Watertown leader. [volume] (Watertown, Jefferson County, Wis.) 1909-1911, 1911-03-17


the Lafiin-Rand Powder company at
Pleasant Prairie, was completely
wrecked by the greatest explosion in
the history Of the powder industry
in America, causing the known death
OF one man, E. S. Thompson, the
injury of hundreds of others, and a
loss in property to the plant and real
estate within a radius of 100 miles
which, when totalled, will probably
exceed S2,0O0,0O0. Seventeen men
working at the plant at the time es-
capped death almost miraculously.
Pleasant Prairie, a village Of mod
est homes, housing more than 7C0
people, was practically destroyed.
More than $50 houses were wrecked.
and hundreds sent into the streets
seeking shelter. Scores were injured
by falling walls.
Bristol, village six miles from
the plant, was wrecked, nearly all of
16o houses being damaged.
Pleasant Prairie is situated about
six miles from Kenosha, and the plant
which was wrecked is the western
distributing point of the powder
trust. The fact that the explosion
came after the employees had left the
plant accounts for the small loss of
life.
An area of 100 miles felt the
shock, and a general belief that there
had been an earthquake was preva-
lent. Skyscrapers rocked in Chicago
and panics in theaters followed; hun
dreds of plate glass windows in Ke-
nosha were shattered; foreign resi-
dents of South Bend, Ind, rushed to
church to pray; Benton Harbor,
Mich, people thought bank had
been wrecked by burglars and rushed
into the streets armed; Michigan
City, Ind; Racine, Wis; Corlis, Wis;
Grand Haven, Mich, and Milwaukee
felt the explosion.
Shortly after the first explosion
came another, and this was followed
by two more. The plant covered
100 acres, the buildings being small
and separated to keep fire from
spreading. Now, however, the flames
spread rapidly and building after
building was blown into fragments.
The cause Of the explosion is un-
known. The powder in the glaze
room, where the finishing work is
put on black blasting powder, was
the first to go, and the three black
powder magazines were next and a
dynamite magazine containing fully
three carloads of the explosive came
last.
One of the glaze cylinders was
hurled two miles and crashed through
the roof Of a building.
1t is known that there were 170,-
900 pounds of dynamite standing on
side tracks at the plant in one maya
zine, and $4,000 pounds Of black
Both of these magazines were blown
up. The magazines contained 5000
kegs Of giant powder, Finished 25,-
900 kegs of giant powder, unfinished;
$50 tons finished dynamite, and $50
tons of dynamite in process of manu-
facture.
With the territory surrounding the
powder plant wrecked by the explo-
sion a waste of dismaptled homes,
the first concerted move the day fol-
lowing the disaster was toward the
elimination OF the powder works men
ace from the county.
Indignation meetings have been
held in Pleasant Prairie and in Ke-
nosha and the effort to safeguard the
homes is to be carried to the state
legislature.
The people of surrounding towns
have about recovered from the shock
of the terrible explosion which Jared
cities miles away from the scene and
was thought to be an earthquake by
thousands in Chicago and other like
cities.
The company has had trouble with
residents of Kenosha county follow
ing previous explosions. Two years
ago a suit brought against the COM
pany on the ground that it was pub
| lie menace was won by the company.
The recent disaster has aroused the
people to greater efforts. Gathering
in the ruins of a store in Pleasant
Prairie, the people of the village, al
most wiped out, sent a wire to Mad
ison demanding that their represen-
tative in the legislature secure legis-
lation to prevent the rebuilding OF