SouthSide Fire of 1897
The SchuylerCitizen
Thursday, March 24, 1897
FIRE FIEND!
Rushville Again Alarmed atMidnight.
To Fight Fire Fiend on theSouth Side.
Dodson’s Dry Goods Stocka Complete Wreck.
The Substantial Brick RowKnown as Jackson’s Block Badly Damaged.
Estimated Damage Between$15,000 and $20,000.
From Saturday’s Daily
Rushville has been visitedby another disastrous conflagration.
At half past eleven lastnight Charley Kennedy was passing along the south side of the square andsaw flames creeping along the ceiling at the east wall of the room in theJackson block occupied by E. A. Dodson’s dry goods store. He immediatelygave the alarm and Joe Johnson, hearing it, promptly rang the fire bell.This gave the general alarm and brought the people half-dazed, from theirhomes.
Before the bell rang Mr.Hunt, the night attendant at the central station of the Western IllinoisTelephone Company, sent alarms to the several residents having phones asrapidly as possible, and was prompt to answer calls sent in by those whohad not been alarmed by the fire bell.
The consternation pervadingthe people as they discovered the locality of the flames was widespreadand general, owing to the fact that Rushville people take much pride inthe appearance the substantial store buildings surrounding the square givethe business center.
The fire company respondedpromptly to the alarm and inside of twenty minutes after the fire belltapped a stream of water was shooting into the front entrance of Dodson’sstore room. But before the fire department could turn on the stream theflames had spread so rapidly among the many articles displayed on linesand side walls, and bursting from the front windows enveloped the entirefront, runing [sic] along the awning to the east and west. The flames hadbeen subdues somewhat in front, but this seemed to drive them back, andsoon the rear end presented as dangerous appearance as the front. Now camethe supreme opportunity to test the capacity of the limited amount of hoseprovided for the fire department. The remainder of the hose was hasilyadjusted to the plug on the southeast corner and there was just enoughto get behind the buildings and in this way the flames were confined totheir narrow limits, so that the frame buildings in the rear of the southside row were prevented from spreading the fire over the entire block.
Amount of Insurance
The four brick buildingswere owned by Ezra Jackson and were insured in several companies, representedby local agents. As near as we can ascertain at this time the two westrooms, occupied by Owen Jackson & Co., boots, shoes and carpets, andJacob Maurer, grocery, were insured in Springfield for $2,000 and Phoenixfor $1,000, represented by John S. Little, and on the two east buildings,occupied by Dodson’s dry goods and J. W. Lawler’s grocery, there is $1,500in the Fireman’s Fund, represented by P. E. Mann, and $1,250 in the Home,$1,250 in the Royal, represented by Glass & Bottenberg. The damageon the two east buildings is considerable, and it is fully covered by insurance.The loss on the buildings is variously estimated at from $2,000 to $3,000.
The principal loss is onthe dry goods stock of E. A. Dodson, estimated value about $8,800. Insuredin three companies as follows: Royal, $2,500, and Home of New York, $2,500,Glass & Bottenberg agents; Phoenix of Brooklyn, $2,000, by P. E. Mann;total, $7,000.
Owen Jackson & Co.’sstock damaged in removal, estimated at between $200 and $300, covered byinsurance in the Springfield $1,000, and Phoenix companies $500, representedby J. S. Little, and Niagara $1,00, by Glass & Bottenberg.
Jacob Maurer, loss on stockand fixtures about $200, insured in the Queen, by D. H. Glass, for $900.
John W. Lawler’s stock andfixtures were damaged by fire, water and removal about $100 worth, insuredin two companies represented by D. L. [unreadable word].
The total damage to buildingshas been estimated but will be greatest on the room occupied by Dodson,and fully covered by the amount of insurance on the two east buildings.
Bob Burnham’s Narrow Escape.
The middle rooms over Dodson’sstore were occupied by Isaac Jenkins and the front one by Robert Burnhamas sleeping room. The latter was in bed, asleep and it was with difficultythat Burnham could be awakened. Walter Williams kicked the door in androlled Bob out of bed as the flames from below were coming up through thefloor in several places. Bob says, “It was a narrow escape.”
Isaac Jenkins Gets Flustrated.
Isaac Jenkins says he hadjust gone to bed after reading his paper and was dozing like when he heardsounds of footsteps in the hallway; then some parties ran down the stepsand cried “fire!” He got up and went to the stairway in his night appareland asked, “Where is the fire?” “Right under you,” came a response. Hewent down, and at the foot of the stairs the whole front burst out withan explosion and leaping flames. He went back to get his trousers off thebed, but the smoke choked him and he reeled, thinking he would have tosuccumb; he pushed on however to the west window in the room he uses fora kitchen and not being able to hoist it burst it and climbed out on thetin roof over Jackson & Co.’s store where he was exposed to the waterfrom the hose and the chill air in his night clothes, until relieved byone of the attaches in Nell’s hardware store raising the window and lettinghim in. Mr. Jenkins states that he was among the first to discover thefire.
The Clothes Didn’t Fit.
