The Stark County Democrat. [volume] (Canton, Ohio) 1833-1912, 1893-06-15

CAUSED BY THE APPLICATION OF 4
LIGHTED MATCH TO A BUILDING.

LISI1lGG WHINT ~ DOILIINS'
The Dexter Wagon Works, After Num-
Der of Attempts, Finally Gets Start
sEnough to Burn Down-The Work OF
Incendiaries Without Doubt.
The fire fend wrought fearful havoc
Tuesday night at the works OF the Dexter
Wagon Company. Not content with de-
vouring portion Of the shop buildings
Monday night, and entsilinR loss OF
several hundred dollars, the flames revis>
tied the works Tuesday night and almost
entirely conaumed them.
Among Canton's Industries in point of
production, and the number of hands en-
ployed in proportion to capital invested,
the Dexter Wagon Company was lead
ing one. They manufactured fine
quality OF road carriage, and their output
was very large one. Their shops were
located at the intersection of Marion
street and the Ft. Wayne railway.
Tuesday night Manager Ed. d. Myers,
of the Dexter company, accompanied by
n gentleman friend, visited the stable of
the works and placed his horse in an ad.
joining barn. This was about o'clock,
Half an hour later the buildings had been
nearly destroyed by fire. Shortly after
o'clock an employe of the Artificial Ice
Company, while doing some work
about the Ice company's building,
discovered flames issuing from
the storage room of the Dexter Company.
An alarm was at once turned in from
box at Plum and Navarro streets. AL
though the FIRE department responded
very quickly the flames had hercely eaten
their way along and communicated with
the barn and the main building and these
were being greedily licked up when the
apparatus called by general alarm arr
rived. The flremen fought the flames and
it was II 10 when the gong sounded "fre
out"
II was suspicious discovery which an
employe OF the Wagon Company made
during the progress OF the fire. He ran
into the barn presumably to look after the
horses when he saw can containing
gasoline lying upon the floor. He picked
II up aud carried il out. This fact points
the hand OF suspicion toward the work of
stated Wednesday morning to News
DEMOCRAT reporter that no gasoline
of any kind ever was used
about the building and tha,
he and Manager Myer took the utmost
care that not spark of fire was allow owed
to remain anywhere in the buildings over
night. II is stated by people residing in
the neighborhoou that tramps have often
made the works rendezvous at night
and that they even lit matches there
abouts while they intruded into the
buildings. Mr.. Myers IL OF the opinion
that the fire was OF an incendiary origin
He is unable to give any theory as to why
| evil designed parties should have takeI
revenge upon the company in this way.
The storage room was filed with manu-
factured goods, such as buggies and sup
plies. The blacksmith shop was al
together destroyed, the machinery being
ruined. The paint works and wood de-
partment were badly gutted and will hav'
| to be rebuilt. The barn contained thre,
horses used by the company. The ami
mails occupied their stalls when the flAme
began to issue from the barn and il wa
with mucL difficulty and danger that on
of them was taken out. The other two
fine looking and valuable horses, wer
burned, the groAns of the animal
as the flames reached them, being hear,
for some distance away.
The officers of the company are: D
Cobaugh, president; j. +. Emery, vic
president and E. d. Myers secretary ant
treasurer. Mr.. Myers stated this morning
that the company had been doing flour
ishinR business in this city for the past 81,
years, and that this was their busiest sea
son. He says that the company had oil
hand many finished goods and that thea
were being shipped or were about to b
shipped. This made the total loss reac
Sl2, 900, as near as Mr.. Myers could judge
The insurance on the entire propert
destroyed is $4,000. Mr.. Myers is clearl
of the opinion that the fire 10 of incendi
AIRY origin as no fire was allowed in th
buildings at night and there was no seri
GUS danger of spontaneous combustion
There 10 no doubt in the mind of any on
who has investigated into the facts, thG
the fire was ths work of incendiaries
Subsequent Developments may prove thi
more conclusively.
Work will be resumed with as short In
terruption as possible, the Wagon com
pany having made arrangements to NOV
into W. r.. Harrison q Co.'s building oil
uated in the immediate vicinity of th
Wagon works -'lant. The company hs
yet decideI upon rebuilding, but wi
occupy the Harrison building until sue
time as they reach definite conclusio
concerning the rebuilding Of the plan
Mr.. Myers stated that the company d
not contemplate removing from Canto
as has been reported. and that they YOU
hardly entertain any such idea,