Rensselaer Semi-Weekly Republican, Volume 38, Number 43, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 13 February 1906 — VALMA CHRISTAIN CHURCH BURNS. [ARTICLE]

VALMA CHRISTAIN CHURCH BURNS.

The Christian church in Barkley tp., near the location of the former Valma post office and directly opposite the school house and all its contents was totally destroyed by fire Thursday night of this week. The church had not been regular* ly used for services for some time until Rev. George W. Enfield, of Lafayette, began conducting a meeting th-.re Wednesday evening Jan. JU st. T. J. Richardson, whose residence is only a few rods west of the church, has during these meeting been building the fires, and after staiting them Thursday evening he returned home to re main with his wife who is in feeble health. During the progress of the meeting an exceedingly hot fire was built from dry hickorywood and when adjournment came one of the stoves was red hot and no one remained to watch it, the drafts not even being turneu off, with the belief that .it might .be better to let the fire burn out than to close the drafts aud retain it. Nothing mOre was learned until Mr. Richardson saw the building enveloped in flames at 3. a. m. this Friday morning. He hastily dressed and went to the scene of the fire and shortly thereafter Mr. Eldredge and Ord Yeoman arrived, but nothing in the building could be saved. Their efforts were then directed to the wood shed, which they succeeded in preventing from taking fire. The church was built about •thirteen years ago, at which time there was a strong organization there. Removals to Rensselaer and other places had so weakened the organization, however, that services were held only at irregular periods, and this fact made it impossible to get insurance on the building, which is therefore a total loss, and conservatively estimated at $2,000. Owing to the few members of the church now in that neighborhood, it is improbable any effort will be made to rebuild the church.