Red Lodge picket. [volume] (Red Lodge, Mont.) 1889-1907, 1900-03-23

4 mass of tnmbled brick and srome,
with here and there column of char
red and blackened wall towering to-
ward the sky, as if to mark the spot
where all was once hustle and activity
these are all that now remain OF IL
portion of the block that was the bust
ness portion of Red Lodge Without
moment s warning fire broke out in
W. r. Halls general MERCHANDISE store
about O'Clock Tuesday morning and
stayed not its progress until the dread
fire fiend had licked up the three com
partment two-story brick building
owned by the Red Lodge Improvement
company, occupied Oh the ground floor
by W. K. Hall's general merchandise
store, Larkin & Fleming's wholesale
and retail liquor house and the extern
sive hardw are store of Fulton & Dal-
ton. On the second floor were the
rooms of the Red Lodge Business Mems
club, the offices and plants of both The
Picket and the Carbon County Demo
c1at, the dental parlors Of DR.. George
Dilworth and the offices Of DR.. A. O.
McClanahan. In addition to this
block, which was land mark OF the
new town, being the first brick busi-
ness block erected in the town. was the
brick block put up last fall by the X
L company and occupied Oh the ground
floor by the extensive clothing depart
ment store Of Alderman F1eimaD, with
Offices Of Attorney George Fl. Bailey
up stairs-representing in the aRRre-
gate All expenditure of over 300, 900
we're quickly licked up by the de-
vourinR element: and it was only due
to the fact that there was scarcely no
wind blowing at the time that the
flames did not communicate to the ad.
joining property Oh the north and south
and carry away the entire business por-
tion Of the city-at least it was due,
perhaps. to this fact and the bucket
brigade stationed upon the tops Of ad:
joining blocks, who inoessantly kept
up pouring streams Of water upon the
burning buildings, and the com mittee
which had in charge the blowing up Of
the burning walls that the flames were
confined to the limits of the property
destroyed.
The origin of the fire is not known
and probably will never be definitely
scertained. It is quite certain that it
had its origin in the basement of W. r.
Halls store, for those who were first
at the scene say that smoke was pour
ing from the basement windows in the
rear Of tile building which would in.
dicate that the fire had started there.
What caused the fire it is unable to say,
although it is the generally accepted
opinion that it originated in spontan
oous combustion from the igniting OF
oily rags or waste which were in the
basement.
The fire spread with such rapidity
that the four blocks were soon envel-
oped in the raging, soethinQ torrent Of
fame. The first arrivals at the scene
got there shortly before 6 o'clock and
about 6 Is there came a terrific explO-
sion from the basement where the fire
started, which caused the brick wall
batween Halls store and Larkin &
Fleming's saloon to topple and fall.
At this time Johnny Gillen, John
Henry White, Frank Macumber and
Frank Wyatt were on the second floor
of the block, and, finding the passage
way leading to the second floor blocked
by the fall of brick, rushed to tho Win
dow Of DR. Dilwo1th's s office, at least
the three first named succeeded in
reaching the window and making their
escape by means Of a ladder. Later
the head Of Mr.. Wyatt was seen at the
window and he called for assistance,
his leg having heen broken in the fall
of brick caused by the explosion. Grant
McMasters of The Picket force rushed
to his aid and, standing on the ladder,
raised Mr.. Wyatt out Of the window
and carried him in his arms down the
ladder and to place of safety. While
this exciting sceno was being enacted,
the citizens were startled by a series
of piercing cries, which came from the
vicinity of The Picket stairway, to the
second floor of the building and the
horror stricken cry was at once upon
every lip that there was someone being
burned alive in the building. Joe Hart
and another person whose name has not
been learned rushed to the rescue, and
found George W. Wiswell almost en-
tirely imbedded on the first landing of
the stairway by the falling walls. Wis
we'll appealed to them by crying ont,
For Gods sake, boys, help ma out of
this! !" Joe Hart and companion pro-
ceeded to pull him out and had just
succeeded in this task when the stair
way collapsed and precipitated all three