By Deborah Larsen
Lyle O. Buchanan
Lyle O. Buchanan was born in Almont, Michigan, on February 29, 1920, the son of Walter and Edna Metz Buchanan. Lyle attended Rochester High School and graduated with the class of 1938, in which he served as class president. After high school, Lyle worked for the Baldwin Rubber Company in Pontiac.
When Lyle turned 21 in 1941, he joined the Rochester Fire Department, following in the footsteps of his father and grandfather, both of whom were captains in the department. In September 1941, Lyle enlisted in the U.S. Coast Guard. He was subsequently advanced to the rank of chief petty officer, and served at Coast Guard stations in Buffalo, New York, Cleveland, Ohio, and Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan.
Lyle was discharged from the Coast Guard in October 1946 and returned to work for Baldwin Rubber Company, while continuing to serve in the fire department. He was appointed fire chief in October 1962, succeeding Chief George Ross.
In 1982, Chief Lyle Buchanan retired from the fire department after 41 years of service, the last 20 of them spent as fire chief. He and his wife, Helen, whom he married in 1943, moved to Hendersonville, North Carolina.
Lyle O. Buchanan died at the age of 97 on November 24, 2017, and was laid to rest in Hendersonville, North Carolina.