The Miller press. [volume] (Miller, S.D.) 190?-current, 1910-10-13
MINNESOTA DISASTER GREATEST
SINCE HINCKLEY FIRE 10
YEARS AGO.
BEAUDETTE IS WIPED OUT
Property Loss in Rainy River Beau
dette and spooner is S~1,5oo,ooo
Hundreds are
Dead.
A PROCLAMATION.

4 4 + = y
q A PROCLAMATION. y
+ BY virtue of my position as =
+ president of the State Red Cross y
+ society, in view Of the dire needs !"
= Of citizens of the northern part or .
= this state who have suffered from \
x recent forest fires, | hereby call =
+ upon the people of Minnesota TO :
4 respond at once with contributions =
= of money, provisions and clothing, E"
= to be distributed to the needy un- x
+ der the direction Of this society. =
4 Such contributions will be re- x
+ ceived by Kenneth Clark, st. Paul, =
4 treasurer of the State Red Cross X
= society, and +. M. Prince, Mime =
x apolis, acting as assistant state =
x treasurer, and | hereby designate =
< the mayors of the towns and cities =
x of the state to act as collectors Of =
< this fund in their respective local =
= tiles.
4 Prompt and generous response X
4 is imperative as the reports from +
< the afflicted districts Indicate =
* that the need is great and will X
x continue for months. 4
" Given under my hand and seal =
x this ninth day of October, 1910. Il
+ Adolph .. Eberhart, Governor. y
= y 4 4 = i + = + =
Warroad, Oct. 1O.-The greatest
catastrophe that Minnesota has eX-
perienced since the Hinckley horror
Is years g occurred Friday night and
Saturday, when the whole Minnesota
Manitoba boundary country was swept
by fire that is still raging, and as de-
tails become known, the disaster as
m appalling proportions.
The number of deaths is estimated
at from 100 to 200 or more, almost
entirely among settlers in the woods
around the towns of Beaudette, Pitt,
Roosevelt and Graceton.
Very few of the settlers are known
to have escaped and this estimate will
likely fall considerably short of the
actual number.
Scene of Horror Enacted.
Scenes Of horror are reported on
every hand. People lost their heads
completely and ran aimlessly about
bewalling their loss. Streets of towns
were strewn with personal belongings
which were thrown away in theil
fight.
Crowds of ~able-bodied men, mostly
workmen with ~ person to care for
ran pell-mell to board the waiting
train at Beaudette TO the exclusion 0
women and children, and refused pos
itively to assist in saving property.
The village of Pitt was burned at
o'clock Friday night and at s o'clocl
the towns of Spooner and Beaudette
six miles distant, were in flames.
A hurricane was blowing at the tim,
and within 10 minutes after the ar
pearance of the fire the inhabitant
of the town were forced to fee 70
their lives, being unable to say an,
of their property.
Then were enacted scenes whicl
will never be forgotten by those pres
ent. Sick people apparently by tn
score appeared and were carried o
assisted to points of safety. Their
were five patients in Carrigan's hosp
tai. which was burned. One woman
who had given birth to a child at
o'clock the same evening, had to b
carried to the Office of the Shevlir
Matthew Lumber company. in who's
building many people took refuse.
Property Loss st,5so,ooo
I The property less in Rainy River
Beaudette and Spooner alone, incluC
ing the Rat Portage Lumber company
plant and yard at Rainy River an
the yard of the Shevlin-Mathieu Lun
Der company at Spooner, will tota
about 81. 500 ,000.
The people of Rainy River are dc
ing everything possible to assist tn
homeless residents of the two Amer
can towns.
Steps were at once taken by Nj
Matthew, the executive head Of tn
Rainy River Lumber company and tn
Shevlin-Mathieu Lumber company, I
have timber shipped over from Rain
River for the purpose of building ten
porary shelters for the people i
Beaudette and Spooner and the boart
ing. camp of the Standardization Lun
Der company is feeding as many @
the people as possible.