WILD TALK ON FIRE AT PENDLETON
CONNECTED WITH MARKLEVILLE

Total Loss Estimated at $20,000 — Stores, Lodge Room Offices and Town Board Suffered

WILL SOON BE RE-BUILT

[Special to The Herald.]
 

PENDLETON, Ind., Sept. 12.—Most people of Pendleton retired early tonight to sleep off the excitement and fatigue from the fire in the business section of the town early today, for but few people rested after the alarm was sounded by the ringing of the fire bell at shortly after 2 a.m. Many men who worked heroically for several hours and were blistered with heat or drenched with water were exhausted after the fire was under control and some of the men were unable to report for work at their regular places of employment today.

 

Some Wild Talk
Fire talk was all that could be heard in town today and some of it was sensational although not founded upon any information that was regarded worth while. Some people who came from Markleville to see the ruins of two drug stores and others jumped at the conclusion that both drug stores had been set on fire by some one who thought liquor laws were violated there. The recent mysterious burning of the Palmer saloon at Markleville followed by the destruction of the two drug stores in Pendleton were associated by those who turned their attention from the ruins to theorize as to the cause of both fires.
But the talk of the drug stores being set on fire was not given consideration by people living in Pendleton.

 

Discovered by Watchman
Charles Clark, the town night watchman, discovered the blaze. It was at the rear of the prescription case in the Shoffner drug store. By the time he ran to the fire bell and rang it vigorously for several minutes the fire in the Shoffner store spread over the room and into the basement, was beyond control in a few minutes. From the Shoffner drug store the flames soon got into the drug store of E. Tanke & Co., next door east of the Shoffner store, and finally into the upper floor. An hour later the entire Chambers business building and all contents were a mass of ashes and embers except side walls of brick that were so damaged by fire that they cannot again be used.

 

The Chambers Loss
The two story brick business building that went down belonged to James C. Chambers of Lebanon, formerly of Pendleton. He has been in the furniture business at Lebanon and is contemplating a return to Pendleton to live. Although it is said that the building cost Mr. Chambers $6,500, its value had increased since he bought it. He carried $3,500 insurance.

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Campbell’s Store
Adjoining the Chambers building on the north is the grocery store of George W. Campbell whose stock suffered most from water and smoke. It is understood that there is $800 insurance on the Campbell store.

 

Town Council Room
On the second floor of the Campbell store building is the town council chamber. It was scorched about the windows and some of the town records were damaged by water.

 

At Rickey’s Store
The hardware store of J. B. Rickey, adjoining Campbell’s store, suffered slight smoke damage. The Rickey store temporarily became the station of the traction line.

 

Druids Lose All
On the second floor of the Chambers building was the lodge room of the Druids, whose property was totally destroyed, causing a loss to the lodge of about $500, with no insurance.

 

Lawrence May Loss
On the same floor L. V. Mays had his law and insurance offices. His loss was estimated at about $1,200, with insurance of more than half the loss.

 

Shoffner’s and Traction Co.
William M. Shoffner’s drug store stock was estimated at $3,500. His insurance is between $2,000 and $3,000. In the Shoffner store the Indiana Union Traction company had its Pendleton ticket agency and the drug store was also the traction waiting room. All of the traction company tickets, books, etc., of the Pendleton agency were lost.
The stock of the Tanke drug store was estimated at $4,500 and was insured for $1,800.

 

Brave Night Operator
The telephone exchange of the New telephone company, nearly a block north of the Chambers building, was fired once by sparks and the exchange filled with dense smoke, but Mrs. Simons, the night operator, never left her post of duty and helped all she could by keeping Anderson and Muncie connected by phone during the fire and while it was thought outside help would be necessary.
About fifty of the new phones were put out of commission by the wires breaking under the heat along side of the Chambers building.

 

In Frame Buildings
To the east of the Chambers building Hinkle & Hedrick’s store and Ashbaugh’s restaurant suffered damage from smoke and water. Most of the contents of both rooms were carried out, the roof was fired but the frame building did not go down.

 

Plate Glass Shattered
Across the street to the west of the Chambers building the plate glass windows in the When Clothing store, owned by C. L. Henry and Ward Taylor, were broken by heat, window awnings were burned and the store room somewhat smoked. This is in a brick building and brick walls were all that saved it.

 

Total Losses
The total of all losses will not, it was estimated, be less than $20,000. It is thought that Mr. Chambers will at once rebuild, but if he does not care to do so, he will have a chance to sell the location to a party that inquired yesterday for the owner and explained that the corner would be a good one for a department store.

 

The Fire Fighters
The Pendleton volunteer fire department had its greatest test yesterday morning. The only means of fire protection in Pendleton is a hand pump, to be operated by eight men and a line of hose, but it worked well and kept the fire from spreading far from the

Chambers building.
A fire engine was not called from Muncie. The order for it was countermanded after the Muncie fire department had promised to send an engine if needed. The fire was under control before it arrived.