Golden Valley chronicle. (Beach, Billings County, N.D.) 1905-1916, 1914-11-13
School Children Try to Escape From Path Of
Seething Flames Are Burned to Death Along
With Their Teacher, South Of Belfield.

WIN lQe1I ledc0eI, OOutQ OF DeIlelQ.
The prairie fire tradgedy in the history of North
Dakota occurred Be6eld last Friday afternoon when
teacher and three burned to death and three
other children badly burned that they died shortly after
The fire started some II miles southwest of Be6eld in
Billings county about threshng outfit which was
moving across the prairie and famed into devasting flame
Dy the strong wind that was blowing that day. swept
claim terrible toll of life.
lhe following dispatch from Dickinson which appeared
in the Bismarck Tribune of last Saturday and Sunday tell
the awful story:
About o'clock Miss Gladys Holister and her little flock
of school children in the Davis school, II miles southwest
OF Beheld, the fire. about five miles awsv coming I'M
the valley towards them Frantic with fright they left the
Duldng which tonight stands uninured and which would
have kept them safe while the fire demon swept by and made
superhuman efforts to reach plowed field which they
thought their only salvation Five Children living in
direction from the path of the fire. succeeded reach
ing home.
Their teacher and six little comrades struggled en- nav,
ang overcome by fear and smoke then UP stumbling
On "san But the dense smoke enveloped them and they
ed ground and safety Three children were dead when thew
were found and three terribly burned Their clothes were
completely burned off, Miss Hollser, who was in most
ptiabe condition. with 95 per of the skin of her body
burned unconscious but regained consciousness long
enough that she realized she made mistake leaving
the school house. but did what she thought was best
The toll of death from the fire number of the four
who in the Davis school busy with their lessons
when the prairie fire swept down upon them.
he dead: Gladys llolser, aged d. Map!e,cn la Far
ncst eary aged 8; Irving Menge aged TO- Alfred Menee
aged g. Rexe Smith, aged g. Francis Pike, aged I; and
Ruth Olson, aged l3.
Seven children escaped They said when they saw the
a'ss swoop'ng down he> all ran, panic stricken re
Parish girl Gadvs Davis and Johnnie Olson vea CAUGHT on
a tongue of land between the fires, but made dash
through the flames and escaped unharmed for snged
hair Alfred Walter Henry Schwartz and Dolie Smith sue
eeeded in reaching flax stubbe a,;3a were s,f
Horror and fear had changed the faces of all tie sur
.teir IL.
Davis is the hero Director of the fated school and living
only hame away, he the first arrive the scene
of the holocaust
Words cannot describe its horror he said The black
ened and smoking prae-the little deserted school house
the groups of awesuck children safely beyond the patti
OF the fire. and scattered the burning the bodies of
the victims. Here hand moved there head-and again
another past All totally blinded
by the fire. Some within 80 rods of the school house,
one half mile away, and all lying their
backs their limbs drawn up
Nearest the school he found the teacher and little Rexe
Smith, only portion of their shoes remained but both
alive. ="
Miss Hoser recognized Davis voice and asked that she
might her before she died Davis took off his
shirt and put around her and wiped the ashes and dirt from
her mouth.
THAT feels BETTER she said
She taken the school house where she died few
hours later with her sister, Mrs. Gray by her SIDE Rexe
died earlier the Davis home Continuing the work.
Davis picked another VICTIM who died in his With
and with nothing but his undersh Davis took
of the terribly burned Children wrapped in cotton in his
car and drove in biting wind 10 miles to Bel6cd
No less heroic the conduct of Ethel Smith who with
hat and shirt waist with him and held one of
, the boys in her
W. A. Pike found his little sitting in the road A rag
of cuff of his waist hung from his and part of his shoes
remained The little fellow complained that it 80 hot
/ All the children between and IL years old Miss
olser "a years DID, has been popular teacher of the
county for two three years and sse nav of Rob-
e.t Gray, 1,rrner siding three miles from Be6eld
Joint funeral services for the six children held in Bel
field Tuesday afternoon the German Lutheran minister Off
catng and nterment made in the Be6eld The
ladies of Bel6ed provided flowers and aided the bereaved
families.