St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1891-04-09
A Hot Elevator Fire in North
east Minneapolis--$40,00
Loss.
The Builders Back Up the
Master Plumbers in Their
Position.
Judge Pond Reads a Homily
on Morality to the Grand
Jury.
Retailers Trying to Drive
PeddlerS Off the Face Of
the Earth.

Minneapolis had another serious fire yes
teTday afternoon. The Diamond elevator, at
Central avenue and Eighth street northeast
was destroyed. Nothing was saved. What
the fire didn't toucn the water did The loss
Will be total.
The fire started in the engine room, just
how is not known 10 Il certainty. The en-
gineer says that cap blew off a steam chest
and that an explosion of flour dust followed
The whole building blazed up in one flame
Z he first alarm was turned in at 1870 AS
soon as the engines arrived second alarm
was given. The fire looked serious then,
though not uncomfortable. Within the next
five minutes the alarm was made
general But fighting fire after an
explosion of flour dust and in a
building that is dry as finder is usually
frnitless task. 1t was in this case. The
whole structure was wrapped i'll flame al
most from the start. ABOUT ali the fremen
could DO was to prevent 1t from spreading.
They did that and il kept them busy The
high wind, blowing from the south. kept the
fire up 10 its highest pitch and drove sparks
and blazing embers high into the air. scatter
ing them over large territory. Several
frame dwellings stood alongside the elevator.
None of them was burned, but their roofs
1gnlted several times. small barn over on
Harrison street and Fourth avenue northeast
was burned. catching from sparks, at a loss
OF S3OO Houses in that nelghborhood
speak CT was done. Several times the flames
were driven across the Great Northern tracks.
block from the burning elevator, into
wood yard. There TIE tTemen found con-
siderable work. but they succeeded in pre-
venting serious conflagratiol. Great North
ern trains had TO stop, the heat was SO in
tense. 1t was one of the understanding
fires ever seen in the city. Fifteen minutes
after the first alarm was sounded the roof of
the elevator had fallen in
The account of the fire given by Lou Four
ME, lie head bo0kkeeper, confirms the en-
glneer's theory as to the origin of the fire.
He heard an explosion. Immediately there
after the Office door leading into the main
building was blown open. The room in
which he was became so filed with smoke
and flame that he had difficulty in getting
OUT ms hrst act was to throw books and
papers into the vault and lock it. He was
badly sutfocated before reaching the open air.
Que man was injured Ole Olson, an en-
ploye. lie was Oh the ground floor, sacking
grain when the building burst into flame.
Before he could escape the hair was singed
from his head and his face, neck and hands
were badly burned. Police Surgeon Gibson
tended him. Olson will recover.
The elevator was built several years ago
The Minneapolis Grain ana Feed COMPANY
in which j. c. Wardinard and F. B. Godfrey
are the principal partners, owned and oper-
ated it. 1t has been used as Il storehOuse. A
quantity of hay ground feed, oats buck
wheat. corn, cornmeal and flour was stored
oughly, and it's timbers were because
of the nature of the contents
coated with a substance peculiarly
sensitive 10 the influence of fire Hence it
went off like a match. Nothing was saved
beyond some of the books and papers and
typewriter (machineD The stencgrapher
carried it with him when he escaped from
the Office on the second floor. Many valuable
papers are believed to have been destroyed
although they may be in the vault Book
Keeper Fournie threw i'll everything of value
which was handy. Only an examination of
the vault will determine the loss in this
direction.
The loss will, the owners believe, aggregate
$4,000. They valued the building at 20oGG
Its first cost was considerably more The
elevator was we'll filled with hay and grain
All Of that is lost. If by chance any of it
was not burned, the water poured upon the
fire has ruined it. The loss on stock is esti-
mated at nearly $4,000. Fortunately both
building and contents were we'll insured
Jones, McMullen e. Co. carried $4,000 of the