The Waldron Block Inferno
A landmark four-story brick building in Fairhaven is destroyed by fire, leaving the community reeling after a disastrous attempt to control the blaze with faulty equipment.
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 most destructive fire in the history of Fairhaven occurred this evening. Shortly before 7 o'clock, smoke was seen issuing from the Waldron block, a fine four-story brick structure situated at the corner of Twelfth Street and McKenzie Avenue. Flames broke out of the windows in the rear of the top story. The whole interior of the two upper stories, which were tenantless, was soon a mass of raging flames. The building cost $35,000. There was $24,000 insurance on it, $10,000 of which was renewed two weeks ago, and $5,000 would have expired tomorrow. The management of the fire was bad, and the department labored under a disadvantage from rotten hose. The upper stories are completely gutted and the roof has fallen in.
“The management of the fire was bad, and the department labored under a disadvantage from rotten hose.”
Fairhaven is now the historic center of Bellingham, and its 1890s-era brick buildings are prized architectural assets. The story highlights the precarious nature of early development in Washington, where wooden interiors were often encased in brick shells, vulnerable to both fire and inadequate municipal services.
From readers
No comments yet. If you know something about this story — a correction, a family memory, a source — it belongs here.