Description
“Fire Saturday Morning” - - Once more fire occurred in Platte City. Once more the wind and weather were favorable, and so once more Platte City was saved from wide-spread disaster by a mere chance. Some day there will be a fire when the air is not still or when the wind is not blowing the heat away from adjacent buildings. This fire was early Saturday morning when the home of Uncle George Anderson and Aunt Rachael, colored people who lived just north of J. H. Hull's property was destroyed. It was probably the best piece of property owned by colored people in this town. Fire was discovered about 4:30, and if a ladder and a few buckets of water had been handy it is believed it could have been put out. Later it might have been extinguished if the city chemical engine had been available, but that was said to be empty. At the time of the Christmas fire it was frozen up and useless. It was sometime before any number of people arrived and aside from saving most of the household goods on the first floor they could do little more than watch the building burned. The wind was from the south most the first morning this spring when that was true and blowing quite briskly away from Mr. Hull’s residence. Had an equally strong wind blown from the north it is almost certain that Mr. Hull's home would have been destroyed and all most equally probable that the fire would have spread to a large portion of the business and residence districts. Nobody knows how the fire originated. There was $1000 insurance, which will go far toward building a small home for these elderly people. Still their loss was heavy, including house, furniture, and a bunch of little chicks. Uncle George and Aunt Rachel are among the best known and most respected colored people of the town. Just a short time ago they celebrated the 50th anniversary of their marriage, and friends came from Chicago and other distant places. Gifts of gold and various articles said to reach about $300 in value were presented, and some of these were destroyed in the fire.Date(s) of Creation
5/27/1920
