The Belding banner-news. (Belding, Mich.) 1918-1973, 1920-10-27
BROS.
SUFFER GREAT Loss
WHEN BARNS BURN.
$12, 100000 LOSS rs FAIRLY WELL
COVERED BY INSURANCE
s IN MUTUAL COMPANIES

Palmer Bros. pedigreed stock rails
ers and farmers on an extensive
scale in Orleans township, suffered
a big loss by fire when the
big barns on the Clark Palmer place
about a mile west of Orleans village
together with all their contents went
up in smoke causing one of the big
gest losses by fire which has fell to
anyone in Ionia county in several
years. The barns, while not being
the best were still substantially con-
structed and capable of doing duty
for many years to come and were of
the largest in the county.
The fire was discovered Friday af-
ternoon at about four O'Clock and
when noticed the entire west end
and sides were aflame. Clark and
Robert Palmer and two other men
were in the house talking over some
business matters and a hired man
was engaged in cleaning out an out
building which set close to the barns.
The door of the, house was open
but neither of the four men nor the
man at work outside knew anything
of the fire until the entire west part
of the barns were so far gone that
nothing could be done to save the
big structures.
The Belding fire department was
appealed to and with the help of vol
ulcers managed to save the house
which set to the east of the barns
and which was endangered the more
through the fact that a west wind
carried sparks and burning embers
over on the roof of the house. The
house happened to be equipped with
metal roof and this aided mater
tally in saving the building. Every
window on the west side of the house
was cracked by heat and the paint
was badly scorched.
The barns contained nearly 100
tons of hay, lot of straw which had
been put in several days before to
get it in out of the weather, about
300 bushel of wheat, 700 bushel of
oats, a big REQ speed wagon and an
automobile belonging to sister of
Mrs. Palmer. Two other automobiles
standing near the barns were barely
saved. Much farm machinery was
also burned. IL head of registered
Shorthorn bulls which were kept in
box stalls throughout the barns were
burned to death and their carcasses
left laying around in the smoldering
ruins after the fire. A number of
bulls were taken out of the building
as soon as the fire was discovered
but the twelve head perished. One
of those which were saved made an
attempt to- get back into the build
ing and succeeded in crawling under
a manure spreader in its effort but
was finally driven back into the pas
ture. Nine head of bulls which were
shut up in a basement under the
west part of the building, where the
fire was first noticed and which were
thought doomed, succeeded in stam-
peding and breaking out of their
prison during the fire and thereby
saved themselves from the horrible
death of their less fortunate COM
panions in the box stalls. Another
car load of bulls was on its way to
the farm and within a day or so
would also have been placed in the
barns.
The loss is estimated by Clark
Palmer to be in the neighborhood of
ten or twelve thousand dollars. but
by many is placed at considerably
more than that. Insurance in mu-
tual companies which will be col
lected as result of the fire will
make the financial loss in the neigh
borhood of two or three thousand
dollars.