to 15 members and had an effective training program. In 1953, Mayor B. Morris of Nashville, Ga., claimed to have the fastest fire department in the state. Washington took him on and beat him by a few seconds. St. Simons Island was next to challenge the WFD but was unsuccessful. Although WFD doesn’t compete anymore, that trophy remains in the station.

Courthouse Fire of 1958

As a result of the 1958 courthouse fire, Mayor Ed Pope saw the need for a taller ladder. A 65-foot, power-operated ladder mounted on an Army Surplus truck was purchased. By 1960, still more equipment was needed. After some figuring, and a trip to Lansing, Michigan, the department settled on a John Bean HPF high pressure fog and volume pump, mounted on a Ford chassis. In 1974, a second John Bean HPF was purchased under the direction of Chief J.R. Rider. He hired full-time employees and put one firefighter on duty each day for a 24-hour shift. These three employees were Darrell Rogers, Tommy Hopkins, and Alan Poss. In 1981, a Seagrave Aerial Apparatus was ordered with an 85-foot ladder and remains in service to this day. Chief Rider served as fire chief until Dec. 31, 1981.

County Wide Rescue Service

Chief Alan Poss was then elected Fire Chief and led the department until Aug. 26, 2011. In the late 1980s, the Washington Fire Department was tasked with providing county wide rescue service to include vehicle extrication for trapped motor vehicle accident victims. Several vehicles have served as rescue trucks under Chief Poss, including the 1994 Ford F350 which is now used as a backup rescue and air/light truck, and a 2008 Ford F550, which is the current first-out truck for rescue and extrication.

Under the direction of Chief Poss, the department grew to 35 members with 10 serving full time. Technology has come a long way in the past 25 years. Under the direction of Chief Poss, the department purchased a 1990 Pierce Dash with a 1,250-gallons-per-minute pump. In 2000, the department purchased a 1,250 gpm Pierce Contender.

In 1999, the Washington Fire Department entered a mutual aid contract with Wilkes County to guarantee a response to fire calls within business hours of the day when county volunteers can't respond and to guarantee at least two firefighters and an apparatus to respond to any structure fire within the county during all hours. As a result of this contract, the county subsidizes for three personnel to be on the city department for this coverage. There are now three full-time employees per shift.

ISO Rating Drops

Under the direction of current Fire Chief C.J. Gilland, the city, in partnership with the county, was able to earn lower ISO ratings in 2016. This rating is given by the Insurance Services Office and is used by insurance companies as a tool to determine liability (homeowners/renters) insurance premiums. The lower the ISO rating, the lower your insurance premium should be. The city's ISO rating had been a 3 for more than 10 years, which started under the leadership of the late Chief Alan Poss. However, the county's ISO rating had increased to a 9 and even 10 in some areas of the county. At the request of the county, the city partnered with county fire stations to go through the process of evaluation by the Insurance Services Office in hopes of showing the capacity of the department to quickly respond to fire calls, thus dropping the ISO rating.

After more than a week of preparation and testing, the city's Public Protection Classification went from a 3 within the city limits to a 2 and extends to any area within 5 road miles of the station that is within the city's fire district, regardless of whether it is within the incorporated areas. In the county, the classification went from 9s and 10s to, in most cases, a 6. The hard work and coordination between city firefighters and county firefighters paid off for the citizens of Wilkes County.

Current Operations

In 2015, Chief C.J. Gilland took the place of retiring Chief Rogers. Under his leadership, firefighters have furthered their education and have been able to advance to higher ranking positions within the department. We currently have two assistant fire chiefs. Assistant Chief Kevin Tucker oversees the A Shift and Assistant Chief Greg Scott oversees the C Shift. They work closely with Chief Gilland in all planning and activities of the Fire Department.

Chief Gilland also secured a grant for the purchase of a much-needed ladder truck. A 2015 100' Pierce Platform ladder truck with equipment was purchased in 2015, with more than 95% of the cost of the truck paid from FEMA’s AFG (Assistance to Firefighters Grant) program. This new truck with the extended ladder length gives the Washington Fire Department the capability of fighting fires in the tallest structures in Wilkes County. It also has a platform on the ladder that allows for firefighters to rescue faster, and more people at a time, from burning buildings.

The city was also able to secure a new 2018 heavy duty rescue truck through the 2017 SPLOST Intergovernmental agreement. This is a huge benefit to the citizens and visitors of Wilkes County since 73% of calls to which the Washington Fire Department responds are rescue calls.

The City of Washington approved in its 2017 budget the construction of new lodging quarters for the Washington Fire Department. Their housing at the time was originally built in the 1950s and had not been updated since the 1970s. The Mayor and City Council recognized the importance of ensuring that our firefighters have safe and efficient living quarters.

Public Works maintains/improves the city’s infrastructure including sidewalks, streets, and landscaping, among other things, to make Washington look and operate at its best. The department also handles trash collection for the City of Washington.

Garbage Routes

The City of Washington provides a 96-gallon rolling trash canister to each residential customer. The new canister will be delivered to your residence.

• Effective immediately, it is the official canister for residential City garbage collection.
• Sanitation Department crews will only collect garbage from the rolling canister. Garbage must be appropriately bagged using a heavy-duty kitchen or yard style bag and tied snugly at the top.
• Each canister has a unique serial number. Each canister is assigned to a specific address. One canister per house. The canister is to stay at the assigned house. Please do not swap with your neighbor or lose the canister.
• The canister is provided by the City at no additional garbage collection charge. There is a replacement cost if you damage or lose the canister.
• In the event that you move away, the City will collect the canister and reassign it when a new resident moves to that address.

Where to place the canister on garbage pickup day:

• Have canister ready for pickup by 7:00 a.m. on your designated pickup day.
• Place your canister curbside on the morning of your designated pickup day. Please promptly return it to its storage place after pickup.

Be Considerate:

• Show our Sanitation Department workers that you care about their personal safety and health. Do your part to make their job as clean and environmentally safe as possible.
• Place only bagged garbage in the canister. No exceptions!
• Use sturdy kitchen bags or yard bags that can be tied tightly at the top. Tie it snugly to prevent garbage from falling out. Do not use shopping bags (Walmart, Bi-Lo, Dollar General, etc.) to hold garbage.
• NO loose items of any kind inside the canister. Canisters containing loose garbage will not be picked up and will be the
• customer’s responsibility to haul off.
• NO yard debris (sticks, leaves).

Large Item Pick Up

Includes: Appliances and furniture. Please note: We do not pick up ANY construction/building materials.

Monday (full day) and Tuesday (1/2 day) are the city-wide pick-up days for these items.

Mattress recycling or disposal information: www.tuck.com/mattress-disposal/

Yard Waste

Yard waste includes limbs, leaves, and trimmings.