News: Columbia (7 Jul 1966)

Contact: Dolores (Mohr) Kenyon

E-mail: dolores@wiclarkcountyhistory.org

Surnames: Winter, Brown, Sollberger, Schulz, Albrecht

----Source: Clark County Press (Neillsville, Clark Co., WI) 7/7/1966

Columbia (7 July 1966)

A brush fire of undetermined origin which started late Sunday afternoon on the Jennie Winter property in the Town of Dewhurst (just southwest of Columbia center south of Poertner Road) was kept from developing into a raging holocaust by a sudden heavy downpour of rain.

When Mr. and Mrs. C. F. Brown of Pine Valley, who were driving through the area shortly after the fire started, noted how rapidly it was spreading into the pines, they hurried to notify William Sollberger, the emergency fire warden.

An unsuccessful attempt was made to get in touch with the ranger station in Fairchild, so the Browns returned to the scene, followed by the Sollbergers.

Meanwhile, it began to rain and when they reached the area in a downpour the flames in the brush and pines were being extinguished.

However, the fire had reached an old log barn, which was in disuse and had crumbled and this continued to smolder and flare up. As it was still raining, the Browns and Sollbergers returned to their homes, confident that the rain would quench this, too.

Clifford Winter…lines of the rest of the story was cut off…..

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William and Georgeana Schulz spent Monday evening with Mr. and Mrs. Richard Albrecht in Neillsville.