Shelburne's line runs out into the water, and 19.02 of the
43.77 square miles inside it are water. The land figure is the
Census count; the total is the boundary VCGI draws.
The station
5380 Shelburne Rd
Photograph by TGG, 2026-04-12
The volunteer station, built in 1983. Shelburne Rescue, a separate volunteer service, provides ambulance cover around the clock. Source
Shelburne's fire service began with a town meeting vote in 1923 and became a chartered department in 1941. It still runs entirely on volunteers, from one station built in 1983.
1923
Town Meeting appropriates the first money for fire protection: a chemical engine on a Ford chassis.
1924
The first town fire committee is set up.
1941
The department is chartered and a station built for its new 1941 Buffalo pumper. In its first year members answer ten fire calls, taken by phone at the Shelburne Farms Inn's front desk, with a siren on the schoolhouse roof.
1983
The current station on Shelburne Road opens.
2016
The department marks 75 years of service.
2023
A century since the town first paid for fire protection.
Shelburne in Chittenden County. Every fire station in the county is marked —
1 here, 26 in neighbouring towns, which is
who turns out on a mutual aid call.
Boundaries and water from VCGI; fire district lines are not town lines, and
village districts and contracted coverage cross them. A town line runs out into
the lake, so the shoreline here is the water drawn over the boundary, not the
boundary itself.
Working here
Shelburne's firefighters are all volunteers: lawyers, vets, contractors, parents and students. New members are onboarded twice a year; experienced firefighters can join any time.
Apply, then an interview, which is also your chance to ask questions
No experience needed: the department trains new firefighters from scratch
In an emergency dial 911. These are business lines.
Burning
Vermont requires a Permit to Kindle Fire from the town’s Forest Fire Warden for anything larger than a campfire — except where snow covers the ground at the burn site, or the fire is at least 200 feet from anything that will carry flame. Wardens can suspend burning outright when fire danger is high. Who to ask locally is recorded department by department; where it is blank below, the fire department itself is the place to start.
For residents
Burn permitsRequest online or through Shelburne Dispatch, (802) 985-8051. Same day only; out before dark; brush only.
Reflective mailbox signsHelp crews find your house; proceeds go to the Shelburne Firefighters' Association.
Knox Box programmeA locked key box for businesses, so crews can get in without forcing doors.
Support the firefightersThe Shelburne Firefighters' Association, a 501(c)(3), buys equipment beyond the town budget.
Read in October 2026. Spotted something out of date? Tell us.
Not recorded yet
Nothing is written up here for burn permits, call volume, budget.
Not because it does not exist — because nobody has typed it in. If you know this
department, tell us and it goes on the record with its
source named.