The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1904-02-12
Or. Webster and Family Driven From
Home BY Smoke and Flames.
Had Time to Save Nothing But Chill
dren in Their Night Clothes.
Fire Started in The Furnace Basement
Early This Morning.
Frozen HYdrant Delays The Firemen
in Th:ir Work.
From Tuesdays Daiiy.

From Tuesdays Daiiy.
The residence at 222 Clark street, oc-
cupied by DR.. I. D. Webster and family,
was almost completely destroyed by fire
at an early hour this morning. Mrs.
Webster was the first to be awakened by
the dense smoke that filled the house,
and as she got up she noticed that it was
3:l5 a. m. She woke her husband, and
the latter at once called up the central
fire station by telephone. DR.. and Mrs.
Webster hastily donned what clothing
was at hand, but had no time to dress
the children. Indeed, so fast was the
smoke pouring up from the basement
that there was barely time to save the
lives of the children by wrapping them in
bedding and running out of the house, to
avoid suffocation.
Senator Eberhart, whose home is next
door, threw open his residence to DIR.
Webster and family, and the three chill
dren were taken there and supplied with
clothing by Mrs. Eberhart and other
neighbors. Nothing whatever was saved
from the second floor or attic of the
house, and only a few articles of furni-
ture from the first floor. The piano was
gotten out uninjured, the refrigerator
and few other articles.
The central station firemen responded
promptly, but their efforts were delayed
by the fact that the nearest hydrant, at
the corner of Clark and Center streets,
was frozen. When water was turned ON,
the line of hose was so long that the
pressure was greatly reduced, and the
force of the water was scarcely sufficient
to break a second story window. At
4:lO a. M, after battling with the flames
for nearly an hour, it became apparent
that more help would be needed, and a
general alarm was turned in from box
43.
The fire had started in the basement
near the furnace, from some unknown
cause. DR.. Webster had been called to
North Mankato to attend a patient and
on his return at 2 a. m. he went into
the basement, as is his custom, to see
that the furnace was all right. The house
was heated by combination of hot air
and hot water system, and the fuel used
was coke. The fire seemed to be all right.
and Dr. Webster closed the furnace and
put the check draft on. There was no
smell of smoke at that time. An hour
and a quarter later, the entire house was
filed with smoke and the furnace cellar
was .lurid with flames and smoke. Mrs.
Webster attempted to 60 into the base
ment from the rear stairway, but was
prevented by the smoke. Owing to the
partition walls she was unable to see the
fire.
The flames burst through the floor of
the back parlor, sitting room and din
ing room, and rapidly worked their way
up the partitions, so that by the time
the fremen arrived there was bad fire
and one that it was impossible to stop
with the reduced water pressure. The
fire continued to burn for three hours,
until the main portion of the house was
a shapeless mass of ruins. The loss on
the building is practically complete, al
though the rear part was not SO much
damaged by fire as by water.
The house was a large frame one,
built some years ago, and was owned by
a Mrs. Chandler, formerly Mrs. Owens,
whose home is in New York state. John
C. Noe is Mrs. Chambers local represen-
tative, but he left Saturday noon for
a trip to California. The house could not
be built now for less than $4,000, but
owing to its age its value was probably
not to exceed $4,000.
DIR. Webster and family lost all OF
their clothing except what they wore
when they vacated the house. Their
watches, jewelry, books, pictures. and
everything on the second floor and what
was stored in the attic was lost. DIR.
Webster lost his medicine case, and also
thirty-fou gold medals which he won in
athletic contests while in college. These
latter were valued highly by him other
than for their intrinsic worth. All of
the silverware was also lost. DIR. Web
ster carried Sl,7O0 insurance on the fur
niture, household goods, jewelry, etc., but
he estimates that his loss will exceed ST.
600. The furniture was insured in the
Theodore Williams agency.
When the chimney fell, it struck the
front porch of Senator Eberhart's resi-.
dence and crushed in the roof and other.
wise damaged it. He estimates the
damage to his residence as $3.50, covered
by insurance.
DR.. Webster and family are being tenn
porarily housed by Col. VIM. Thomas
and family. They have not yet made ar
rangements for more permanent loca