| The Palo Alto History Project |
| Palo Alto's Early Fires |
| 2006 |
| Palo Alto's Early Fires: An Urban Threat In the late 1800s and early 20th century, every city dweller had to fear fire. More urban destruction was caused by fires in the decade after the Civil War than during the war itself. And thirty years later, things hadn’ t gotten a whole lot better. No city --- big or small --- was safe from a fire disaster. In 1871, flames swept across Chicago, burning four square miles of the city and killing hundreds. Boston burned the following year when a fire that originated in the basement of a downtown commercial warehouse led to a 12 hour inferno that would eventually consume 776 buildings. Baltimore went down in 1901 and much of San Francisco was lost in the fires that were touched off by the 1906 earthquake. Of course in those days, cities were essentially large collections of kindling ready to ignite at the smallest spark. Wooden houses were erected with wooden roofs --- all on top of explosive gas lines leading to manually lit street lamps. Inside houses, candles and gas lamps were always a stray arm away from setting off an uncontrollable blaze. Plus fire departments were in their infancy. Small towns usually had either volunteer fire departments or no fire fighters at all. In addition, the many fully insured or over-insured buildings gave developers little incentive to construct fire-safe structures. These high rates made arson commonplace. In a small town like Palo Alto every house and building was in jeopardy. And indeed, the newspapers from the city’s first few decades contain almost weekly reports of local conflagrations. In the 1890s, before the establishment of the town’s volunteer fire department, homes and businesses stood little chance of surviving fires. The August 2nd, 1895 edition of the Palo Alto Times reported the burning of Mrs. A.J. Harper’s residence on High Street. Onlookers had already crowded around the house when flames burst through the kitchen ceiling. Volunteers managed to rescue the furniture and save a neighbor’s house with cellar well water, but Mrs. Harper’s house was lost. “On account of a lack of fire fighting apparatus, the building burned to the ground,” the Times stated, further speculating that if “an ax could have been had and a hole had been cut in the roof…the property could have been saved.” After two December fires on University Avenue resulted in additional burned buildings, one of the victimized owners, Dr. F.H. Moss, took the lead in forming a fire association. City business leaders including John Parkinson and E.C. Thoits signed up and by April 1896, the city had purchased its first fire-fighting vehicle at the cost of $350. They later added a 131 pound bell for an additional 24 bucks and change. But while Palo Alto now had fire fighters, the volunteer “Laddies” did not always perform with the efficiency of the professional fire fighting class. The Times commented upon their efforts in April of 1898 with a rather acid tongue: “In Sunday night’s fire, the so-called Fire Department succeeded in saving the most valuable part of the property --- they saved the lot. Of course the house burned up, but then…a fire in a small town affords a recreation that goes a long way toward dispelling the ennui incidental in living in a village.” Harsh. But there were other times when the boys performed bravely and efficiently, earning positive reviews. When fire broke out at Hemlick’s Candy Store at midnight on November 9th, 1904, an entire block of wooden structures was threatened. This time the Times was more generous --- reporting that “The fire department responded quickly and effectively and within a half an hour the fire was out.” Although the candy store was lost, the neighboring Eagle Drug Company was saved along with a block full of offices, hotels, stables and shops. But even after the establishment of a department, fires were often a spectator --- if not participatory --- event. They were both a source of excitement and a chance to pitch in --- as the paper described when a hay barn fire threatened the house of John Arnott on University Avenue: “Then came the raucous blare of the waterworks whistle…while the bell tolled at City Hall. With that admonition, boys, men, bicycles, autos converged in scattered and hurried rushes toward the scene of excitement.” Palo Alto’s early fires were usually triggered by one of a few common sources. For instance, chimneys and fireplaces were a frequent source of trouble. Wind carried a spark from a nearby chimney to the roof of Miss Emma Kellogg’s house in 1899. According to accounts from that day, Professor Brun’s little boy who lived in the adjacent house yelled to Miss Kellogg to tell her that her roof was on fire. But by then it was already too late. Although fire fighters attached three lines of hose to three different hydrants, they could only save the neighboring residence. As the Palo Alto Live Oak would later lament, “Her home, which has been the scene of so many charming social events, was daintily furnished and contained a fine piano as well as many fine possessions which money cannot replace.” The house was completely leveled. Old style stoves were also a common problem. The culprit of the 1897 fire at the Richmond House at Forest and Bryant was the fire left in the kitchen range. The 15-room, two-story boarding house was locked when neighbors arrived to find the basement in flames and a fire raging inside. Although some $5,000 in property damage would be incurred, that figure would not include Mr. V.V.’s Clark’s wardrobe or Mrs. Williams’ piano. Clark arrived at the burning house and found that he was refused entrance at the front door. Grabbing a neighbor’s ladder, he managed to climb up to his second-floor residence and save his trunk and clothing amid the flames. The piano was also rescued in the nick of time after several attempts to liberate it from its first floor location. Mr. A.W. Meany forced his way through the blinding smoke and pushed the piano through the door and out into the hallway where a group of men secured the instrument. Meany then staggered his way out onto the lawn and collapsed in good health but choked exhaustion. It’s hard to imagine anyone risking life and limb for a trunk of clothes --- or even a piano --- these days. A stove was also to blame in the 1905 fire at the Perry Building at University and Bryant. William Vargus, the owner of the Parisian Dying and Cleaning Works was with his wife on the building’s first floor when the stove suddenly exploded. Although they both suffered burns to their hands and face, the couple somehow managed to signal the alarm that brought the Fire Department to the scene. Nearly $3000 was lost in the fire, including the entire ground floor of the structure. Faulty wiring was also a common cause of many fires in the early days of Palo Alto. A crossed wire began the 1915 fire at the Ernest Wilson Candy Factory on High Street. $1500 worth of candy boxes fed the flames that would eventually result in $25,000 of damage to the candy factory and the W.H. Brooks Bakery next door. The only good news came to neighborhood kids who were able to recover only slightly tinged boxes of chocolates and caramels. And of course, overturned lamps were a persistent menace. An April 1898 fire at Lytton and Florence began when a gas lamp was knocked over --- producing flames that climbed up cloth walls and quickly spread throughout the ramshackle house. Without a source of water nearby, Mr. A.M. Mayberry daringly braved the flames to rescue his three children, suffering many burns to his hands and face in the process. The Mayberrys had no insurance for their possessions and the family was forced to begin again with nothing to call their own. Over time, fires would become less of a scourge to Palo Altans and city dwellers across the nation. Safer stoves, lamps and wiring became commonplace while wooden houses were replaced with less flammable materials. In addition, fire departments perfected their practices and secured better technology to utilize the water and hydrant systems that were improving across the nation. So while modern urbanites may be increasingly threatened by crime, pollution and vehicular traffic, they can at least take some comfort that the danger from fires has been greatly reduced. -Matt Bowling |
| A fire engine peeks out of the north side of Police Court when the fire department operated out of the building. (PAHA) |
| Onlookers and firemen look at Palo Alto Paint Company building, scene of a fire. (PAHA) |
| Sources: Palo Alto Times, Palo Alto Weekly, Palo Alto Historical Association, Wikipedia, Palo Alto Live Oak |
| A.N. Umphreys, his son, Chester Noble and Harry Vandervoort and others pose on a fire truck just outside the fire station entrance in the city hall building on Ramona Street. (PAHA) |
| Memories added by readers: |
| This is an exterior view of Palo Alto's City Hall where the early Palo Alto fire station is. (PAHA) |
