The Fort Dodge Messenger: March 24, 1903

$15,000 Fire at Gilmore City

Four Business Houses are Burned to the Ground on Monday Night

Volunteers Put Out Flames

Fire Was Fanned by High Winds and Was Controlled Only After Prolonged Fight

Gilmore City, March 24 – Four business buildings were destroyed and loss aggregating $15,000 was caused by fire at his place on Monday evening. In the face of a blinding snow storm, the volunteer fire department of the city pluckily fought the flames, which at first leaped with resistless force from one building to another, and finally, after an all night’s battle, brought the fire under control.

Following are the buildings destroyed, with losses:

Cobb, general store, loss $7,000, partly covered by insurance.

C.M. Warn, hardware and general merchandise, loss between $5,000 and $6,000, insured.

George Burns, grocery store, stock saved but badly damaged, building partly burned, loss about $1,000.

Emery Ebersole, Independent Telephone Exchange, loss about $700, no insurance.

The fire started in the rear of the Warn store building at about 8:15. By the time the alarm could be given and the department summoned, the building was in a blaze and beyond saving. The flames sped quickly to the other doomed structures.

It is suspected that the fire was set by careless boys, who were seen in the rear of the Warn building a few moments before the flames started. Who the boys were, has not yet been learned.

Telephone service with Gilmore was for a time cut off this morning, on account of the burning of the excahnge but the line was repaire by 11 o’clock this morning.

Tags: 1903, Burns, Ebersole, Warn