About 7:30 P.M. police saw smoke coming from the Moore Jewelry Store window on the North Side of the Square. Before that fire was extinguished, Marion had suffered a loss of more than $125,000 that night.

Among those listed as suffering losses in that fire were First National Bank, Charles Otey, Spiller D. Lewis, R.P. Hill Law Library, Ford’s shoe store, Moore Jewelry, Neely, Gallimore, Cook and Potter law office, Williamson County Loan and Improvement association, Charles Hay, I.O.O.F Hall, Rebeccas, Red Men, Pocahontas, Ben Hur, Woodmen of the World, Woodmen Circle, Foresters, Hudspeth Barber Shop, Miss Lydia Howell Millinery Shop, M. Frances, A.E. Brown, Mark Duke, Re-De-He Club (composed of Joe Lee, Ruel Youngblood, B. Glenn Gulledge, Howard McCluskey, Ward Russell, Clarence Lay and Ben LeMaster), plus smoke and water damages to Duncan-Baker Hardware Store, Union Clothing Store and Reid Hotel.

While the First National Bank was burning that night, the home of Circuit Judge D.T. Hartwell, valued at $10,000 caught fire and burned to the ground. Because of a lack of hard road in those days, it was impossible to get additional fire hose from neighboring cities, although Johnston City had offered to send some down on the late night train, if it was still needed then.

(Extracted from local newspapers and compiled by Harry Boyd, posted at http://www.marionfire.us )