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Transcribed and submitted by Linda Talbott
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Formatted by USGenNet Data Repository Chief Archivist, Linda Talbott
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The St. Paul Sunday Globe
Sunday, August 17, 1884


           The Aid From St. Paul
           The first notice of the Anoka fire yesterday morning was
         received from Division Superintendent Rice, of the Manitoba
         railway. At ten minutes to 4 a.m. he was at central fire 
         hall asking Chief Black if he could furnish an engine. The
         chief, who was at his residence attending to a sick child,
         replied by telephone that he would have No. 4 and company
         ready at a moment's notice when a train was ready to trans-
         port them. By telephoning to the Manitoba shops and by tele-
         graphing the operator there could not be raised, and Assistant
         Chief Hildebrand drove out with Mr. Rice to the shops as fast
         as horse flesh could speed, where the found the operator bask-
         ing in the open air, who pretended he had been awake and had
         received no calls. A train was made up and run down to the
         Manitoba freight yard where No. 4 and company under the super-
         vision of Assistant Chief Hildebrand embarked at 5:42 a.m.
         making the run of twenty-nine miles in thirty-eight minutes,
         at least a full hour having been lost by the delay in getting
         off, caused by the operator at the Manitoba shops.
         
           When the St. Paul relief train arrived the fire on the east
         side of the river had so far burned things out that the Anoka
         chief, who could not dislodge his own steamer for the purpose,
         asked Chief Hildebrand to go to the west side of the river
         where the burning woodwork of the bridge had ignited lumber
         and buildings. The train was run up to the upper bridge, which
         No. 4 crossed amd taking suction above above the dam was just
         in time to save three or four blocks there with its powerful
         stream, to the relief of 100 men who were fighting fire at
         that point with buckets. The manager of the Washburn mill,
         when the fire was subdued at this point, crossed the river
         with others and asked Hildebrand to try and save the dam across
         Rum river, portions of which had taken on fire above the apron
         on the east side, and which threatened its destruction. Nine
         hundred feet of hose were run out over the slippery dam apron
         and not only the fire was quenched where it had laid hold of
         it, but an immense pile of debris and sawdust burning on the
         east shore was soaked with water and the flames put out. The
         chief of the department at Anoka gives No. 4 the credit of
         saving a conflagration on the west side of the river and the
         manager of the Washburn mill told Hildebrand that the dam across
         Rum river was preserved entirely by their efforts. After this
         No. 4 and company repaired to the East side, where the author-
         ities were talking of firing a cannon to bring down the toppling
         walls of the ruins, and volunteering for the duty pulled down
         the dangerous walls. They took train for home at 4:25 p.m.,
         having reported to the mayor and chief of the department at
         Anoka, who thanked them warmly for the great service the rend-
         ered, while they regretted  they had not had the forethought
         to have summoned them to the scene earlier and thereby pre-
         vented the destruction of some of the buildings at least de-
         stroyed on the east side.
         
           The steamer from Minneapolis which went to the rescue was
         hauled up by a switch engine, leaving that city at 4:25 a.m.,
         and was accompanied by Chief Stetson and his first assistant.
         It did no service of any account, being located near the Wash-
         burn mill. It returned at 9 a.m., none of the officers report-
         ing to the authorities, or asking if they could do anything
         more to aid them. 
           This abrupt departure and the failure of the Minneapolis
         steamer to offer to help extinguish the fire on the east 
         end of the Rum river dam and adjacent burning debris was
         much commented on by Anoka sufferers who said that in the
         three times they had called upon the twin cities for such
         aid the St. Paul department had always rendered them signal
         service over that of the department of the other city.
         
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