Idaho County free press. [volume] (Grangeville, Idaho Territory) 1886-current, 1897-12-24
THE FIRE FIEND
A Hot Time in the Old Town
While Il Lasted.

the Eagle brewery building west
of the ''Free Press" office, at 1890
a. M, on the morning of Sunday,
December 10. In a few minutes
the entire building was a mass of
flames. The Hanson pho otograph
gallery on the west quickly caught,
and from thence the flames easily
spread to the adjoining building
owned by Mrs. Crea and occupied
by III. +. Shissler as restaurant.
Meanwhile the fierce heat of the
twO-stOry saloon building had
started the Free Press Office to
burning, and for awhile it looked
as If the entire town of Grange
vile was to be wiped out by the
fire fiend. Across the street stood
the high walls Of the Grange hall
presenting a most seductive mark
for the flames. The heat was in
tense; but at the height of the dam
ger, there being at this time more
people aroused, a line Of buckets
was quickly formed and steady
shower of water was thrown upon
the exposed wall. This, together
with the melting SNOW upon the
roof proved sufficient to keep the
flames from spreading east Of Hall
street; and when the "Free Press"
building finally fell In all hands
then turned their attention to saw
ing the west end Of the burning
block. Here the fire was roaring
merrily and throwing forked ton
gues of flames from the west wall
of the restaurant clear across the
vacant 25-feet of space between it
and O'Kane's tailor shop. FOrtu-
nately, the latter is but a small
box of a building, and speedily a
corps of willing workers were as
tride its ridge pole spreading
blankets and deluging them with
water in the very teeth OF the
roaring furnace, and after 80 min
utes of hot work the restaurant
collapsed and the danger was over.
But while all this work was go
ing on the south side of Main
street was also threatened. More
than once the front Of the Palace
hotel was actually ON fire, aud the
fact that this block is not now in
ashes is owing solely to the fore.
sight of w. F. Schmadeka, who
had equipped his premises with a
force pump and $50 feet of rubber
hose. A steady stream of water
was then kept playing on the en-
tire front Of that block. So great
was the heat of the fire. that al
though Main street is 80 feet wide,
it cracked the heavy plate glass
in SchmadelSa's new brick build.
ing and blistered the pant on all
this block. The Jones meat mar
ket was once on fire.
The confagration came at most
seasonable time. There were
three or four inches of now snow
on roofs and streets and the atmos-
phere was clear, calm and cold;
thus the flames went perpendicu-
larly aloft, and such firebrands as
were carried to q distance by cur
rents in the upper atmosphere
landed on the snow and were
speedily quenched. Such fire
brands were discovered at daylight
on the porch of the school house
and as far northward as the flour
mills. But for the snow thus pro-
tecting the roofs a dozen fires would
have started in as many different
points, and the entire town would
have gone up in smoke.
NOTES OF THE FIRE.
/ VIM. yonBerg closed his saloon a
ii: 80 Saturday night. The fire occur
red about one hour later, aud 1t origin
ated In the west corner of the upstair
fronting on Main street. This room
was unoccupied aud the origin of tn,
fire IL at present mystery. Mr.. Won
Berge loses about $3.50 In saloon fix
tnres and supplies, with no insurance
The building was owned by Mrs. Rhet
and wns not insured.
Mr.. and Mrs. Hanson had retiret
only q short time when they werV
aroused by the cracking of the flames
! and succeeded In saving few house
hold effects and some Of the most val
liable negatives In the photograph gal
lery. Their building Is insured 70
$3.50, and the loss outside Of that will
be about $1,000.
The restaurant building, owned b,
Mrs. f. A. Crea, was not insured. Th,
restaurant property was mostly al
saved.
The FREE Press building was occu
pied Jointly by the Bank of CANA
Prairie aud the FREE PRESS. Th
books Of the bank had heen remove,
before the building caught fire. /
, was then proposed to blow up the build
, Ing and two 25-!b boxes of giant pow
, der was procured and placed on tn
, floor of the bank for that purpose. Th
!, appearances Of the editor at this juno
ture prevented an act Of almost crimi
nal fOOlishness, as the explosion of 5
pounds Of giant would Inevitably hav
led to great loss Of life and create
more damage to property than tn
. fire could have done II left to itsel
The powder was ilnally removed, bu
!, not until the building was actually q
|, fire and all hope OF saving II was at .
end. Indeed, At that moment the en-
7, tire town seemed doomed. Nothin
was saved from the FREE Press offiC
I. \ oxcQnk tho f31aa 1ox3Uor a,.I.-crs ,,ts.,