Jasper County Democrat, Volume 16, Number 80, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 7 January 1914 — ROWLES&PARKER STORE BURNED [ARTICLE]

ROWLES&PARKER STORE BURNED

Fire Damage Sunday Morning of Perhaps $20,000 GROCERY DEP. SUFFERS MOST North End of Store Completely Gutter, While Smoke and Water Does Great Deal of Damage to Dry Goods and Shoe Departments. The most disastrous fire to visit the business section of Rensselaer f<r sever;-! years occurred at an early hour Sunday morning, v hen the interior of the grocery department of the Rowles & Parker store, and the clothing, cloak and rug department directly overhead on the second floor, was completely gutted by flames and many of the goods in the front part of the store in the dry goods and shoe department were badly damaged by smoke and water. The loss is difficult to determine precisely, as the firm does not make its annual invoice until Feb. 1, but it will probably run in the neighborhood of $20,000, depending how much salvage there may be. The fire was discovered by the nightwatch shortly after 4 a. m., and he at once hurried down to the fire house and aroused Chet Zea, and they then tried to get the telephone central to have the alarm sounded? but as luck would have It the drop to that phone had “stuck” on the board and no reply was forthcoming. This occasioned a little delay in rousing the other members of the fire department, as it was necessary to send to the telephone central to have the alarm given. Dr. Hemphill and Harve Moore were just returning from a professional call of the former to the country and they assisted in spreading the alarm and getting a stream of water of fi'teen minutes alter theSFater was turned on the fire was under control, but it was six o’clock or after before it was all out. Flames were pouring from the upper rear windows when , first discovered, and the firemen did an excellent job of handling the fire without its extending to other buildings. The grocery stock was all damaged and a carload of flour damaged considerably from water, while water and smoke damaged practically all the goods in the front part of the store. The firm carried $19,000 insurance, all in companies represented •by R. B. Harris, and it is now thought loss will probably exceed this amount. The building was damaged to the extent of $5,000 or more, which is covered by insurance. B. Forsythe owns the building, and it will be repaired at once as soon as the insurance is adjusted. The fire is supposed to have started from an electric light wire in the northwest corner of the grocery department, and had probably been smoldering for several hours before breaking out.