York Flour Mill Burned, but Not by Confederates
Pass issued to Samuel Small by General Early’s aide-de-camp.
Did one of P.A. & S. Small’s grist mills burn during the Civil War? Yes.
Was it burned by the General Jubal Early’s Confederate soldiers? No.
Fellow blogger Scott Mingus has already posted information on the Small mills during the June 1863 Confederate occupation. See Smalls’ mills Confederate focal points and Loucks Mill major Confederate camp site.
Below is a contemporary account, from the May 3, 1864 York Gazette, of the fire that destroyed the Loucks Mill, which was being leased by the Smalls, as well as several other buildings. It must have been quite a blaze.
DESTRUCTIVE FIRE–On Friday morning last, shortly after two o’clock the large grist mill of Messrs. Z.K. & H. Loucks in Spring-garden Township, about two miles north of this borough, on the Northern Central Railway, was discovered to be on fire. The alarm was sounded, and our firemen, with the Union suction, arrived on the ground as promptly as the distance would allow. Before they could render any assistance, however, the mill with its contents, the old distillery, some time ago altered to a dwelling house, the saw mill, and a carriage house and corn crib, were entirely consumed. The dwelling house was unoccupied at the time of the fire.
The grist mill was leased by Messrs. P.A. & S. Small, of this borough, and contained about 4000 bushels of wheat and 90 barrels of four, on which there was an insurance in the York County Mutual insurance Company of $2200, and in the Farmer’s Mutual of $4000, sufficient to cover the loss. The mill had only recently been comparatively depleted of its contents by large shipments, thus saving further loss.
The Messrs. Loucks were insured in the York County Mutual for $6400, and in the Farmers Mutual for $1400, making a total of $7800. It will require considerably more than double that amount, we are told. to cover the Messrs. Loucks’ loss, independent of that occasioned by the stoppage of the mill.
The origin of the fire was accidental, though it is not positively known whether it caught from the friction of the machinery, or from the lamp left burning in the mill.
Click here for more on York County mills.
Click the links below for more York County fires.
Fire fiend at Goldsboro.
Preventable Hanover fires.
York County forest fires.
Jail inmates alarmed by fire.
Woman, cow and horses saved.
Cigars smoking in Red Lion.
