The Brookings register. [volume] (Brookings, Brookings County, S.D.) 1903-1971, 1911-03-23
A Buy WEEK
FOX FIRE FIEND
THREE FIRES HERE INSIDE OF
TWO DAYS
INCENDIARISM is SUSPECTED
A FIRE BUG is EVIDENTLY AT
WORK IN THIS COMMUNITY

being three bad fires IN two days.
Monday afternoon about five O'Clock
the department was called to west
BroOkings, where a house under con
struction west of l.. V. McCoy's, and
owned by Louis Johnson was in flames
The fire had a good start before the
department arrived, but they managed
to keep it confined TO the west side
der control. The roof was badly
burned in many places and the siding
was burned off of the west side of the
building. The first floor was not dam
aged to any great extent, but a guam
tity of doors, window sash and other
supplies piled on the west side Of the
building went up in smoke.
The origin of the fire is a mystery,
but it is though. that boys set fire to
a pile of brush near the sidewalk and
it spread from there to the lumber
piled next to the building. Some time
a2o Mr.. Johnson bought the old cream
cry building md moved it to west
Broodngs, with the intention of max
ing it over into two houses, and it was
the larger part of this old building
that the flames damaged. There was
no foundation under the building as
yet and consequently no insurance,
and the loss is between three and
four hundred dollars. 1t falls partic-
ularly hard on Mr.. Johnson, and he
will be at a considerable disadvan-
tage in going ahead with the work of
rebuilding.
Monday evening the fire boys were
called out a second time, this time to
the home of II. c. Johnson, west of
the Lutheran church, where the barn
was in flames. The building was
pretty we'll Quilted before the depart
ment arrived and it was entirely de-
stroyed. The fire started in a pile
of hay next to the alley and Quickly
spread to the barn, and like the after
HUH DldLc lIS OIlSlI 10 uHhlIONh H.. hC
loss is $3.50, with no insurance.
The third mysterious fire of the
week and the worst of the trio oc-
Cured at the home of f. H. Gooch in
west Brookings Tuesday evening.
The flames were discovered shortly
after eight o'clock in a small pile Of
straw on the north side of the barn,
next to the alley, and from there they
quickly spread to the barn and sheds
adjoining. When the department ar
riI ed the house was in imminent dan
ger. as there was a high wind which
was blowing the flames and sparks
in that direction, but by valiant work
the boys managed to keep the fire con-
fined to the barn and sheds. Three
streams of water and the two chemi-
Gals We're brought into play II this
effective force was all that saved the
city from a very destructive fir. The
high wind blew the sparks for hun
dreds of feet and many small blazes
were started, which, were e~xtinguished
by citizens patroling the blocks south
of the Gooch place. 1t is Almost mi
~raculous that the Gooch house was
saved.
Five head of horses and a COW were
in The barn when the fire broke out
and only two of the horses were
saved. The fire spread so quickly
that it was impossible to rescue the
animals. One horse escaped to the
yard but persisted there, as it was
between the barn and a burning shed.
Among the horses destroyed was Mr..
Gooch's PAGER, Joe Mix, a valuable
animal. Beside the animals there
were also burned the majority of Les
lie Gooch's prize chickens, which is
quite a loss. especially to Leslie. A
Cadillac automobile stored in one of
the sheds was destroyed and much
other property, including several sets
Of harness, robes, etc, went up in
smoke. Mr.. Gooch places his loss at
about two thousand dollars and hard
" a fourth of it is covered by insur-
ance.
The three fires in a row and all in
the same neighborhood makes it look
as though someone was responsible
for them, particularly the last two.
Both started in hay close to the alley
and as there had been no bonfires in
the vicinity or any other known