Oakes weekly Republican. (Oakes, Dickey County, D.T. [i.e. N.D.]) 1883-1898, 1893-08-18
Carried the FLAMES

Carried the FLAMES
to building after building i'll swift sue
cession. Before the icehouse and stable
were half consumed the 2-story frame
factory of the Union wagon works was
afre. 1t was old ana dry as punk, and
the streams Of water which the tiremen
poured upon it were of no avail.
From there the flames quickly
swept to J. r. Clarke's box factory,
which was soon in ruins. Next to
it on the north Lenhart's wagon works
and the Cedar Lake ice houses were
wiped ont of existence.
Farther north We're Lintge & Con-
nell's boiler works and here the heav-
lest loss on the island took place. This
firm had stock valued at over $50, ,O0c
and not cent of insurance. The other
losers are fairly we'll insured.
1t was while the hremen We're busy
at work on Nicollet island ard had
secured final control of the flames. that
a startled exclamation came from tho
thousands of spectators that surrounded
the scene. Some of the fremen stopped
from their labors to look up. only to
discover that the work had only COM
menced. For just then lurid tongue
Of flame shot up from the midst Of the
lumber yards and saw mills on Boom
island, and soon second alarm went
over the city, calling the firemen to
save that section.
Boom island is several blocks up the
river, and the theory which was at first
suggested that the wind had blown Gin
ders to that section was soon abandoned
when it became known that this second
fire had been
Started by an Inccndiary
and was eating its way into the heart of
the lumber district A general fire
alarm was sounded, and the whole city
awoke to the realization that it
was threatened with destruction.
Quickly jumping across the small space
of water separating the island from the
mainland
The Flames Gained n Footing
in Nelson. Tenny & Co.'s lumber yard
where were piled some l0.OO0,OU0 feet
VI lulu OeI. L Hc u1o "OlhCa lhlOuSi
this yard and into that of E. w. Backus
& Co., adjoining. BY this time it was
impossible to stop it even had tho
whole department been on hand
Great embers flew through the air ant
started fresh fires. The flames wcr'
simply irresistible. Brick and ston,
structures fell az easy victims as thu
merest shells. Beyond the lumber
yard were the two mills belonging tt
e. w. Backus & Co. Of these nothing
remain except the smokestaeks and :
mass of twisted machinery and charret
timbers. j. B. Chattenton's ceda
post mill went the way Of the others
as did the sash and door factories o
Fulton G. Libbey and J. F. Wilcox
Co. At the corner of Marshall stree
and Thirteenth avenue stood the man
moth brewery of the Miuneapoli
Brewing company. This, it seemed
must surely go, but at this time
The Wind Changed
and although the brewery was sur
rounded by wooden buildings it wa
saved and this was the only structur
between Sixth and Thirteenth avenues
and from the river back to Marshal
street, distance of three blocks, tina
escaped the fire. The big brewer
acted as a sort of shield and in
measure protected the property to tn
north. Had it burned nothing coul
have prevented tine fire from runnin
north as far as it could find anything
burn. Along the river were situate
the saw mills and wood and lumbe
yards, and these, too, would have gol
the way Of the others and nearly ii
entire saw mill industry OF the cit
would have been destroyed.
Flames Cross the River.
All the availall. fire apparatus in IL
city was in use and st. Paul sent tw
engine companies in response to cal
for assistance. but despite this fa