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The Great Fisherville Fire of 1927 (3)

The following news article is from the Elizabethville Echo, September 8, 1927, via Newspapers.com.

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FLAMES THREATENED TO WIPE OUT TOWN OF FISHERVILLE

HARRISBURG COMPANIES RESPOND TO CALL TO AID LOCAL ENGINES AND MEN

DESTRUCTION OF TWENTY BUILDINGS RESULTS IN LOSS ESTIMATED AT $15,000

Fire which threatened for a time to wipe out the entire town of Fisherville, about four miles southwest of this town [Elizabethville], late Monday afternoon, resulted in the loss of twenty buildings, which are estimated at about $15,000. Bucket brigades hastily formed by several hundred residents, neighboring farmers, and fire companies of three towns and Harrisburg, and a providential change of air currents, saved the town. All the buildings were barns, sheds and outbuildings, no homes being burned.

About three o’clock in the afternoon, Mrs. Galen Westbrook, wife of the tenant of the Victor Hotel at that place, saw the flames and smoke issuing from the barn on the property of Fred Meckley who is proprietor of a store, directly opposite the hotel on the same street, both of which are corner properties. With telephone lines temporarily out of order, a number of residents hurried to Halifax by automobile to ask the aid of surrounding fire companies. More than sixty Halifax men responded to the call of W. J. Jury and Lester Eby, fire chiefs, and in the meantime, Fisherville folks had formed a fire brigade.

Women and those children who were able, helped the men pump and carry water from wells to the blazing buildings. Between 3:30 and 4:00 o’clock fire companies began to arrive. Elizabethville‘s company being the closest equipped with apparatus, was first to arrive, and the Millersburg and Halifax companies followed closely. The Camp Curtin and ALlison Fire Companies with Fire Chief Tawney, responded with pumpers, but the Allison Company’s truck broke down at a point some distance from Halifax, and was unable to get to the fire. The companies pumped water from wells, but directed most of their efforts with chemical streams.

A wind from the south fanned the flames which leaped from building to building and fired the barns of the hotel, and James Meckley, the barn on the property of the Lutheran church congregation of which Rev. J. F. Stabley is pastor, W. H. Miller and Mrs. Lily Snyder. Sparks and burning embers were carried by the wind and lit buildings on the opposite side of the street, but about an hour later a changing wind from the northwest aided firemen and residents to check the flames. The residence of Emma Bixler, south of the mian street several times caught fire, but the flames were quickly extinguished before doing further damage. The outbuildings on John Bixler‘s property were also endangered, but were fortunately saved, else, residents claim the homes of Penrose Miller, Dolly Eisenhower, John Bixler, Samuel Zearing and William Bowman might have been destroyed. The cattle shed in the rear of the hotel also caught fire several times, but firemen saved this as well as the Knights of Pythias Hall, which is adjacent to the property.

The barn where the fire is said to have started is about 60 x 30 feet. A member of the family said to have been in the barn an hour before claims everything was all right at that time. Stock feed, chicken feed, roofing paper, paints and other materials stored there were destroyed, as well as Meckley’s five hogs, and a small pony, the property of Eugene Meckley also perished in the flames. The pet, the idol of the kiddies, was brought to safety, but escaped attention and rushed back into the flames. A quantity of lumber, six tons of hay and straw and some wood as well as about sixty bushels of rye and oats and nearly two hundred bushels of unshelled corn, a cultivator and a large number of Meckely’s chickens burned. His loss is estimated at more than $3200 less than half of which is covered by insurance.

Other losses are: the barn on the Lutheran Church property, and out buildings, corn crib, pig stable, chicken house and carpenter shop and tools owned by Rev. Stabley which valued at more than $300, several hundred feet of lumber, picnic tables and benches, the congregation’s loss being estimated at $500. The tables and benches are used in the annual Fisherville Lutheran Pastorate Sunday School Picnic, which will be held this year, on Saturday, September 0th. A quantity of paint was also destroyed with this property.

On the Lily Snyder premises, a barn, chicken house and wagon shed, as well as a number of chickens were burned, resulting in a loss of nearly $3,500 with little insurance. Just before the fire, Oliver Holtzman had removed his horse from the barn. A large amount of gain also burned.

A car, the property of Russel Fitting, salesman for a Harrisburg firm, and stored for several weeks in the Victor Hotel garage was also burned, with a loss of $125. The hotel property is estimated at about $3700 with partial insurance. It is owned by E. A. Koons of Millersburg. The barn destroyed on this property was a large one, a chicken shed, chickens and smaller outbuildings were also destroyed by the flames.

W. H. Miller‘s loss is a barn, out buildings, some chickens and a quantity of corn.

On the James Meckley property, the barn, garage, outbuildings, a large amount of grain, chickens, meat, hay and tools were lost. At the height of the fire, the report was erroneously spread that Richard Meckley, the young son was in the barn, but instead he was safe in his home.

Fisherville is the third town in this valley to have been endangered by fire within a few short years, Gratz and Pillow having experienced big fires during that time. This however has been Fisherville‘s worst fire in fifteen years the shirt factory and general store were destroyed by flames.

The fire leaped from building to building and to the opposite side of the street, and shortly after four o’clock, when it was despaired of saving the town, the wind shifted and relieved this great danger. Sandwiches and coffee and other food were prepared by the housewives of the town for the firemen who worked until after dark to quench the flames and the residents of the town are truly grateful for outside assistance they received to combat the blaze. The cause of the fire is not known. Telephone linesmen started repairs to telephone lines which were burned off by the flames and service will be restored soon it is thought.

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Corrections and additional information should be added as comments to this post.

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