Chimney Rock Has $60,000 Fire Sunday

Nine Buildings Destroyed by Wind-Whipped Blaze
Origin of Fire UnknownSmall Amount of Insurance.

From the Forest City Courier, Mar. 20, 1930

Chimney Rock, Mar. 18—Half the town of Chimney Rock Monday was in ashes, following the most disastrous blaze in the town’s history Sunday night and early Monday, which destroyed nine buildings.

Estimating the loss Monday business men of the town placed the damage at $60,000 or more. The total insurance carried on the nine buildings burned amounted to only about $6,000. The insurance rate here is very high, it was explained Monday.

Starts At 11:30.

The fire started at 11:30 o’clock Sunday night in Oscar Shytle’s cafe, and a strong west wind fanned the fire and soon half the town was in flames. Calls for aid were sent to the Rutherfordton, Hendersonville and Asheville fire departments, and the latter responded, but when the combination truck from the Biltmore station, in charge of Assistant Fire Chief J. C. Fitzgerald, arrived the last building had caved in. A shift in the wind was given credit for saving that part of the town not burned.

The fire raged for about an hour and a half.

No one was hurt.

Nine Buildings Burn.

The buildings destroyed with the estimated loss, follows:

G. W. Logan inn. $15,000 to $20,000.
Miller Hardware building, furnished but unoccupied. $6,000.
Shytle’s cafe, $5,000.
McIntyre’s garage. $3,000.
An office building, furnished but not occupied, the property of a Dr. Hord, of King’s Mountain, $4,000.
Tar Heel Inn, owned M. L. Edwards. $10,000.
A vacant office building owned by Mr. Edwards. $3,500.
Carolina Home, owned by Mrs. J. Grayson. $10,000.
A small residence on the north side of the highway. $500.

Reprinted with permission from The Daily Courier. Copyright owned by The Daily Courier.