The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1893-03-30


About 8 o'clock lust evening an alarm
OF fire was rung in. Owing t9 some
fault OF tue city hall bell, the alarm did
not sound right, seeming to BIO three,
whllo the number was really So. The
houses all got it right, however, and
when they responded found the cooper
shop at tho south end OF the Belmont
mill abla1e. A second alarm was rung
in a little later, calling the full depart
ment to the scene.
In spite Of the efforts OF the lremen
tho buildings which had caught Are
were entirely destroyed. They wero
the cooper shops, dry houses and sheda
OF the Belmont mill, and tho stables OF
the mill company were ALEC partly
burned.
The origin OF the blaze was mys.
tory, An employe OF the shops said
tho flames seemed to leap out from
every part OF tho shops at once. The
works had been closed down for a week.
and there was no fire about tho preml-
SOS. Tho dry kilns Ind not been used
lately except to store material or stock
in. Steam was used to make tho slaves
pliable, but for the past week there had
not oven been fire In the place to raise
steam. 1t looks as II the fire must have
been incondiary or accidentally started
by some person.
10 addto the mystery and thcuneasi.
nesa OF the proprietors, Waterman Hal
let, who IL sud TO be very faithful
man, could not be found while the fire
was in progress, and it was feared that
he had gone into the shop and persisted
in the peculiarly dense smoke.
Tho shop consisted OF brick build
ing on tho west end, and wooden one
east Of it, In all it was nearly 100 feet
square. In it were great many kegs
Of nails, odd sorts, stored because there
was no other use for the space. There
we're also about 1000 new kegs, three
carloads OF slaves and ono carload Of
hoops, besides heading in large guam
tity. The stock is said to have been in.
sured, hut tho building was not. The
houses were owned by the Belmont
Company, or rather the Wheeling Iron
and Steel Company, tho new combine Of
which tho Belmont is part. The plant
was leased by the Mears Keg aud Box
company, Of Martins Ferry, which fur
nished the Belmont and Riverside fac
tories with nail kegs, besides selling to
anybody who wanted them. The loss
was estimated last night at $1,000,
everything included. II was said by
those in position to know that the
shops would not DO rebuilt.
The stables Of the Belmont company
were damaged to the extent, possibly,
OF $500, covered by insurance.
The cooper shops were long owned by
Mr.. j. A. Lancaster, and operated under
contract with the Belmont and other
nail factories. He controlled them
from about 1851 to 1881. Tho Mrars
concern leased them after its shops at
Martins Ferry burned down some time
ago
While playing on the FIRE tho Niagara
engine blew out steam cylinder, dis
abling the machine until new one can
be procured from the factory at Seneca
Falls, n. Y.
A largo crowd gathered about the
scene Of the fire. Tho lines Of hose laid
across the street car tracks kept the
cars from running for at least an hour.
The rumor was current uptown that
the Spears axle factory was burning.
The cooper shop is just across Twenty
seventh street from the axle factory.
While the fire was in progress, the axle
factory was turning every wheel, and
making axles at rate which indicated
quite boom in its business.
After the fire was over it was learned
that when the shops shut down Hallet
ceased to do duty as IL Waterman, and
was not near tho premises when the