Iron County register. [volume] (Ironton, Iron County, Mo.) 1867-1965, 1894-04-26
A STUBBORN BLAZE.


Burning Of the Rvan COmnissI0n Co.'S.
Elevator In st. Lonis-The Construction
1. Of the Building and lts SURROUNDINGS
Made It One Of the Worst Fires to E1gho.
tho 81. Louis Department Hes Had for
Many Years-The Loss and Insurance.
ST.. LOUIS, April 21.The grain ele-s
vator of the Ryan Commission Co. at.
1904 and 1906 Clark avenue was totally
destroyed by fire yesterday afternoon.
The flames and smoke were first seen.
issuing from the car door on the west,
side of the building. As soon as the.
engines arrived the fremen perceived
that more help would be needed, and
two more alarms were turned in, and
when Chief Lindsey arrived shortly
after the last alarm q general alarm
was sounded.
The building was a three-story frame
structure, about l5Ox100, and fully 100
feet high. The outside of the building
was covered with sheet iron, making.
it almost impossible to fight the fire
with any effect. Shortly after the gem
era1 alarm was turned in che flames
broke through the west side of the
building, near the center. A half dozen
streams were poured through the crew
ice, but the flames continued tospread
until they gradually found egress
through the roof. Fifteen streams
were turned on, but the fire continued
to burn fercely until the walls sue
cumbed; the last one on the Clark ave-
nue. side fell about o'clock.
As near as could be ascertained, the
fire originated in the elevator shaft
near the second floor, and is supposed
to have been caused by lot of grain
dust, which produced spontaneous COM
bustion.
The fire was one of the hottest that
the department has ever fought, and
was much like that which destroyed
the Mississippi elevator. two years ago.
After the blaze had become general
ried huge cinders into the air, to the
great danger of adjacenG property.
The wind blew almost hurricane
from the west. the effect of which was.
detrimental to the work of the fire.
men, as the wind was driven into the
openings in the west side of the build
ing, spreading the fire over to the east.
SIDE Falling portions of the walls
made the positions of the firemen dan
gerous. Several firemen had narrow
escapes. The smoke stack fell upon
the roof of the one-story brick occu-
pied by the Crown linseed oil works
and rebounded, portion of it piercing
the roof of the Evans tobacco ware
house in the rear. The red-hot pipe
was Immediately cut away by the SAL
wage corps.
Chemical engines kept the fire from
igniting the American Express Co.'s
stables on the east side of Sixteenth
street and the other buildings sur
rounding.
Insurance to the amount of $1O4, 600
was placed on the two buildings and
machinery. The total amount of risks
on the elevator was placed at 5000,
with $4,000 additional on the stock
contained therein. The loss is esti-
mated at so pei cent. of the above
amounts.
The elevator was built in 1870. and
was occupied by the Collier White Lead
Co. until the White Lead trust was
formed, when it was leased to the Ma
tional Linseed Oil Co., whose head
quarters are in Chicago.
Several years ago it was again leased,
this time to the Ryan Commission Co.
An estimate of their losses could not be
obtained last night, though it is known
that they had about 5000 bushels of
wheat stored in the elevator at the
time of the fire.