The Plymouth tribune. (Plymouth, Ind.) 1901-1911, 1910-07-28
FIRE DESTROYS THE
MONARCH IRON WORKS
Midnight Fire Destroys Industry of City
With Loss Estimated Between $I5,-
coo and $4,000 Foundry Will Not
be Rebuilt--Local Men Heavy Losers.

they had taken hold of the main
buIlding, the entire structure was
mass of flames. The heat
thrown from the building was
intense.
The faces of spectators within
several rods were heated by the
flames, driving the crowd back
to the fences or the railroad. The
fremen showed their nerve, and
stood with heads bent low, in
the face OF the heat, and drove
water into the flames, after the
surrounding buildings had been
saturated. The light from the
fire, Illuminated the surrounding
neighDorhood with a great light,
and the scene, though sad, was
grand one. The fremen re-
manned on the scene until past
one O'Clock, until the fire was put
out OF the smoldering ruins of
the Monarch Iron Works.
Big Crowd Collected.
In spite of the distance to the
scene, and the lateness of the
hour, a great crowd collected at
the fire, which perhaps number
ed three or four hundred people.
The night conflagation reminded
the witnesses of the midnight
blaze which destroyed the Shaded
drug store and the McCrory gro
cery store on Michigan street, a
few months ago.
The Monarch Works.
The Monarch Iron Works, was
incorporated on October 16, 1906
shortly after the building of the
factory had been completed. At
the time of the fire there were
thirty employees, who received a
pay roll OF from 5000 to 800
every two weeks. The plant
was under the management of
Louis Borton, son of DIR. T. A.
Borton. James Beatty was fore
man of the plant and has occu-
pied that position during the
four years of the history of the
institution. Among the work
men were fifteen moulders, skill
ed daborers, many of whom had
learned their trade at the kcal
foundry. The feature of the
plant, was the casting OF heavy
gray iron castings. Iron cast
ings from the Monarch Works,
were shipped throughout the en-
tire country, into Canada, and
the far west. A large contract
executed by the local Institution,
was for furnishing 600 aange
iron plates for the furnaces of
the Gary Steel plant. These
plates weighed one and a quar-
ter tons each, and the loading OF
these great castings at the local
railroads was quite a topic of dis
cussion at the time. The foun-
dry has had many large contracts
among them being the supplying
OF the iron work for opera seats
for the Ideal Seating Co., OF Chi
cago, large contracts with the
Montgomery Ward Co., of Chi
cago, Glover Leaf Cement Mix
ing Machines, South Bend. TIE
output of the foundry was from
6 to 10 tons of gray iron castings
per day. The local concern con-
tributed to the local freight
agencies, and the destruction of
the plant will be a loss to the
railroads.
Will Not be Rebuilt.
Doctors Borton and Aspinall
stated to representative OF the
of the Tribune Tuesday a. m that
because of the heavy loss en-
oountered in the fire the foundry
would not be rebuilt The city
thus loses a very promising in
stitutron.
Stockholders of Plant.
The officers of the Monarch
plant were DR.. T. A. Borron,
president, James Beatty, vice
president and DIR. n. B. Aspinall
secretary and treasurer. The
stockholders besides these men
are Alexander Stewart, Charles
Johnson and James Dolan, all of
Chicago. AS aforestated almost
all of the stock was owned by
Drs. Borton and Aspinall.
Inspected Plant.
The foreman Beatty, Inspected
the plant Tuesday at 10 p. m.
and found everything all right.
The custom of having two in
spections of the premises and
buildings made, twice every day,
after closing time, has been
strictly followed out, which fact
increases the belief that the fire
was started by sparks from loco
motives on the Pennsylvania rail-
way.
Attends Funeral of Relat;ve