It's winter, and a cold January day (although given the fickleness of the weather lately, it may not be cold by the time you read this) is perhaps a good time to consider that those who lived before us in Kingstree were most concerned during cold weather with the danger of fire. Open fireplaces and wood stoves inevitably led to the loss of property. However, one of the largest fires in downtown Kingstree, believed to have been caused by an arsonist, is also remembered as the first fire to do great damage to the town, although more loss of life was recorded in the jail fire of January 7, 1867.
Today, the Kingstree Fire Department has equipment to deal with fires of all kinds,
but in 1873, there were no trained firefighters and no equipment except for buckets.
According to contemporary newspaper reports of the time, on Monday, January 27, 1873, around 4 a.m. a fire was discovered in the building on Main Street, known as Burgheim's Store. The property, which was vacant, had recently changed hands when baker Charles Hoffman bought it from John A. McCullough a few days prior to the fire. Hoffman was in the process of arranging for repairs to the building so that he could renovate it for his own business.
When the fire was discovered, the building was already engulfed in flames. Although an alarm was sounded, generally at that time by the ringing of church bells, without a trained fire department, there was little to be done except try to remove the contents from stores and homes not yet reached by the fire and attempt to keep the fire from spreading to the opposite side of the street. The fire had already spread to the buildings adjoining Burgheim's store within minutes of its discovery.
When the fire was discovered, the building was already engulfed in flames. Although an alarm was sounded, generally at that time by the ringing of church bells, without a trained fire department, there was little to be done except try to remove the contents from stores and homes not yet reached by the fire and attempt to keep the fire from spreading to the opposite side of the street. The fire had already spread to the buildings adjoining Burgheim's store within minutes of its discovery.
The Kingstree Star noted, "The flames spread with such terrible rapidity that only a very short time was allowed in which to labor in securing the goods and furniture to which access could be had. Some saved considerable, while others lost all they possessed. In a very short time, every building fronting Main Street from Mr. Ward's corner to Mr. James Staggers' residence was in a sheet of flame, and at this period of the conflagration, it looked like the courthouse and all the other buildings on the street would be consumed, and that the fire would extend to the last building at both ends of the street on which it originated, but at this critical juncture a brisk breeze commenced blowing from the north, which threw the flames directly across the street, and Mr. Staggers' building being a brick one, prevented its further progress in a westward and eastward direction, and also saved the destruction of the buildings immediately in the rear of those what were consumed."
A bit later in the town's history, artesian wells strategically placed throughout town
helped townspeople fight fires as buckets could be filled at the wells and passed
down a line to the fire; however, in 1873, there were very few wells available.
Once the fire stopped spreading, it quickly consumed the buildings that were burning and burned itself out. The Star noted that it had rained heavily during the night, thoroughly saturating the roofs of the buildings. This prevented them from catching fire from the many sparks the fire generated. It was believed that had it not rained, the entire town could have been lost to the fire. As it was, almost everyone living or doing business in the main part of the village removed their goods and furniture from their homes and stores, piling them in the middle of the street.
The newspaper recounted "distressing scenes" as townspeople prepared themselves to lose all their worldly goods. The reporter specifically mentioned a young man running into his mother's home to save her from the fire as she was old and blind and unable to reach safety on her own. The reporter also noted that White men and Black men worked together "with great energy and determination" to do all they could to save what they could. "They are entitled to the thanks of the community for the heroism displayed," the paper stated, adding, "We would be wanting in personal gratitude were we to fail to recognize those who worked manfully to save the building in which this office is located."
While the origin of the fire was not known, it was believed to have been arson, based solely on the fact that the building had been vacant for more than a month. The paper also noted, "The very dark and inclement night and the late hour at which the fire occurred would seem to favor the presumption that it was the work of an incendiary."
Presumably the buildings involved were on the north side of Main Street, between Academy and Jackson streets today, based on the mention of the fears for the courthouse and that the wind blowing from the north pushed the flames into the street. In all, nine buildings–both stores and houses–were lost to the fire. Those losing property were W.W Ward, Ward & Maurice, Louis Cohen & Co., W.J. Lee, Joseph E. Wilson, Morris Schwartz, Henry Solomon, the estate of E.J. Porter, Dr. J.S. Brockington, Ann Jones, Charles Hoffman, and George Coleman. Damage was estimated between $45,000 and $50,000. Today that would be $963,653 to $1,070,735. Only about one-quarter of that amount was insured.
The newspaper recounted "distressing scenes" as townspeople prepared themselves to lose all their worldly goods. The reporter specifically mentioned a young man running into his mother's home to save her from the fire as she was old and blind and unable to reach safety on her own. The reporter also noted that White men and Black men worked together "with great energy and determination" to do all they could to save what they could. "They are entitled to the thanks of the community for the heroism displayed," the paper stated, adding, "We would be wanting in personal gratitude were we to fail to recognize those who worked manfully to save the building in which this office is located."
While the origin of the fire was not known, it was believed to have been arson, based solely on the fact that the building had been vacant for more than a month. The paper also noted, "The very dark and inclement night and the late hour at which the fire occurred would seem to favor the presumption that it was the work of an incendiary."
Presumably the buildings involved were on the north side of Main Street, between Academy and Jackson streets today, based on the mention of the fears for the courthouse and that the wind blowing from the north pushed the flames into the street. In all, nine buildings–both stores and houses–were lost to the fire. Those losing property were W.W Ward, Ward & Maurice, Louis Cohen & Co., W.J. Lee, Joseph E. Wilson, Morris Schwartz, Henry Solomon, the estate of E.J. Porter, Dr. J.S. Brockington, Ann Jones, Charles Hoffman, and George Coleman. Damage was estimated between $45,000 and $50,000. Today that would be $963,653 to $1,070,735. Only about one-quarter of that amount was insured.
According to The Star this was the first time the town had experienced a fire in which more than one building was destroyed. The townspeople thought this remarkable considering the village was 141 years old at the time of the fire. The newspaper concluded its account of the fire with these words, "Luckily for the population, they have been greatly blessed and favored in their exemption from the frequent and devastating fires that have visited all the other towns and villages in the State. But we are told there is a time for all things, and the time for the first fire of any magnitude in Kingstree was on Monday morning last."
The fire made it clear to the townspeople that they were not exempt from disasters such as this for by the end of February a bill had been filed in the South Carolina Senate to incorporate the Pioneer Hook and Ladder Company of Kingstree.
While the fire of January 27, 1873, may have been the first major fire experienced by the town, it would not be the last. We'll be looking at more of these disasters as we move through this year.
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