Daily tobacco leaf-chronicle. (Clarksville, Tenn.) 1890-1895, 1891-08-31
PROPERTY DESTROYED.
A Sunday Morning Fire Does
the Work.
The Elder Block Comes In For Another
Loss and the Opera House
Barely Escapes.
FURNITURE STORE GONE.

Shortly after 1870 o'clock Sunday
morning Policeman Collier discover
ed heavy smoke emanating from the
cellar Of the building, 81 Franklin
street, occupied by G. A. Gossett as a
furniture store and G. II. Bailey as
undertaken. He could not see the
fire, but could hear it. Mr, Collier
ran to the market house bell to give
the alarm, but the bell rope broke at
the first tap, and he had to
climb the belfry to sound the
alarm. Members of the fire com
pany responded promptly and soon
had two streams in the cellar. About
the time the firemen thought they
had the fire in the basement under
control, flames were seen springing
up OH the first and second floors and
in an incredibly short time the entire
building was on fire. 1t is the
general belief among firemen that
flames, or sparks perhaps, went up
the elevator shaft communicating
with the combustible matter on the
first, second and third floors, and
from there they made their way
against stubborn resistance to the Y.
M. G. A. building on the east and
Elder Bros, hardware store on the
west, getting in under the roofs OF
both buildings.
When the flames reached the large
hardware store and could be seen
burning in the garnet under the roof
it seemed that the entire building
was doomed. The fire crept along
the sheeting under the iron roof and
reached lot of buggies, plows and
road carts that were stored on the
third floor, charring them so heavily
that they are almost worthless. Every
man on the ground realized that
should the flames get beyond control
in the opera house building disas-
trous confagratiOn would be theresult
as tongues of fire would shoot mena-
ingly at the buildings on the oppo-
site side of the street, seeming eager
to lick them up. The full force OF
the fire department was therefore di
rected in an earnest effort to save the
building. Men grabbed water buck
cts, and, while the streams from the
engine and fire plugs were playing
on the hottest part, did excellent
work in this way. The work was
indeed so effective that the flames
were checked and a disastrous calam.
ity was narrowly averted.
At the same time that the flames
were eating their way into the opera
house building they were by the
same process gaining a foul hold I'M
der the roof of the building on the
east occupied by Patton Bros. on the
first floor and by the Y. M. G. A.
rooms and gymnasium on the ser-
ond and third floors. Here the fire.
men were not so successful in their
efforts to check the fire as in the
opera house building and the third
story of this house was pretty well
Quilted. From it fire connected to
the roof of the vacant storeroom in
which McGehee Bros. dry goods
store was burned out last fall, and
the roof of this building was
damaged to some extent.
While the work Ct fight
ing theflames in the opera
house building was going on,
people on the opposite side were
preparing to move. They saw that
all the property from Bloch Bros
dry goods house to the Franklin
house was in danger. Fears on this
score, however, were relieved by the
effective work done, in suppressin9
tilC hilllNp III lllC bulluIliSs
ABOUT THE LOSS.
The loss is hard to estimate, but it
will reach nearly $4,000 all told.
The Y. Nj. G. A. rooms are greatly
damaged. The gymnasium was
completely destroyed and everything
the Association had gathered togeth-
er within the years of it's existence is
damaged more or less. Patton Bros,
who use the first floor of the building
as furniture store, are damaged
considerably by water. c. A. Cos
sett's furniture was all burned. G. |
III. Bailey lost his entire stock of
collins and other burial material. |
Elder Bros. hardware stock was
damaged heavily by fire, water and
rough handling, much of it being
carried out and deposited in heaps |
on the public square. The damage |
to the post Office and the interior of
the opera house is nominal.
The loss and insurance as near as
can be estimated is as follows:
The building occupied by G. A.
Gossett was owned by Elder Bros.
and is valued at $500. Insurance
e.. 600 of which ~ 600 Is nlacpd in