Watertown republican. [volume] (Watertown, Wis.) 1860-1906, 1894-09-05

lS1uSCSSs 1ION dCu IhtO Lu6 IIdII.
completely filling it. Ey this time the
woods were blazing on each side of the
track, and as Root reversed his engine
and started back the cars scOrched and
cracked in the heat. Root ran the train
back about three miles to Skunk lake.
and the people escaped from the burning
cars to the water, and no lives were lost.
either Of passengers or refugees.
The people who remained III Hinckley
Jared the best of all. The Eastern Min
nesota tracks mark the eastern edge of
the city proper. Just beyond the read
was a tract of land probably embracing
at least ten acres. 1t was purchased fO1
a gravel pit to furnish material for the
fill which approaches the company's
bridge across the Grindstone and at other
points on it's line. To the fact that il
had been used for this purpose almost to
its exhaustion about 100 Hinckleyites
owe their lives. The whole area indi
Gated had been e~xcavated to a depth in
the center of thirty or forty feet. There
was a stagnant pool of rainwater in the
center three feet in the greatest depth.
The pit was wide and deep, and to it
fled those of the citizens who were will
ing to trust to it's friendly depths. There
were probably 100 of them, and in addi-
ton to the human beings quite a mum
Der of domestic animals-horses, COWS,
oxen, pigs, chickens, etc.-sought safety
there.
In Hle meantime Hinckley was burning.
The names leaped from building to build
ing with almost the rapidity of an electric
spark. Everything was finder dry. There
was not ever one brick wall to stay for q
moment the work of destruction, and all
went up in smoke. About go dwellings
with all their household treasures, twenty
stores with all their stocks of goods, in
Guiding tie immense general establishment
of the Brennan Lumber company, two ho-
tells. the Central and the Morrison, the
railroad depots and eating houses; the
new brick school, the town hall, the Du-
luth roundhouse, the three bridges and at
last the plant of the Brennan Lumber
company, sawmill, planning mill, stables,
lumberyard and all. This institution was
the pride of Hinckley and the backbone Of
its prosperity. 1t employed about 800
men. who with their families made up &
large portion Of the 100 or 1900 pOpula-
ton claimed for the town. Its payroll
was enormous and without it Hinckley
could not survive. Indeed, if it is not re-
built 1t is hard to see what reason there
should be for rebuilding Hinckley to my
thing like its former proportions. The
whole plant was wiped out almost quicker
than it takes to describe it, and with the
rest went about ninety splendid horses.
The burning of the plant involves a fnan-
cial loss of from S4J0.000 to 100000,
with about half that amount of insurance.
The total loss to the city will exceed
Sl,0OO,0G with a comparatively light in
surance. The rates in the lumber regions
are necessarily high and very little in
surance was carried in consequence.
The whole country around Hinckley is
on fire. and the full extent of the dis
aster cannot be learned for a day or two.
j. w. Sargent, a passenger conductor
on the Duluth road, got into Hinckley
during the night and he organized a vol
unteer crew who managed two hand
cars, whose capacity was increased by
the use of plank. They went up the Du-
luth track to the north and picked up
thirty-one bodies between the river and
pth1h ldhe- Inc bOOlGS were NTilsDGd
UP in blankets and such cloth as could be
obtained and laid out by the side of the
track where the depot had stood. Here
also was brought the two little sons of
Thomas Henderson, Sandy and Johnny.
The drowned bodies of Mrs. Martinson
and her four children, Mis-. Blanchard
and her two children, who were burned
to death just above the Duluth round
houses, and the man, Lambeson, who
was found near the MartinsOn party.
Citizen volunteers harnessed up the avail
able vehicles saved in the gravel pit ana
went out to the swamp across the Grind
stone. They brought in n~inety-siX bodies,
which were carted out to the desolate lit
tie burying ground a mile east of town.
There was neither time nor opportunity
to observe the sacred formalities usually
surrounding death.
One of the saddest features of the
calamity is the inpossibility Of identiica-
ton in q large proportion Of the cases.
The ninety-six bodies brought into this
point were examined by many Of the sur
viving residents of Hinckiey, and only four
could be identified, Charles Anderson,
Axel Hanson, Dennis Riley and Mrs.
William Ginder. The balance Will have
to be buried together. Those who brought
in the bodies from the swamp reported
that there were at least thirty-fye other
bodies out there which cannot be brought
in until morning. Out on the govern
ment road to the east were found the
bodies of the Best family of six persons,
father, mother and four children. Best
was a prosperous farmer living just out
of town. Here also We're recovered the
bodies of three unfortunate creatures who
lived at the stcckade. There We're six
Of these women in all. They escaped to
the river, but three returned to carry out
a trunk and were overtaken by the flames.
Near Skunk lake was found a family con
sisting of father, mother and seven chill
dren. OF another family in which there
were FIVE children only the father es-
capped. There was a settlement Of about
thirty people near this lake, and but wv
are known to be alive.
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