Fueled by icy cold wind, the flames shot 20 feet
Hannah Gross
NLJ Correspondent
With Leonard Cash, historian
In this week’s installment of “History on Main,” Leonard Cash will wrap up the discussion on the building and businesses located behind the former First State Bank building, which was on lot 12 of block 10, on South Seneca Avenue. He will also rehash the history of one of Main Street’s largest fires, which wiped out nearly the entire block.
Picking up where we left off with an article from the April 5, 1962, we find an announcement in the News Letter Journal that the Kirby Sales and Service station opened up on 7
S. Seneca.
Nearly a decade later, Cap ‘N Bottle (which was located on Seneca for a number of years) moved to 625 W. Main, according to the April 16, 1970, paper. By July 1, 1971, Gerald Lee opened up Lee Electronics in the former liquor store. However, he did not stay there long because we find in an article from Dec. 30, 1971, that he moved his electronics store to 104 Frontier Ave.
Around the same time, Clarence Gilkison and his wife bought the Club Café, located on 13 S. Seneca, in an auction from Louise Edwards, who had owned it for 10 years, according to the Dec. 2, 1971, paper. But by Oct. 5, 1972, the Gilkisons sold it to Walt and Lake Erdman.
That summer on July 18, 1972, Betty and Donna Pollat opened the Newcastle Bible book store on 9 S. Seneca, with free coffee and doughnuts, as well as door prizes, available for the community. Not only did the store sell books, but the Pollats also offered a gift line
of merchandise.
Around Nov. 8, 1973, Betty Nolan became the new manager of the café, but by Nov. 21, 1974, Ed and Elsie Sept took the café over.
The Jan. 9, 1975, paper announced the opening of H&R Block, with Donna Pollat as the manager of the income
tax office.
According to a news report from June 3, 1976, the café was closed and was to be held for auction. More reports from July 15 and Aug. 5, 1976, reveal that First State Bank remodeled the café building into a set of offices (Cash said after the café moved out, Ron Moody operated an insurance company there in the ’80s and ’90s).
By the mid-1970s, Grieves Insurance, which had also been located in that area, moved next to the Cap ‘N Bottle a few years later. The liquor store was later purchased by Dennis and Marlene Dixon from Karl Thoeming by May 5, 1977.
In the 7 S. Seneca location, we find that the Aldenger and Coulter Agency Real Estate Brokerage opened for business around March 8, 1979.
By Oct. 1, 1981, Donna Fletcher was hosting a grand opening for Book Nook, which opened next to the Newcastle Cable TV office on 11
S. Seneca.
A few years later, the cable TV company, which was in operation for nine years, was sold to Cablevision Services Inc., according to the Nov. 8, 1984, paper. Morgan Pate was the owner at the time and Cecil Fifer was the manager of the Newcastle Cable TV, and they put a “thank you” in the paper, urging “your support for the new owner.”
An article from Jan. 16, 1990, paper announced that Janice Freeman purchased H&R Block, which was open six days a week. Cash said he believes H&R Block was in two different locations behind the bank (but not at the same time). Although uncertain, he said it was probably 7 and 11 S. Seneca.
And that is the final article in Cash’s records from the buildings behind the bank, but before ending this series, he wanted to include a section on the fire that we’ve previously mentioned. The fire destroyed many of the buildings and businesses on block 10.
The following information on the 1998 fire comes from several articles in the Dec. 24, 1998, edition of the News Letter Journal. It all began when “a ‘ticking or dripping noise’ woke John and Robyn Buffington in the middle of the night,” but because they couldn’t find the source, they went back to bed. At 7:22 a.m., the city garbage crew spotted smoke rising out of the attic above Newcastle Zoo and Sweet Temptations (business on block 10). Robyn discovered the fire in their building through a skylight. Her husband tried to put it out with a fire extinguisher, but it was too late. Fire Chief Ed Wagoner said he believed the fire started several hours before it was reported. Fortunately, the fire engine promptly arrived on the scene at 7:28 a.m.
The crew “attacked the fire in the attic that was shared by three buildings, housing the pet shop, Sweet Temptations, and A-1 agency.” Due to a lack of firewall, the three buildings were more like one conjoined structure, so the fire was able to spread more easily. The fourth business, Abstract and Title Agency, was protected somewhat by a firewall but the pre-existing archway that connected it to the neighboring building when it was still home to Newcastle Drug and Jewelry allowed some of the flames to pass through.
Intense heat forced the firefighters to come outside three times. To aid in the fiery battle, Black Hills Power and Light shut off electricity, and the firefighters were able to get a ladder to the top and vent the building through skylights. The flames shot 20 feet into the air through the holes they created, followed by three explosions in Sweet Temptations. Wagoner said the firefighters went into a defensive mode to focus on controlling the blaze and keeping it contained to the already damaged buildings. As if that wasn’t enough, the winter chill brought an “icy cold wind” to deal with, further spreading the flames and making conditions miserable for the firemen. By 8 p.m. that evening, most of the fire was finally extinguished.
This fire was one of the worst in Newcastle Main Street history, and next week, we will learn about how the community came together and got through the tragedy in the final installment of this “History on Main” series on lot 12 of block 10.