The Fiery End of a Ballard Mill
A state-of-the-art shingle mill in Ballard is reduced to cinders after a catastrophic fire, leaving 150 workers suddenly jobless.
The story, cleaned up
A cleaned-up reading of the newspaper page: spelling and layout repaired, one story lifted off a crowded page. It follows the original closely but it is not a transcription. The original page is below; read it if a detail matters.
The Fleming & Ayerst Company's saw and shingle mill, one of the largest in Ballard and considered the finest equipped mill in the state, was totally destroyed by fire last evening between 7 and 8 o'clock. The mill was completed last March and had been running constantly. The mill buildings, dry house, and stock of lumber and shingles burned like tinder, and within minutes, nothing but parts of the framework was standing. The mill was situated in the southern part of the city, close to the Ballard end of the Great Northern railroad bridge. Nearby mills were only saved by a favorable wind from the north. The exact cause is not known, though some believe sparks from a Great Northern locomotive ignited the dry dust. Thomas R. Fleming, a partner, noted the mill was a 'money-maker' that had only recently added a second crew to keep up with orders. About 150 men are now out of employment.
“The mill and shingle mill buildings, dry house, with stock of lumber and shingles, burned like tinder and within a few minutes of the time the fire broke out nothing but parts of the frame work was standing.”
Ballard's identity was built on its industrial waterfront, but the intense fire hazard inherent in shingle mills often led to swift, total losses. Today, that same waterfront has shifted from smoke and sawdust to high-end residential and commercial redevelopment, though the ghost of the industrial boom remains embedded in the neighborhood's history.
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