Great Fire

Great Fire Cridersville Ohio downtown fire buildings businesses Main Street disaster recovery local history Cridersville Historical Society. The family lived above the store Hotel on the second floor Looking at north side of street from the railroad CHURCH STEEPLE The family lived above the shop and U.S. Post Office Miller Home Stepleton General Store (lodge hall above) Fasig Drug Store Lawson Home Harruf Harness Shop Joseph Bush Hotel Etta Williams Millinery Shop Home Bank Spees Hardware Hotel Lewis Catherine Shaffer Home Meffley Grocery Newcomer Restaurant Dr. Strausburg Home & Office Methodist Church Site of Current Fire House As the fire spread, people brought items from their stores and homes into the street where they thought they would be safe. The Fire Started Here As the fire moved to the Stepleton store, the high wind blew pieces of burning debris in all directions, landing on the many other wood shingle roofs. The neighboring stores and homes on the south side of Main Street were also soon on fire. News of the fire spread rapidly. The column of smoke from the fire could be seen from miles away. When the Stepleton General Store was completely on fire, the front of the store fell into Main Street onto the items people had moved from their stores and homes—spreading the fire to the north side of the street. Soon, both sides were burning. By 6:00 p.m., the fire began to subside. It had not been necessary to dynamite the house next to the Methodist Church. The large iron safe at the Home Bank was the only thing left among the smoldering ruins of downtown Cridersville. Furniture still blocked the entrances to nearby streets. The village was without telephone service. Many of the poles and lines had been destroyed by the fire. A disaster of this size was a true test of Cridersville’s stamina. The loss of a majority of the businesses could have been a fatal blow, but the local citizens remained positive. Plans were soon underway to begin rebuilding. All the buildings on both sides of the street were gone in 3 hours. Boy Scouts in Lima heard of the blaze, hired a...