The Oskaloosa herald. (Oskaloosa, Mahaska County, Iowa) 1885-1919, 1907-10-31
IOWA CENTRAL CAR
SHOPS DESTROYED
MARsHALLToWN SUFFERS LOSS
OF BIG INDUSTRY.
LOSS WILL REACH 5000, 900.
Origin of conflagration Unknown
New Coaches Food For the
FIames-Many. Men Out
of Work.

Marshalltown, Ia, Oct 26.--One of
the worst fires in the history of the
city destroyed the big Iowa Central car
shops, paint shops, valuable machin-
cry and contents, including coaches,
box cars, fiat cars, finishing lumber and
car timbers, and entailing total loss
Of 100000 The origin of the fire is
unknown, but when discovered at sac
last night the flames were bursting
through the room and spread rapidly
throughout the interior of both struc-
lures, which are connected.
The character of the contents aided
the flames in their devastating work
and the interior was Quilted as though
80 much finder The car shops build
ing proper is 50x260 feet, and paint
shop 40x150 feet.
At 10 o'clock everything was in
ruins but the fire was under control.
The department was powerless tocope
with the blaze, and its efforts were
confined solely to keeping the flames
in the building where they originated,
preventing them from spreading to the
machine and boiler shops, round house
and adjacent buildings, Fortunately
the wind aided the firemen and com
pany employees, who played several
streams on the buildings. Switch en-.
gines were also brought into service.
Twenty cars loaded with coal and
-four were moved from the tracks with
in few feet of the burning buildings
and carried away from danger.
New Coaches Burn.
Included in the rolling stock burned
were two new coaches, ten box cars,
caboose and several fiat cars. The
biggest loss is in valuable machinery
and stock, costly finishing lumber, fix
lures of all kinds used in the manufac-
thousands of dollars worth of oak and
poplar roofing and flooring.
Immense piles of heavy timbers lying
in shop yards will be badly damaged
although attention was turned to them
early.
The origin of the fire may never be
known. No one here knows how much
insurance is carried, although the
property is said to be heavily insured.
Ibis cannot be verified until General
Manager Day, of Minneapolis, can be
aiieard from
oompany's Men Act Bravely.
Charles Winters, company machin-
list, and John West, night roundhouse
foreman, made a brave effort to reach
the hose at either end of the burning
car shops shortly after the fire broke
out They forced their way through
The flames and binding smoke, but
mad to give it up before reaching the
hose, because of suffocating.
The nightwatchman says he first dis
covered the fire in the brass room, and
then the entire interior of that room
appeared to be ablaze. He ran to the
r0undhouse, where the fire alarm box
Is stationed, and when he got back the
entire car and paint shops were on fire.
In the roundhouse, short distance
TO the north of the car shops, were
fifteen engines, most of them dead"
Master Mechanic T. M. Feeley gave
the fire department orders to save this
building and the machine shops above
everything, and every. effort was bent
ii that direction. The, result was sat
isfactory, and none of the engines
we're damaged or even water soaked.
The big plant of the Marshall Oil
company, where thousands of gallons
Of all kinds of oils were stored in tanks
on track and warerooms, was threat
ened for time, being scarcely three:
quarters of a block distant from the
burning shops. The wind veered
trifie west and carried most of the
sparks and burning timbers to the
southwest of the oil plant
Thousands of people witnessed the
ire and several narrow escapes from
injury by passing trains added to the
excitement Women and children
crowded the railroad yards. filling all
the available space, while all who
could watched the scene from the tops
of long strings of box cars.
None Of the local officials cared to
he quoted on plans for rebuilding, as
hey have no authority to speak. The
loss is a serious one at this time of
the year and will throw many skilled
mechanics temporarily out of employ
ment. The shops were rushed with
work, as the demand for cars for grain
and coal traffic is exceedingly heavy.