St. Johnsbury Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1867-1919, 1889-11-28
FAIRBANKS STORE BURNED.
A Lively Blaze Early Friday Morning.
Many Goods Saved, but more Destroy
ed by Fire and Wafer.-Loss about $780,
900; Insurance $50,5OO.


ed by Fire and Water.-Loss about $780,
600; Insurance $30,5OO.
Fire was discovered in Fairbanks
store at 13O Friday morning and
within an hour about $500 worth
of goods were destroyed and the
building gutted by fire. The citizens
saved most of the dry goods and
some in the grocery department, but
the greater portion of these goods
were destroyed. The insurance was
$39,5O
The fire was discovered by George
Spaulding, one of the night watch
men at the scale works. He says he
first saw smoke in the attic over the
rear of the grocery store and while
he was ringing the alarm the flames
burst out Of the roof and windows.
The atmosphere was very heavy and
there was a little rain at the time, SO
that a great many never heard the
alarm at all and knew nothing about
the fire until the next morning. The
water on the flames and waited pa
tiently for the hose companies to
arrive. BY the time that the latter
had arrived the fire had obtained
such a Roadway that half dozen
streams seemed to have little or no
effect upon the flames.
While the firemen were fighting fire
many of the citizens were working
like beavers to save goods. BY 2
O'Clock a half dozen clerks had ar
rived and they passed out the most
valuable goods to the line of men
outside. For about half an hour
there was quite force in line and the
best of the dry goods and some of
scale office and saved. The company
feel satisfied that the department
handled the fire we'll and are also
grateful for the prompt assistance
rendered by the citizens. The fire
occurred when Col. Franklin Fair
banks and Manager Turner were
away, and James Richie, manager of
the dry goods department, and Geo.
w. Spencer, manager of the grocery
department, were in Boston.
The store WIS one of the most com
plete i'll the state and contained q
large and varied stock valued at
about $75, 900 The total loss will
be in the vicinity of $4,000. No at
tempt was made to save anything
up stairs where were the crock
cry, carpets, clothing and wall pa
pers, together with the ladies gar
ments and mems boots and shoes
Very little was saved here the next
morning, after the fire water had
done its work and, the heaviest loss
was in these departments. In the
dry goods department down stairs
there was considerable that was not
saved and much of the hardware was
badly damaged. In the grocery store
the butter and soap were melted and
many of the groceries spoiled either
by fire or water or both. The build
ing was an old one and was not much
loss.
The cause of the fire will ever be
mystery, but the favorite theory
seems to be that it was caused by
combination of rats and matches 1t
is well known that rats have a fond
ness for matches and within a year
matches have been found in rats nests
in this store There was no fire in
the store the day before and there
seems to be little reason for suppos-
ing that it was spontaneous combus-
ton that caused this fire. Aside
from one or two slight injuries to the
firemen when portion of the roof
fell in no accident occurred. An hour
after the fire started most of the spec
tators had started for home, but the
firemen played on the flames until
after daylight.
The insurance was $685. car
ried by P. D. Blodgett & Co. of this
place. The building was insured for
$500 in the Phoenix and Spring
field, in policies of $225O each The
stock was insured for $35, 900, the
highest policy of $4,000 being held by
the London, Liverpool & Globe The
balance was held by these companies
in policies of $25OO each: Anglo
Nevada, Phoenix of Hartford, Insur-
ance Co. of North America, City of
London, Imperial, Fire Associa ton,
Hartford, New Hampshire, Orient,
German American, Commercial
Union, Peoples.
The insurance adjusters were here
Tuesday and have settled with the
company satisfactorily.
A meeting of directors of the cor
pOratiOn was held here Tuesday and
committee chosen to see what is to
be done to their recently-purchased
property on Main street before it is
permanently occupied by the Fair
banks for a dry goods store. This
committee will not hurry in their
work and until the Main street store
is ready for occupancy, which may
not be until spring, Manager Richie
will sell dry goods in the town hall
All the goods that were saved and