Source: North Manchester Journal, May 7, 1896

Big Fire at Laketon

The town of Laketon, this county, was visited by a disastrous fire on last Friday night, which destroyed a good share of the business rooms of the place. Between ten and eleven o'clock Mrs. Fites, was called from her bed by an attack of sickness and noticed a fire burning in between Steller's butcher shop and Day's grocery. She immediately gave the alarm but by the time people could collect the fire was beyond control and those first on the ground say that the whole rear ends of the grocery and butcher shop were on fire both inside and out. But little could be done in the way of getting goods out as the fire burned rapidly and adjoining buildings were soon ablaze.

For a time it seemed that the whole town was threatened and a messenger was dispatched to this place to obtain the use of the fire engine to save the town. The people, however, paid their attention to saving the surrounding buildings and worked like giants so that they finally got the fire under control and a second messenger was sent saying they did not need the engine. In order to stop the spread of the flames one small building used as a shop, belonging to Michael Rudy, was torn down and the gap thus made enabled them to stop the spread of the flames across a ten foot alley to the south. It was by that time long past midnight, and the fire having been cut off on all sides, began to die out.

Four houses, several sheds, stables, an ice house--in all eight buildings--were burned. All of them were frame structures. First on the north belonged to M.J. Ulsh and was occupied by Irvin Bugby's shoe shop. Loss on the building about $700. Most of Bugby's goods were removed and his loss is light. The next room was owned by Jacob Warner and was occupied by Frank Day's grocery. But little could be gotten out and Warner's loss is about $700, while that of Day is probably $400. The next room, which stood a little apart from the grocery was owned by Ort Weitsel and was occupied by John Steller's butcher shop. Nothing was saved from it. Weitsel's loss about $500, Steller's about $250. Next was a residence occupied by Bill Sibert and owned by Michael Rudy. Nearly all of Sibert's goods were saved and his loss is small. Rudy's loss is about $350. Including the barns and other sheds that burned the total loss is probably $3,500 on which there was no insurance on any part. Application for insurance had been made on the Weitsel building two days before, but the company declined to accept the risk.

The fire is though by all the people to be the work of an incendiary but, so far as the JOURNAL is able to learn, there is no definite idea as to who the guildy party is. There was no fire about any of the buildings since the Wednesday before when some lard was rendered in the butcher shop. We understand a determined effort will be made to find out who fired the buildings and give him the extreme limit of the law. The loss is a very severe one to the town as some time will probably elapse before any of them are rebuilt.