The Somerset reporter. [volume] (Skowhegan, Me.) 1868-1909, 1905-12-14
Pulp Mill FIRE.

The works of the skowhegan Pulp
Co, situated at the head of Water street,
we're totally destroyed by fire about two
O'Clock last sunday morning
As il the case with all mills that man
nfaetufe ground wood pulp, these works
were operated night and day. All was
going we'll on the night run until about
TWO O'Clock in the morning when Paul
Matter, one of the men tending a pulp
grinder, smelled smoke and soon located
the fire, which had plainly started from
an over heated box in the basement.
Timothy Mitchell. the night foreman,
made an Intellectual attempt to put it
out with pail of water but il was at
oEce evident it could not be controlled
in this way and man was sent to ring
in the alarm. The flames reached the
electric light wires aud put out the
lights In the mill SO quickly that some
of the workmen had to grope their way
to the doors through the darkness and
smoke, and there was no opportunity To
remove tools or other property from the
mill.
BY the time the department arrived
the problem presented was that of pre-
venting the spread of the flames while
they burned themselves out in the build
ing in which they originated. There
were frequent apertures in the wall OF
the brick mill adjoining, occupied by
the Maine Spinning CO., made to allow
the passage of shafting and steam pipes,
and the fl lmes crept through these at
various points, but were extinquished
and the holes themselves plugged with
rolls of wooden yarn of which there were
large bins close at hand. A hose on the
roof of the building and streams from
the ground controlled the flames in that
direction and the brick building was
saved after hard fight but with con-
siderable damage 20 the contents and
some to the structure itself. There was
some danger to all the property in the
immediate vicinity and at one time
sPdl no bci lilo 10 buhplDgB ACROSS the
river near the sash and blind factory of
Ira w. Page, but the exposed points
were watched, no serious fires resulting
The water pressure from the city hy-
drants was excellent. Five streams
were used; four on the fire itself and
one TO keep up the supply of water in
the cistern for the use of the steamer.
which took its station on Madison ave-
Not 4
service through one liue of hose. The
corporation force pump could not be
used as it was located in the basemen,
course, be started
The Skowhegan Pulp Company carried
$50 200 on building and machinery and
their loss is In excess of this sum. They
had also $1,000 on the brick mill oceu.
pied by the Maine Spinning Co, which
Is ample protection, the damage in that
case being compaI atively small. The
Maine Spinning Co. sustain a loss of be
tween one and two thousand dollars or
machinery and material, fully covered
| by insurance. Many of the employees oil
the Skowhegan Pulp Co. lost clothing
and small articles. and the three repair
men, Geo. Roderick, Stilman Phillips
and A. NJ. Pe1cival, each lost sets OF
machinist's tools, to the aggregate value
of something like $500, wholly unn-
sured. The Skowhegan Village Cor
poration comes in for its share of this
cenfiagration as its force pump in the
basement of the Pulp Will is damaged
and probably totally destroyed, entail
/ ing loss of six to eight hundred dol.
| lars
The plant destroyed was built by tht
| Carrabasset Pulp { o , in which the late
Francis K. Heath of Watervile and
John T Richards of Gardiner were pro
minent, in 1888. In 1891 there WAS a
considerable change in ownership and a
reorganization under the present title
the Skowhegan Pulp o. Its capacity
was about two cars of ground wood
daily. AMI the machinery operated re
CURED nearly 2500 horsepower At thin
season 38 men were employed in ant
| about the works and during the sum
mer, when the river and log piling crew.
were at work, this force as increased
to something like IS men The off cers
of the present company are John X
Mcclellan, president; Ed. p. Page
treasurer; G. K Young. manufacturing
uperintendent. The heaviest owners
of the stock were tho First and Secont
National Banks of this place
AS the water wheel supplying power
for the Maine Spinning Co. was In tn,
basement of the Pulp Mil, the spinning
plant was temporarily shut down, bu
repairs were effected and the machinery
started on Tuesday The Skowhegar
Pulp Co. cannot state definitely as Il
their plans, but il seems likely that tn,
mill will be rebuilt.