St. Paul daily globe., 1893-06-26
Planning Mill of ]. B. Bassett &
Co. Destroyed by Fire
: Sunday Afternoon.
Other Buildings, With 1,000,-
600 Feet Of Lumber,
Burned.
The Fire Originated in One Of
the Vats Of the BidWell
Rendering Company.
Several Men Injured and
Burned---Total Damage
Reaches $4,000.

Reaches S5O,OUu.
One of the most extensive fires which
has occurred in Minneapolis for some
time happened yesterday. The actual
loss was not so great as at some recent
fires. but it came near being very ex-
tensive c0nfagratiOn.
To the north of the Bassett mill. and
near the tracks of the Minneapolis q
st. Louis railroad, stands the shed occu-
pied by the Hastings Cut Stone COM
pany. In the shed was the boiler and
the engine which runs the stone saws.
/ Between this and the planning mill was
the Bdwel Rendering works i'll
frame building about 2Ox30 feet'and
one story in height. On the banks OF
the lake, and surrounded by immense
piles of cut lumber, was the Bassett
planning mill and the Clayton & Bassett
Plow factory. Scattered about these
buildings were several lumber and dry
ing sheds, and upon the side tracks were
one or two Minneapolis & st. Louis box
cars.
At noon the wind came like gale up
the valley back of Lowry hill, and
stirred the waters of the little lake into
a foam. The sawdust from the waste
heaps was caught up and carried i'll
clouds Dy the wind which made the
tree tops bend like whips.
At 12 O'Clock Sharp.
John Cullen. engineer for the Bassett
plant, and who was in the saw mill at
tending to some work, chanced to look
out of the open door and saw smoke
issuing from the roof of the rendering
works. At first it looked like steam
from the kettles. At the same instant
boy ran out of the rendering works
saying that one of the yats had
caught fire and that the whole interior
of the building was in flames. Cullen at
once pulled box 317 which is within a
few rods OF the mill. The first contin-
gent of engines was quickly on the spot,
but as swift as they were the flames,
aided by the wind, were quicker. By
mill. the rendering works were a mass
of flames, which had communicated to
the freight cars, and from there had
jumped with startling fury to the frame
work of the mill, which was as dry as
tinder, and which was surrounded by
piles of highly infammable waste.
The flames curled and swept about
I,a ,nd h,i i'm oil
like fiery snakes, emitting clouds of
inky smoke. So quickly did the flames
spread that Cullen did not have time to
rescue his coat and vest. in which was
valuable gold watch and quite sum of
money.
Engines 6, 10, 16 and s were the
first on the spot, and with rush drove
onto the platform at the edge of the
lake. In trice they had streams playing
into the mill, which was but three rods
away. By this time the planning mill.
| the plOw factory, rendering works. and
| the stone cutting plant were masses of
| flames which rOared in the wind like a
volcano. Huge fire brands as large as a
mans arm were whirled aloft hundred
! feet into the air and sent to do further
work of destruction among the beauti-
full structures
| Cpon the Bluff
| beyond. The flames continued to grow
| more intense and to spread with light
ming rapidity among the adjacent lum-
! ber piles. The crews of engines 6, 10
| and 16 were having hot time of it, for
the flames almost licked the sides of
| the painting machines. 1t soon became
apparent that the engines would have
to be moved and the post deserted if in
| deed the engines were to be saved at all,
which looked doubtful Engineers
Winslow, Allen and West were almost
overcome by the intense heat and
the smoke, and their clothing had begun
to smoke when the order at last came to
vacate the post. 1t came none too soon
and hardly soon enough, for the horses
were beginning to plunge and snort,
and moment later would probably
have stampeded. There was no time
to shut off the engines, as the flames
were so close that even the hose
was smoking. The horses were
whipped up. and the engines putting
to allow the engineers to shut off the
steam. Engineer Winslow, of Engine
le, was struck in the head by hose
coupling, aud severely cut, but he
stuck to his post. The four engines
then took up their station near the
farther end of the little lake, which
furnished the water for the combat.
BY this time the second relay of en-
gines had been summoned in answer
to the general alarm, and one by one
were driving up and settling down to
work. AT the west end of the lake nine
engines were putting side by side
sending eighteen streams of water into
the flaming mass before them. Away
up on the bluff, where the fire brands
had found other food to eat. six
more engines were painting. and
whistling wildly for the fuel
which was slow in coming. There
seemed to be some mistake about