Jasper County Democrat, Volume 14, Number 6, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 26 April 1911 — BIG RENSSELEAR ELEVATOR BURNS [ARTICLE]

BIG RENSSELEAR ELEVATOR BURNS

Babcock & Hopkins Have $60,000 Fire Friday Night $40,000 INSURANCE CARRIED Firm Did a Large Transfer Busi ness and Employed a Number of Men—About 35,000 Bushels of Grain In Elevator Not Known How Fire Started— Will Probably Rebuild, But Matter Not Fully Decided Upon At This Time. . The big grain elevator of Babcock & Hopkins, near the Monon depot was totally destroyed by fire at about 10:30 o’clock Friday night, and while* mutual insurance of $40,000 was carried the firm stand to lose from $20,000 to $30,000 on the biulding, Which is estimated to hsve been worth from $40,000 to $50,000. There was in the negihborhood of 35,000 bushels, of grain in the elevator, mostly oats, and perhaps there may be a little salvage on some of this. There were several loaded cars of grain on the track on the north side of the elevator, and some of these were pushed out of the way and escaped, but four loaded cars were consumed*Practically the whole town was out to the fire, which was quite spectacular, the building being about 110 feet to its topmost point. The driveways below acted as a draft and the flames shot out from the top fiercely. It was not more than half an hour before the top part fell in, but the lower part was built of heavier material and lasted about two hours before it finally toppled over, the whole south side giving way first. The southbound 11:05 train was held perhaps a half hour, but finally passed the fire with little trouble on one so the north sidetracks.

Streams of water were poured on the embers and the burning grain, which is still smouldering and will have to be watched fcr several days to prevent its breaking out into flame. Just how the fire started is not known, the. nightwatch having visited the interior of the elevator less than two hours before the flames started. W. C. Babcock and Bert Abbott were working on an auto in the garage near by, and the former had left only a few moments when a light explosion was heard and cn running outside Bert saw the upper part of the building in flames. It is evident the fire started from a spontaneous explosion of dust in one of the upper stories. He rushed to the grain office and broke out a window and sent in an alarm, and soon the fire company was on the ground, but all that could be done was to save adjacent property, which was not so hard to do because the rains had thoroughly soaked the roofs of all the buildings and there was little wind. The building was also covered with corrugated iron which kept the flames pretty well confined.

Insurance of $25,000 was carried on the building and $15,000 on the grain, all in mutual elevator insurance. The total loss is estimated at from $60,000 to S7SJXX), which would leave the net loss $20,000 to $35,000. The elevator • was one of the best on the Monon road and was practically new, it having been built only about ten years ago. New machinery and additions have since been added and dur-mg-nearly two thirds of the time both night and day forces were employed, a total of about 20 men, the company doing quite a transfer business, the elevator being equipped with bleaching and drying apparatus, and hundreds of carloads of both oats and corn from other states even have been bought and shipped here for drying and bleaching. Besides the company has handled the bulk of the grain raised in the vicinity of Rensselaer.

A great deal of unsold grain was stored with the elevator, perhaps several hundred thousand bushels, but most of this of course had been shipped out and sold by the firm, who will make good to the owmers when they get ready to sell. They will also very likely make some arrangements for _ receiving grain ere long if they expect to continue in business, which we rae told they will probably do, although their future plans have not been fully determined on at this writing. • The fire throws quite a number of men out of employment, temporarilly at least, and it is hoped that plans will mature in a few days for rebuilding.