Clinch Valley news. [volume] (Jeffersonville, Va.) 18??-2019, 1914-06-12
WORST FIRE EYER
TO VISIT TAzEWELL
Blaze, Starting About A O'Clock
Monday Morning, Wipes Out
Grcever's and Wynn & Whitts
Fine Stores and Contents.

The most destructive fire known in
the history of this town, occurred
early on Monday morning. The large
hardware establishment of j. A.
Greever was entirely destroyed with
its contents. The store adjoining, also
belonging to Mr.. Greever, occupied by
Wynn & Whit, who carried general
line, with the entire contents, was
burned to the ground. Next door be-
low, II. w. Pobts's jewelry store, was
damaged. The stock was moved out
Next door below, occupied by DR.. Jno
e. jackson, druggist, was saved, but
the stock damaged by water. John
S. Bottimore's clothing store, next
door, caught fire, but was saved. The
entire stock of goods was moved out
soon after the fire started At one
time it appeared that the entire block
would go, and doubtless would have
gone but for the fact that there was
little wind at the time, and of the
heroic efforts of the volunteer firemen.
The walls of the barber shop of T.
b. Warren were injured by the heat
to such an extent that it is said they
will have to be torn down.
Albert Hagy's blacksmith shop, and
John Crawford's shop, both in the
same building in the rear, were de-
stroyed with the contents, and the
Central office of the Bluefield Tele-
phone Company, also ii the rear of
the Greever building, was damaged.
The estimated loss caused by the fire
is given elsewhere.
Origin of the Fire.
The fire when first discovered about
o'clock Monday morning was burning
briskly in the plumbing shop, u de
partment of j. A. Greever's store.
This shop was unoccupied and suppos-
ed to be kept locked. Nearby, and
against this part of the building, in
the rear of Wynn & Whitt's, was an
old open structure, where boxes, ex-
celsior and other infiamable material
collected. Some say the fire origi-
mated there, and believe some parties
had slept there, or congregated there
for some other purpose, and acciden-
tally, and, of course, unintentionally,
caused the fire. However, this may
be, before the people could get to-
gether and turn stream on the fire
1t had gained great headway, and it
was soon seen that the building was
doomed, and perhaps other buildings.
There was no hesitation ON the part
of any citizen, white or colored, who
could help in any way, to do all pos
sible to check the flames. At one
time smoke poured from the build
ing on the corner occupied by John
5. Bottimore, which, had it not been
controlled, would have burned the
large dry goods store of Chapman's
and perhaps the building in the rear.
occupied by Mrs. Copenhaver, as a
residence. BY ten o'clock it was all
over. The splendid brick structure.
occupied by j. A. Greever and Wynn
d. Whit, was pile of smoking
ruins, and one of the finest stocks of
hardware, furniture, vehicles, sad
dlery, and harness, was consumed.
The Pobst building, a brick struc-
ture, was seriously damaged and
Jackson's drug store and Bottimore's
clothing store rendered uninhabitable
Telephone Service Crippled.
The large, 1OO-pair cable of the
Bluefield Telephone Company, situat-
ed just in the rear of the Greever
building was burned in two shortly
after the fire started, and telephone
connection broken for several hours.
MIR. Panky, from the Bluefield office,
was promptly here with force of
men, and by Tuesday morning normal
service was restored. The rear of
the telephone building, which the COM
pany recently purchased from B. w.
Stras, was slightly damaged.
Where the Merchants Will Omen Tn.
j. A. Greever will rebuild at once.
Pobst, the jeweler, has moved into
the room formerly occupied by S. d.
May as law office, and is fairly we'll
housed. DR.. Jackson and Bottimore
will occupy the Old Inn, on the corn
er next to the Methodist church. The
building occupied by these two mer-
chants for years is owned by Mr.. E..
f. Witten. What the owner of this
block will do towards rebuilding, and
when, has not been given out.
MIR. Greever Absent When Store
Burned.
1t was a peculiar incident of the
fire that Mr.. Greever was absent at
the time of the fire. He was in Roa-
noke to attend the meeting of the
Board of Trustees of Roanoke Col.