From the Florence Times, Saturday, October 20, 1894, p. 3. THE WAGON WORKS. A Slight Fire--Electric Lights In. About 6:45 Tuesday evening fire was discovered in the oil house of the Wagon Factory, a few minutes after the factory started up for the night. The alarm was sounded and the Factory Fire Department responded promptly and the fire was soon a thing of the past. The damage was very slight. It caught from a lantern carried by Will Reynolds, whose duty it was to mix paint. It appeared to be an explosion of gas accumulated from handling a good deal of gasoline in and around the oil house. Reynolds right arm and hand were severely burned, he will probably be laid up for a week or more. He belongs to the Factory Fraternity and will get weekly indemnity while disabled. In the rush to the fire M. Urick had his left hand cut while bravely bursting out a glass window with his fist. He will probably be off several days. Dr. Bellamy remained out that night to see the new electric lights start up, and seemed highly pleased at the quick action of the boys in fighting the fire fiend. Such occurances nearly all have a ludicrous side and one of the funny things of this frolic was to see Messrs. Trainer and Lynn, stock clerk and stenographer, hustling barrels of turpentine out of reach of the fire. Ask them how much a barrel of turpentine weighs. Mr. Wm. Faris had one of his hands hurt by the rip saw that evening. After the excitement of the fire had in a mesure subsided; the electrician who is putting in the electric lights at the factory started up the Dynamo and the Wagon Factory was lighted for the first time by its own electric lights. The Wagon Factory is now one of the best equipped plantsin the South, and one that the citizens of Florence, yea of Alabama, should be justly proud of.
Posted on: Fri, 01 Nov 2013 21:00:24 +0000