Major Fire Consumes North Yakima Business Row
A devastating blaze sweeps through Second Street, causing thousands of dollars in damages but no loss of life.
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.
North Yakima, Nov. 5—A fire broke out in the row of frame buildings on Second Street, corner of A, at 3 o'clock this morning, and for a time it looked as though a large part of the town would be destroyed. A strong wind was blowing from the west, and few believed the fire could be controlled before great damage was done, but the firemen worked with a will and, with the aid of four well-directed streams of water, kept the flames from spreading beyond the row of buildings in which the fire started. The total loss aggregates $11,200.
“A strong wind was blowing from the west, and few believed the fire could be controlled.”
Frame construction and high winds were the natural enemies of early Washington towns. The community's immediate fundraising for the firemen's fund demonstrates how fire protection was the primary civic concern of the era.
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