Although I have been unable to find an example, surely in my nearly nine years of blogging I have alluded to the fact that my Grandpa Jack's family home burned sometime shortly after he returned from the service in WWII. It is a fact of which I have long been aware, and is the reason that so few photos from Grandpa's side of the family exist. Some of the few that do survive are actually singed around the edges, physical artifacts of that disaster.
For some reason, though, I never could seem to find any independent information on the fire. All I knew was the little that Grandpa told me. However, a mere two weeks ago, I finally found my first independent source: an article appeared in the 18 Aug 1948 edition of the Council Bluffs Nonpareil. So now I finally have a date for that fateful blaze. It must have happened on 11 Aug 1948.
The article reads:
Interior of Home Damaged by Fire
Fire, heat and smoke damaged the interior of the two-story home of Francis A. Hoyt, 1102 South Thirty-fifth street, Wednesday.
Two companies of firemen brought the blaze under control. It is believed a kerosene stove in the kitchen caused the fire. Hoyt told firemen he heard what sounded like an explosion in the stove.
Incidentally, the Francis A. Hoyt referred to in the article was Grandpa's dad, my great-grandfather.
Citation:
"Interior of Home Damaged by Fire," Council Bluffs Nonpareil, 18 Aug 1948, p. 12, col. 1; digital images, Newspapers.com (www.newspapers.com : accessed 9 Feb 2020), World Collection.
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