Fred Locke's Victor insulator plant burns

VICTOR'S HEAVY LOSS.

The Locke Insulator Works Burned

Sunday Afternoon — Valuation of

Plant, $50,000; Insurance

$20,000.

Victor was again visited by a disastrous fire, which destroyed the Locke Insulator Works, on Sunday last shortly after 1 o'clock. Church goers were on their way to their homes when the alarm was sounded and a crowd of willing workers was soon on the spot ready to lend all assistance for the past experience of the villagers was still fresh in their minds.

The village is still without fire protection and all that could be done was to roll out a few barrels of insulators that were packed ready for shipment in the storehouse. It was plain from the start that nothing could be done to save the buildings. The plant covered about half an acre of land, the buildings being part of frame and part of brick and so closely connected as to be practically one.

There were three men in the building and it seems to be their opinion that the fire started near one of the large kilns, the door of which had been opened a short time before the fire started. The proprietor, Fred M. Locke, left the factory but a short time before, leaving strict orders to carefully guard that part of the works, as he knew there would be danger if the doors were opened.

John Reeves, one of the three men, was the first to discover the fire, when on opening a door a cloud of smoke met him. He quickly gave an alarm, and in an hour from that time the plant was in ashes. Victor's primitive fire protections consists of only a few buckets and ladders, notwithstanding her repeated serious losses.

The buildings contained three large kilns for baking the porcelain insulators, and cost to build them $3,000. There was a large dynamo for lighting, and also testing the insulators, two engines and boilers and a great amount of specially constructed machinery. The loss is estimated at $50,000 and was insured for $20,000. Mr. Locke has made the statement, it is said, that he will rebuild at once, a new plant to be practically fireproof, constructed of steel.

The works were started about four years ago in a limited way, making insulators of Mr. Locke's own invention, and experiments along the line of his first ideas have gone far in helping to solve the problem of long distance electric power transmission. The first severe test was made on the Pacific coast, where he is equipping the longest power line in the world, and their fame has also reached foreign lands, until he has found employment for eighty men.