The Stark County Democrat. [volume] (Canton, Ohio) 1833-1912, 1899-09-01
WITHOUT FIRE PROTECTION
The Buildings Were at the Mercy of
AZ. the Flames From the Start.
THE LOSS Is COMPLETE.
There Were no Horses In the Barns The
Taken to a Place of Safety to
Provide Against POSI-
BILE Accident.

Taken to a Place of Safety to
Provide Against POSI-
BILE Accident.
Five rows of stables were burned at
the Stark county fair grounds last night
because there was no way of getting
water to put the fire out. Between Z
and s o'clock last night men employed
at the racing stables of DR.. U. M. Carnes
and w. S. Morford discovered fire in
the horse stables near the east fence.
They ran to the place at once but the
fire had gained such headway that 1t
was then impossible, with the limited
facilities provided for fighting fire, to do
any thing to save the buildings.
The fire started in the south row of
stables and rapidly spread to the others
and the stable men turned their atten-
ton to getting the horses and racing
paraphernalia Of the two stables into
places of safety. Fortunately the rae
| ing stables were at some distance from
the burning stables and aside from the
danger from falling sparks there was no
danger. Mambrino Almont, Max 7,
Canton and Chimes More, Of Morford's
stables were taken to places of safety
as was also the eight horses in the
string of DR.. Carnes. Harness was
packed and sulkys run out so as to be
quickly moved.
The only accident happened to Max
T.. He broke loose from the boy who
was leading him and ran UP the street
running into and falling over wire
fence near Clarendon avenue. Aside
from a few scratches on his front legs
he sustained no injuries but will be all
right In day or so.
The fire attracted a large crowd of
Canton people who enjoyed the specta-
Gle. Although the sheds are not high
they made pretty fire. They were
very dry and burned fiercely. A tele-
phone message was sent to the Canton
| fire department and Fire Chief Leinin-
ger ordered the apparatus at No. sta
ton house to go to the scene. The boys
were there in plenty of time to save
most of the stables, but all they could
do was to sit still and watch them burn
to the ground. There is city water all
through that side OF the fair grounds
but there are no fire plugs and no hose,
although they have been repeatedly
asked for by horsemen who have val
liable stock at the grounds. The fire.
men attempted to make a connection at
the stand pipe that is used to get water
for sprinkling purposes but they were
unable to do So
| AS to the origin OF the fire is some
thing of a mystery. There were no
horses in those stables and had not
been all summer. One stable had been
used by local bicycle riders as a place
to rub out after their exercise on the
| track and as number of them were
riding on the track until after o'clock
it is supposed that one Of them dropped
a cigarette or lighted match in the
stable without supposing it would do
any damage.
| DR.. u. M. Carnes, who was one of the
first to see the fire, said to a News
Democrat reporter:
II was just hitching up my horse
preparatory to going home when l saw
the flames break out. Myself and my
two men and Allie Morford at once ran
to the place and did what we could to
extinguish it but to no purpose. We
did not even have garden hose to attach
to the water taps. If we had we might
have done something. With fire plug
and line of hose we could have put the
fire out with the loss of not more than
one stable. When we saw that 1t was
Impossible to do anything there we went
back to our stables and busted ourselves
in getting the horses and racing traps
into places of safety. The sparks were
falling all around and strong wind
was blowing in our direction. thought
for a time that everything would have
to go. Fortunately the air changed
land we were safe"
W. D. Morford was In the city when
the fire broke out and did not get to
the grounds until 1t was about over. To
a News-Democrat reporter he said: 81
am thankful the fire didn't get down
into my stables although my son Allie
had done everything necessary to save
my property. l spoke to the directors
: of the association last year about put
ting fire plugs and fire hose here to grve
u5 SoHlS piolSStioh puI IhSy lHouSh
2 they were too poor to do it, 1t would
e not have cost as much as 1t will to re-
8 place these stables. 1t even their bis
4 buildings take fire they will go the same
way as there Is no fire protection III
. there either. There ought to be fir
plugs all over these grounds and a
least two reels of fire hose. Then prop
erty can be saved, Max T's Injuries
are merely scratches through the skil
i and I don't anticipate having too la!
. him up on that account. The old fel
q low has just got good this year and wa