The Superior times. [volume] (Superior, Wis.) 1870-1912, 1894-09-08
TOWNS FIRE SWEPT.
BLAZING Forests Garry Death
and Destruction.
Thousands Of People Homeless and Hun
dreds Burned to Death.

''b' HuiF -Niiiilis - I. ENlk towns
wiped out and more than 800 dead is the
| record mad" by the forest fires in
this state during the last thirty-sx hours
In liinckIey. Sandstone, Pokegama
Sandstone junction, Skunk Lake and
Mission Creek there are :b:IJ known dead
In addition several hundred are missing,
while from 150 to 200 people were scat
tered on farms throughout the district
burned over. Estimates of the number
Of lives lost are made as follows:
Hincklcy ....... POO Skunk Lake. %
Sandstone Jet. y Miscellaneous =. 30
Pokegama ...... - Total .......... 3.,5
The story Of the catastrophe which
wiped out the material possessions that
had made Hinckley a busy. prosperous
little city is a short one. The town was
built of wood.
All yesterday forenoon the townspeople
were apprehensive. The smoke rolling
up from the south told story unmiStak-
ably plain to those accustomed TO a
wooded country. The fire kept advancing.
famed by the wind which was blowing a
gale. About II o'clock the fire company
got out its engine and laid out an 1900
foot line Of hose to the southern utskirts
of the town. The hose was all too short
for the measure of protection desired and
a telegram was sent to Rush City for
more. Five hundred feet was sent, but it
never reached HinCkley.
The main part of the village lies in
the north fork made by the crossing OF
the Duluth and Eastern tracks, the lat
ter to the east and the former on the
west On tn" west side of the Duluth
tracks were a few small houses belonging
70 the railway employees. About ; o'clock
in the afternoon the fire literally jumped
into the town 1t is described by those
who witnessed its onward progress at
IIinckley and elsewhere as if it were
forced along by cyclones of its own gen
Grafton. The intense heat would develop
a vcritahIc whirlwind Of flame that act
uaHy twisted off poplar trees several
inches in thickness and carried hug" blaz-
ing firehraudS high in the air. and carry
ing them forward fer from forty 10
eighty rods, there to fall and begin the
work Of devastation anew.
The ire first struck IIIncklcy on the
east SIDE of the Duluth track, and the
brave tirc-hghtcrS for the first time gave
up the unequal battle ami already too late
in many instances. turning their attention
to their personal safety. The Eastern
Minnesota train from the south had just
come in and the pcopl" of til" panic
stricken CITY hoCkcd to It f"~ enfntv A
number ur uoN cars were coupled on and
filled and covered With men, women and
Chillrcn. In all there Was Il motley crowd
Of about 43O or more people" The train
pulled out Just ahead Of the fire and ~ia-
aecd"d in ultimately reaching Duluth.
bout the same hour the accommodation
train on the lIincklcy X ST Cloud branch
pft for the latter place with about
twenty-five passengers Its path lay Ill
rectly across the path of th" fire and
their situation speedily became desperate"
The ties wcr" burning. tn" rails wcr"
warning and the trcStIcN were Sa-giuG
undcr the train. The smoke had Increased
81 that the engineer Was helpless He
could not see the train behind him
Burning trees lay ucro>S tn" track and
were hcing tossed aside hy the engine
Suddenly the track gave way and the
train topplcd over to one side No one
was injured and they pressed on To Poke
CANA station, few rods ahead But a
few feet in front of the cnGin" WAS dis
covered = gorg" sixty feet wide and forty
feet deep. whrr" the trrstlc had been
burned away. They succeeded i'll reach
ing the clearing about tn" station and cs-
capped with few burns and bruises.
There were burned along tho track, how
ever. four or five persons. including br.
Kelley of New Brighton. who had come
NJ 10 look after his brother.
Tho prnpIe who were left in tho city
,.cr, in what seemed 10 hn an almost
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