It has always been generallyunderstood that women were the only ones who lost their heads at fires,but last night a gentleman livng in the south part of town was suddenlyawakened by the noise and din incident to the fire. He sprang excitedlyout of bed, grabbed what he thought were his clothes and tried to put themon. But somehow they didn’t fit. After tearing them nearly all to piecesin a vain endeavor to get them on he struck a light and discovered thathe had been trying to array himself in his wife’s union suit. If he hadjust come up town in that rig-out and joined the fire department he’d havebeen the center of attraction.
Efficient Water Works a Blessing.
Not a kick against the 2per cent tax for water works and fire extinguishing appliances can be heardfrom any one this morning, and a paper is in circulation being generallysigned to raise a fund of $300 to purchase more hose so that no delay maybe experienced in the future.
“The water works have paidfor themselves tonight,” was heard on every hand last night, as the moonshown down in pale faces and the fire was under control.
The property holders of thesouth side are running over with gratitude to those who persisted in pushingthe water works and fire extinguishers to a finish before the fire lastnight, and to the energetic water works committee, Messrs. J. W. Webster,A. H. Clarke and Dr. Amrine, backed by the enterprising businessmen. Everybodyfeels indebted for the good work done and property saved.
Rushville escaped from thegreatest conflagration in its experience by the advantage afforded by thewater works. The fine brick row on the south side, though somewhat disfiguredin one part, has not been damaged so as to destroy the appearance fromthe exterior, for which we are all glad.
The “bucket brigade” wouldnot have been “in it” last night, and this morning there would have beencinders and tottering walls instead of a complete block of buildings, hadit not been for the water works.
Water Works Capacity.
Superintendent of the WaterWorks James Lawler is duly proud of the success shown by the engines andtelephone service under his management. When the alarm was sounded thewater in the stand pipe was within 12 inches of being full. The two streamsfrom the hose lowered the stage about six feet by the time he turned onthe pressure. The streams thrown from the hose were 235 gallons per minute.The pump worked at half capacity replenished the stand pipe at the rateof 250 gallons per minute. The capacity of the stand pipe is 115,000 gallons.The total amount of water thrown on the fire last night was 12,000 gallons.The pressure of the stand pipe at 85 feet is not sufficient to throw astream over the two-story buildings. By this it will be seen how greatthe advantage of pump pressure. Supt. Lawler is delighted with the experiencewith the system last night, which is the first real test the new systemhas had. He was ready with direct pressure and so signaled when he receivedthe signal that the fire was under control.
Mr. Dodson’s Experience.
Mr. Dodson had left his storeat 8:30 and locked the door, leaving every thing all right. From therehe went to the postoffice, thence home, and was in bed fast asleep whenhis wife awoke him upon hearing the “fire bell.” He ran to the square notthinking his place was in danger until he reached the restaurant corneron the northeast approach to the square. The shock he received upon gettinga full view of his store room caused him to stagger, and but for timelyassistance would have fallen to the pavement. He was taken by friends towardhis home, but on the way it was thought best to let him rest at Mrs. E.D. Leach’s. A hyperdermic injection was administered by Dr. H. O. Munson,and he recovered sufficiently to be assisted to the store, and thence home.He is about today, but quite exhausted fromt he shock and nervous prostration.
A Fiery Ordeal.
Jacob Maurer has had withina few months some experience with fire. His barn burned, at which timehis only son, about four years, playing in the barn when it took fire,hid away in the bin from fright and might have perished but for timelyhelp. Last night “Jake” was on his way in haste to the fire, but when helocated the flames, he says, he was “paralyzed” and couldn’t run anotherstep.
Cinders.
–In many respects the crowdwas well managed and loss averted by removal.
–The door leading into Riefling’sbarber shop, over Lawler’s store, was burned into a charcoal, as was alsothe stairway.
–Dodson’s stock had justbeen received for the spring trade and consequently was heavier than ordinarilycarried, except in December for the holiday trade, when the valuation wasplaced at $11,000.
–The commercial men whowere at Hotel Schuyler last night, said many nice things about the promptaction of the fire department in reaching the conflagration and their heroicefforts in subduing the flames.
–The grocery store of JohnW. Lawler, on the east corner, and Jacob Maurer, next door west, sufferedmuch damage from smoke, steam, water and broken glass in front. The ceilingfor about ten feet back in Lawler’s store room is badly charred.
–Numerous people were seenat midnight last night wending their way to the scene of the fire at aRobert J. gait, with buckets thrown over their arms, and one old lady reachedthe square with a tin dipper, all intending, doubtless, to supplement theefforts of the fire department.
–The cornice and windowsup stairs on the buildings as far west as Nell’s hardware store were damagedby fire and heat. The great difficulty encountered by the dealers in therow was to prevent the usual custom of carrying the goods out of the buildings.On this occasion the mud and slush would have ruined anything for salepurposes.
Copyright 2003 Robin L. W.Petersen; all rights reserved. For personal use only. Commercial use ofthe information contained in these pages is strictly prohibited withoutprior permission. If copied, this copyright must appear with the information.
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