Demolition

The Spokane Mill Company's Lumber and Sawmill was destroyed by a large fire that broke out in the plant on 05/23/1892 at about 5 o'clock in the afternoon. A contemporary news article in the Morning Olympian, Olympia, WA, stated: "The fire caught from the friction of a belt against the wood work, and it was not discovered until the buildings of the Spokane Mill and Planing company were a mass of flames. One hundred workmen rushed for the doors and windows, many leaping for life. Several broke their limbs and three are missing. Their names are Adolph Schultz, Robert Butcher and one unknown. Two million feet of lumber were destroyed. The heat was intense, making it impossible for the firemen to get near. The flames rapidly spread to the Echo flour mill, oatmeal mill, shingle mill, part of a laundry and several small frame houses. The loss is estimated a quarter of a million. The Spokane Mill Company damage was assessed at $100,000, for which the owners carried no insurance. (See "Gone up in Smoke," Morning Olympian, 05/24/1892, p. 1.)

PCAD id: 25875