Clayton Joseph Quenby was born April 15, 1896, the son of Joseph and Emma Quenby. Joseph was a descendant of the German Quenby family who were early settlers of the township. Clayton was raised in Delhi Township. He was also a member of the Holt Odd Fellows Lodge and the Delhi recreation group.

On June 17, 1918, Clayton married Laura Schnepp. The couple had two children, Bernard and Leonard. The Quenby farm was located 4 1/2 miles southwest of Holt, about 40 rods south of the Grovenburg Church. Quenby decided to quit farming in 1919 and the farm was auctioned off.

The all-volunteer Holt Fire Department was established in 1924. At age 32, in 1928, Quenby joined the department as a volunteer, joining a department that then consisted of 12 other volunteers and a single firefighting apparatus. In 1937, Quenby was elected chief of the Holt Fire Department.

Quenby reflected on his career in many newspaper articles over the decades. In one instance, he recalled a time when he entered a burning home to bring a handicapped woman out and collapsed in the process, causing his hospitalization for several days. This stood out to him as the fire that affected him the most.

Quenby also recalled the 1936 fire that destroyed the English Methodist Episcopal Church in Holt (which stood approximately where Sweet Sensations now stands). At the time, the gasoline had been stolen from the fire truck and the apparatus had to be pushed across the street to fight the fire.

During Quenby’s tenure as Fire Chief, the department at least doubled in size. In 1959, under Quenby’s leadership, the Fire Department moved into a new station at 2150 N. Cedar Street (currently the Holt Farmers’ Market). By the mid-1960s, the department had five fire trucks and two ambulances.

Quenby retired his post as Fire Chief in 1966 after 29 years in the position and 37 years on the department, in order to “allow a younger man to take over the reins.” Russell E. Harper was appointed Fire Chief upon Quenby’s retirement. Harper had been Quenby’s assistant chief for several years. Given his longtime involvement with the Fire Department, Quenby remained an honorary member of the department after his retirement.

Clayton Quenby died on October 5, 1987 at age 92, with five grandchildren, twelve great-grandchildren, and three great-great-grandchildren.