Ottawa County news. (Port Clinton, Ohio) 1931-1956, 1949-11-11
OAK HARBOR YOUTH
ADMITS FIRE GUILT
FACES CHARGES.
IN COURT TODAY
Nocturnal Bicycle Rider Ap-
pretended BY Officials AS
Fires Hit Village
Bulletin


John Applegate, the 22-year-
old rural Oak Harbor youth who
has confessed starting at least
IL disastrous fires in the neigh
boring village during the past
two years, was scheduled to be
arraigned before Justice of the
Peace Don Foreman in Oak
Harbor at l o'clock Wednesday
afternoon, as the News went to
press.
Applegate was arrested by Oak
Harbor's Police Chief AL Brown
and Sheriff Merlin Budd early
Sunday morning, after the noe
turnal bicycle ricer admittedly
started four fires within an hour.
Applegate was apprehended
near the Kreager home in the
Oak Harbor South Road, when he
returned there to pick up the BIZ
cycle he had left in the Kreager
yard.
Oak Harbor firemen received
a call to the first fire in the Kro-
ger Company store shortly before
3 a. m. The blaze, smoldering un-
der stair steps, was extinguished
with only minor damage.
While the fremen were still
at the Kroger store, Louis Brind-
ley, an employee of the Goth Gen.
tury Recreation bowling alleys,
discovered another fire at the rear
Of that building.
Brindley began fighting the
blaze and then noticed a man
jump on a bicycle and start rid
ing away. Brindley chased the
man., failed to catch him but re-
cognized the fleeing man as John
Applegate.
Sheriff Budd and Chief. Brown
We're notified and they went to
Applegate's home where his moth
er told the officers he was not in
bed.
During the visit to the Apple
gate home, Oak Harbor firemen
We're called to the Hayward Com
pany's alfalfa mill where a fire
had been discovered in the old of
fice building.
Noticing the bicycle in the Krea-
ger yard, the officers hid in near
by bushes and apprehended Ap-
plegate when he returned.
Brown and Budd took Apple
gate to the Oak Harbor City Hall
for questioning. During the in
terrogation, Applegate told the
officials that he had started O
fourth fire, as yet undiscovered.
Rushing to the Hayward Com
pany's bag room, firemen and of
ficials learned that Applegate's
story was correct. A stack of
bags had been set afire, but the
blaze was quickly extinguished.
Brought to the county Jail and
held on an arson charge, Apple
gate in a signed confession also
admitted that he was responsible
for at least a dozen other fires in
the Oak Harbor vicinity during
the past "a months.
Among the fires admitted by
Applegate were the disastrous
conflagrations which caused $43,-
600 damages at the Ottawa Coun-
ty. Cooperative Elevator and
$4,000 damages at the Everett &
Son straw company on the night
of April 1S.
Applegate is former employee
of the Everett Company and the
elevator, but he told officials he
had no grudge against his form
er employers and that he start
ed the fires for the thrill
Chief Brown also stated that
Applegate admitted placing rail-
road ties and metal plates on the
Wheeling & Lake Erie Railroad
several times last summer and as
late as last week. Fortunately,
the distractions were brushed
aside as locomotives passed and
no wrecks resulted.
Applegate told officials he
started the fires by using paper,
cardboard, matches and sometime
kerosene.
Chief Brown became suspicious
of Applegate two months ago dur
ing a fire at the Gordon Lumber
Company yards.
Sheriff Budd said that state fire
marshals have visited Applegate
in the county Jail and have ques-
toned the Oak Harbor man at
length. According to the Off
cials, Applegate readily admits
guilt in the fires
81 just got a thrill out of
watching things burn" Chief
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