Daily Yellowstone journal., 1889-07-02
A $4,000 BLAZE.
Miles City is Visited by Fire on
Sunday which Destroys
Seven Dwellings.
The most Favorable Auspices for
a Destructive conflagraticn-
A Hot Day and Hign Wind.
MOSTLY COVERED ny INSURANCE.


No Theory as to How the Fire was started.
On Sunday at > o'clock p. m,
flames were seen pouring out of
the dwelling on Park street, owned
by Mrs. TOlffpe. The wind was blow.
ing high from the southwest and the
flames were leapiDg toward n number
of other buildings IN cl0se proximity.
1t became apparent al Il glance that n
seriou. tire was In progress. Ready
hands at once got 10 work aud all the
available pumps aud hose in the
neighborboOd were soon employed
and several streams OF water were
shortly playing upon the fire.
The intense heat of the sun bad 50
heated the frame buildings In the
vicinity of where the fire was raging,
thst IL soon became evident that the
adjacent buildings must 60, and n
large force of volunteers set to work
removing what furniture that was
possible Of removal, that the consum-
ing element might have AZ liltle to de.
slroy Ss could be allowed.
About this time the fences and
frame buildiDgs in the rear of Carriers
Restaurant became impsriled aud q
force If men set 10 work 10 tearing
them down; this WIS also done with
the fencing and sheds in the rear Of
the establishments Of O-schel, Miles,
Strevell & Ulmer and TUlly 4 Freese.
The large shed in the rear Of Capt.
Harmon'S store became very much
heated, but was saved by water being
poured over the side Of the roof next
the fire. There were number of bar
rels on the top Of this building, which
were kept filed with water and which
were found invaluable AT that time,
since, II the flames had reached this
building they would have gotten into
the business portion of the town and
Miles would doubtless have been n
second Seattle.
Fortunately, however, the wind
veered somewh hat, and blew the flames
away from the rear of the business
block. which, together with the tear
ing down Of the wooden structures In
the rear, and the sprInkling of what.
ever water there could be gotten, on
the heated surface, prevented the fire
from leaping across the ten foot alley
way which separates the rear OF the
business buildings from the stables
aud dwellings opposite.
II was but a short while, before the
dwelling of the Misses Scott had
caught. The barn In the rear was the
irst to eaten and the fire approached
the dwelling from the rear. There
was much handsome and valuable
furniture consumed in this house, very
little OF which was saved, for the
reason that il was mostly large and OF
heavy. bard woods, some of which
was set with plate glass and marble
slabs.
From here The buildings on the op-
posite eide of Park street became i'm
periled; If the fire bad gotten across
here IL would have swept through an
other area covered by frame buildings
very much like that which 1t had just
swept over. Prompt work on this
side, however, with q quantity Of
water used in wettiDg down the fronts
Of the dwellings, prevented any
spread in this direction.
The large white house owned by
Sheriff Tom Irvine, which stands on
the corner of Sixth and Pleasant
streets then caught fire, and II was
expected that this would be next In
line of the confiagratio1. A number
of men set TO work removing the fur.
niture. and larger force got water
upon the building, hose being at
tached to force pump in rear yard.
The fire here was extingunshed. how
ever, without any material damage
being done 10 the place. The fire
did not cease until all the raterial In
the district extending from the ten
foot alley referred north TO Pleasant
street and east and west from Park to
Sixth streets was consumed.
The following estimate of loss, fur
nlshed by Capt. T.. A. Kreidler, sp-
proximates nearly correctly:
Mr. Tolfree, dwelling .........".".S 500
Mr.. Currler ............. 200
Mr. A. II. Wilder. of ST. Paul,
dwelllng."......".,., 300
Maj. Logan, dwelling............. 800
Sam Pepper, |" ....,,.... GOO
Il. j. Jones, furniture......,........ 600
Mrs. q. w. Savage, house and
phfh ,....,,......,",".....,u . wv
Unknown dwelling ,,,,.,. 800
Mrs. G. w. Savage, furnlture..- 600
A horse belonging to Fred Christie
pher, while standing in front OF the
Y I..aI