Frances, an American La France fire engine nicknamed 'Frances,' went into service at the Belleview Hotel in 1917. The self-sufficient hotel, one of the largest structures on the Pinellas Peninsula, had its own water system, police and fire protection, and Frances protected the extravagant wooden hotel until 1934. Capable of pumping 375 gallons of water per minute, the truck carried a 30 foot extension ladder, searchlight, locomotive bell with clapper, and an electric siren horn. In 1934 the hotel gave Frances to the Town of Belleair, where she helped fight fires for 30 years. Although several individuals and groups cared for her, by 1979 a retired fire captain rescued her from a junkyard in Tarpon Springs and spent the next 7 years restoring her to original condition. She returned to the Town of Belleair for about 10 years before coming to Heritage Village.