Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1904-10-24
POWDER CAUSES
BAD EXPLOSION
Fire In Abbott & Sons Powder
House Shakes the En-
tire City
MANY WINDOWS SHATTERED
Powder, Dynamite and Cannon Crackers
In the Building-Doors In Residences
All Over Town Opened-Dynamite
Did Not Explode, But Burned-Forty
Three Soldiers Home Windows
Broken.

The powder house Of Abbott d Son.
located three quarters Of mile west
of the city limits, on Main street, eA-
ploded at about 1880 this morning, and
shook the entire city to its foundation.
Doors were opened in residences, all
over town, and windows were broken
for a distance OF several miles. Forty
three panes of glass in the Iowa Sol
diers' Home buildings were broken,
some Of the glass being as large as
40x4S inches. Every person in the
city heard the shock, and, strange to
say, each individual thought it in his
own home.
At 6 o'clock this morning fire was
discovered at the powder house, and
Abbott & Sons place Of business was
notified by phone. Mr.. Abbott was
notified of the fact by Eugene Gwinn,
who received the telephone message,
and gave orders to Mr.. Gwinn to
Investigate. and see IL anything could
be done to save the building. Mr..
GWinn hast .ned to the house on his
wheel, and in the meantime Mr.. Abbott
notified the fire department. Chief Kir-
by detached a crew to the scene, with
orders to patrol the street and sur
rounding territory, providing it was
found impossible to save the structure.
The firemen saw it would be of no use
to try and save the building, which
was ablaze, and the roads We're patrol
ed and the explosion awaited for. 1t
was little over an hour before the
flames reched the powder, and the eN-
plosion that shook the city resulted.
Dynar,ite Did Not Explode.
The $50 l..dnds Of dynamite stored in
the building, did not explode. If it
had, the results might have been even
more disastrous. The dynamite was
stored in the south part Of the one.
story building, and it burned slowly
without exploding, until 1t was all de-
stroyed. Had the powder exploded first
thus exploding the dynamite, there is
no telling how severe the shock might
have been. In the building was large
quantity of cannon crackers, which
were being stored for ~ w. Woolworth
& Co. Only Saturday the last key of
a 2o0-round consignmentt Of. mining
powder was shipped to the LeGrand
Quarry Company, so that escaped de-
struction. The hole blown in the
ground was not over two feet in depth,
showing conclusivelJ that no part OF
the dynamite exploded. The entire
building was blown to atoms, and the
fepce that divides the line between the
Sieg and Ingledue properties west of
the powder house, was torn down for
distance Of several rods. The 7. A.
Sieg corn field was damaged to some
extent, and for distance Of between
fifty and sixty-five yards, into the
field, the corn was ripped from the
stalks.
Felt All Over the City.
The shock resulting from the explos-
sion was felt in every part Of the city,
and farmer living five miles south
of town says his house was shaken by
the conclusion. Windows as far away
as Arson street, in the extreme south
part of town were broken. Five VIM
dows in the Globe hotel, on Market
street were shattered. The greatest
loss to glass will be at the Soldiers
Home, where the accounting has shown
a total of fortythree panes broken.
The force Of the explosion was so
keenly felt that each householder
thought. the trouble to be in his own
home Many rushed to the cellars.
fearing that their furnaces might have
exploded All sorts of rumors were
ahoat, and nearly every manufacture
ing institution in the city was report
ed to have been blown up. An alarm
OF fire sent in from box 80, called out
the department, but no blaze could be
found.
M.. Rn.,ha hIu InnAadiaru