Anamosa - A Reminiscence 1838 - 1988

Moe, Ernie Peet, William Port, Newt Barnard, James
Phelan, T.E. Watters, Virgil Miller, Henry Hellburg.
W.B. Leach, Fred Weaver and George Johnson
This team practiced nearly every evening on Park
Avenue, with most of the town turning out to watch.
They performed at the fairs, and often had contests
with other towns in'the county.
T.E. Watters appeared before the city council in 1896
and made a request for needed articles for the fire
department. These were named as: "One dozen
spanners. four flre axes, two hose and ladder straps.
one strap to pull off hose, two nozzles, two-700 feet of
hose, a new bell the flremen can hear more than two
blocks; an electric bell connected with the engine
house, and a tower to dry the hose. The Hook & Ladder
Co. wants ladders that are not all slivers, lumber
enough to put a ceiling in their room, and the approach
in front of the hose house repaired." The request was
referred to the fire committee.
Sparks from an engine of the Midland Freight train
set fire to the roof of the wing of the stone building on
the other side of Fawn Creek. In the 1870s it was used
as a foundry. Asa Smith used the main building as a
barn. The fire made rapid headway, aided by a strong
south wind. The machinery belonging to Simon
McLaughlin was lost as the dense smoke drove back the
neig hbors who were attempting to fight the fire . The
fire department hitched onto three dray teams and
went flying on the run to East Main Street. However.
the nearest hydrant, at the time, was two long blocks
back at the Union Depot, and the hose length was
insufficient. The roofs and the floors of both buildings
soon collapsed. leaving only the bare walls standing.
The firemen saved other threatened buildings.
Two churches and the sanitarium were destroyed by
fires, after the turn of the century, despite valiant
efforts by the volunteer firemen.
With the mercury ranging from 10 to 12 below zero.
Fire ChiefTom Watters and his men did not quit until 4
o'clock in the afternoon. This was the afternoon of Jan.
28, 1902. The scene of the flre was the Anamosa
Sanitarium. They had been on the job since 8:30 that
morning.They were covered with ice and some had
frostbitten ears and fingers.
The fire had started from sparks on the roof near the
chimney. in three or four minutes, firemen, with the
assistance of three dray wagons, were at the site of the
Prospect Park Sanitarium, on the summit of Broadway
Street,( now the site of the Broadway Medical Clinic).
The 15 patients in the 22-room, three-story building.
when the fire started, were quickly moved to
neighboring houses.
The prison hose was obtained and a Y put in. allowing
two streams of water to be used.
Despite the best attempts, the fire was a stubborn one
and the firemen were hampered by the height of
building and the weather. The roof and upper rooms
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Champion Hose Team of the Eighties — Anamosa‘s
great running team. This team consisted of Charles
Arthur, captain. Charles Ellis and Charles Barker,
lead-ofl men. Then Charles Carter. Port Weaver,
William Denison. Al Moe. Ernie Peet, William Port.
Newt Barnard, James Phelan, T.E. Watters. etc. They
pulled a lightflre cart behind them and ran a certain
distance, hooked up the hose and threw water. The
first team to cover the distance and throw water won
the money. The harness was so constructed that a
man could drop out and the rest go on. This team
practiced every night at 7 p.m. on Park Avenue.
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Needless to say, all Anamosa was there. Most of
Anamosafoliowed them to the Maquoketafair, where
they won. At the Monticello fair, the Anamosa team
reached the finish line ahead of all others. but the
takeofl man. Jim Phelan, slipped on a wet spot and
lost the hose and some other team there won flrst.
Jim. by the way. was running in red flannel
underwear. Needless to say, collections in Anamosa
were poorfor the next thirty days, as all o_fAnarnosa's
loose money was on the team. Those were the good
old days! (From the Eureka, August 1938)