| Show conflagration starts in symons dry goods store building and burns out large part of business district butte mont sept 24 fire causing 1 a loss estimated at about a million dollars today consumed ahe entire bus ancis portion ot butte lying between the block and renshaw alley on the south side of west park street and half destroyed the public library the fire call was turned in at at noon the four story simons store was a mass of flames and the public library and other places were burning simultaneously at 1 maor announced that the fire was under control had the blaze crossed main into the buildings on the north side of park street or had it not been checked at the renshaw block butte would hae been suffering today from a 5 alre the alarm in at and first assistant chief and bis men went to work at the first opening smoke thick yellow and suffocating fo belched forth making entrance impossible A cigar company occupied part of the ground floor and basement of the big symons dry goods companas comp anys building at once the men realized that to keep the fire confined to the basement and away from the elevator shaft was the only hope of saving the block the men could not enter the seat of the flame but several went through the rear sidewalk windows and held the hose as close as they could to the of the smoke finally with a favorable change in the wind which kept the smoke back temporarily the I 1 firemen broke in the three doors on the ground floor and poured the water in the direction of the elevator shaft which roared like a mill race A perfect geyser of sparks and burning shingles skewed spewed its across the roofs of buildings starting patches of flame from the renshaw hall all the way to the park building from 11 until noon the symons company building burned free as n bonfire and the department confined its labors to BAY ing adjacent property the cronshaw building seemed i doomed as did the kins aluk building the miner building the broadway harvard argyle and other buildings were licked up by th flames but good work on the part of owners and the from the bill prevented what scorned tor a time a general conflagration as a stiff wind was blowing flaming timbers everywhere by 1 empry piece of alre apparatus in silver bow county was at the scene of the the departments from a number 0 o mines responded with alacrity and rendered great ice the alre battalions from the centennial brewery from from the butte reduction works and other places answered tho general alarm and lent assistance to the regular service exactly 33 minutes were consumed in making the 28 mile run of thoi Anaconda alre department A H delhey general manager 0 senator darks butte properties volunteered ered the use of the alre crews from the dark mines and the butte reduction works as jooa as he learned of the extent of the alre mr delhey also called up the water works and offered to start the pumping plant at the butte reduction works it it was found necessary about noon telephone messages began arriving from anaconda helena dallon missoula soula and other places offering the services of the alre departments of the various some of the losses follow blocks totally destroyed maule york barret woodward ogdan the following are among ho estimated losses and insurance givel by the parties affected by the alre symons store mauk york blocks owned by the new york realty company loss insurance entire about of which are on the buildings baltimore block insured washington block insured barret block owner by A H barret total loss insurance amounting to CO per cent george woodworth block owned by voe bealson Pe alson total loss partly covered by insurance walkover shoe company in sura dark block damage 2500 fully insured goldberg block damage 1000 fully insured ren beaw block damage 2600 partly insured ogden block total loss of 4 insured owned by haves can nan and jamea dails atlantic saloon fully insured |
