An Unexplained Blaze in Ballard
A house belonging to a shingle weaver is destroyed by a suspicious fire in Ballard, potentially linked to labor unrest.
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.
A one-story, eight-roomed house, owned by Edward Charleton, a shingle weaver, and located on Shilshole Avenue in Ballard, was destroyed by fire early this morning. The fire was discovered in the rear of the building, and despite the efforts of the firemen, the structure was lost. It is believed to have been set on fire, as a length of hose was found cut in two places. Charleton's loss is estimated at $2,700. Last Friday night, some enemy of Charleton threw coal through the windows of his house and killed his dog. He is cordially disliked by many union shingle weavers, because he is working in spite of the strike.
“He is cordially disliked by many union shingle weavers, because he is working in spite of the strike.”
This arson incident serves as a stark reminder of the intense labor conflicts in the early Pacific Northwest timber industry. The tension between strike-breaking and union organizing frequently escalated into violence, a reality of early 20th-century Seattle labor history.
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