The Redwood gazette. [volume] (Redwood Falls, Minn.) 1873-1940, 1896-07-16
THREE TIMES AND THEM?
The 6. w. Van Dusen & Co, EIeVat-
or Again Falls Victim to
Flames.
The Building Completely De.
stroyed With 5000 Bush
els of Grain.

For the third time in three years
the grain elevator of G.. w, Van
Dusen & Co., on the Northwestern
tracks at this point, went up in smoke,
at about 2 o'clock last Thursday morn
ing. The elevator contained $4,000
bushels of wheat and 5000 bushels of
flax. The building was valued at
$500 and the loss is conservatively
estimated at $4,000. A Northwest
ern freight car, standing adjoining to
the elevator, was also destroyed by
the flames.
How the fire originated is a mys-
terry, although circumstances tend to
show that it was of an incendiary or
igin. No blaze was seen by Deputy
Sheriff G. V. Everett, who was re-
turning home from legal mission, at
one thirty o'clock on the morning in
question, although he states that he
detected smell similar to burning
wheat, in passing block west of the
elevator. At two o'clock the fire was
under full headway, for Is minutes
later, when the first alarm was given,
the elevator was completely enveloped
in flames.
There was general response to the
alarm but the fire was beyond the
control of the department. Notwith-
standing this two streams of water
we're soon playing on the remaining
portion of the debris and undoubted-
ly accomplished great deal in keep
ing the fire from destroying the wheat.
The flames illuminated the entire
country for miles around, and while
there was practically no wind to fan
them, cinders we're sent flying through
the air to the northeast for mile or
more. In the morning huge pile of
wheat and fax, from which the smoke
only arose, and the engine room, the
roof only of which had been injured,
we're left as a monument of the fire.
The fire seems to have started, &C.
cording to the judgment of Auditor
Shannon of the company, who arrived
here Thursday afternoon, and of 9TH
ers, on the south side of the elevator,
in about the center of the building. It
may have worked under and then up
through and this may account for the
fact that MIR. Everett did not see the
blaze in passing 1t certainly did not
start near the boiler room or in the
same as that portion remains intact,
except the roof, which was partially
destroyed by the elevator debris fall
ing upon it.
AS before stated the fire seems to
have been of incendiary origin, al
though there is no evidence, aside
from circumstantial, to justify this
suspicion. 1t is known that there
we're number of tourists" around
the Northwestern yards on Wednes-
day night and it is only natural that
they bunk in the shade of an elevator.
Whether they, by accident, had any
thing to do with the fire, will always
remain matter of doubt. The fact
that this is the third elevator owned
by VanDusen here, destroyed by fire
in three years, is strong evidence of
incendiarism. The first elevator, it
will be remembered, was destroyed
between nine and eleven o'clock at
night. A second elevator was rebuilt,
about two years ago, and it was de-
stroyed along about midnight or later
in the morning. Then the VanDusen
company purchased the elevator
owned by G. w. George, or the one
destroyed by fire on Thursday morn
ing, and it, also, was burned after
midnight. The fact that three elevat-
ors belonging to the same company in
the same town, one on different site.
should be burned down in time of