From Days Gone By August 21, 1913

August 21, 1913.

    A fearful catastrophe happened in Kite when an explosion killed one man and partially destroyed a building. The Kite Drug Co., gas tank exploded on Friday, killing Dominicus Roose, a dutchman almost instantly and slightly wounding young Crawford Harrison. From the best information available it seems that Mr. Harrison was charging the tank, and Roose came in and offered to assist him, and when the necessary amount from the tube had been transferred to the tank, they tried to shut it off, but on account of the threads on the tube being bad it refused to stop. Mr. Roose then took a larger wrench and gave it a harder twist, thereby stripping the threads, which permitted the gas to flow into the already fully charged tank.

    The crowd seeing a crack appearing in the tank moved out of the way. Mr. Roose however, was making his exit out of the rear door, when the fatal explosion occured, the larger part of the tank hitting him in the back, after having struck the side of the rear door and tearing a huge hole in it. The smaller part went towards the front, striking a barrel of Coca-Cola and completely demolishing it, and also alot of medicine. The damage was estimated at $300. Mr. Roose was buried at New Home Cemetery. About 3 weeks previous to the accident, he had his life insured for $1000. He was married to Coroner Bailey's daughter a few years earlier.

    Wrightsville's various steam cotton gins have all been overhauled and ready for fall business. On Friday the 15th, Tanner & Henderson brought in the first bale of new cotton for the season. The bale was bought by E. A. Lovett for 10.5 cents, who also paid the premium of $5 for the first bale. It was ginned at the Wrightsville Gin Co. and stored in the City Warehouse.

    The Mt. Vernon Baptist Association will hold its General Meeting at Union Hill. The city of Wrightsville's 2nd quarterly report shows receipts & disbursements of $5,527.55. Mr. Will Joiner, former citizen is now in the merchantile business in Columbus. Mr. DeWitt Brinson will leave for Illinois to study horography. Mr. H. E. Price and family have moved back to their plantation home near Bartow. Mr. & Mrs. F. A. Sinquefield will move into the Blount house on Marcus Street vacated by the Price family.

    Mr. & Mrs. McWhorter Shurling announce the birth of a son on August 17th. Mr. & Mrs. E. A. Lovett announced the birth of a daughter on August 20th. Mrs. Fannie Montford has been sick at her West Court Street home and John Luther Kent, son of Judge Kent is sick at his home with fever. The two children of Mr. W. P. Norris have scarlett fever and the family has been quarentined by Dr. T. L. Harris. Mrs. W. E. Scott was carried to Rawlings Sanitarium for appendicitis but died before the surgery having waited too long to go to the doctor. She was buried at Westview.

    The biggest rattlesnake yet killed this year was by Roan Beasley, while squirrel hunting in the Ohoopie Swamp near Kite. He had 23 rattles and the usual button. When it comes to raising big watermelons, J. G. Greenway grew a fine melon which weighed 59 pounds and was 2 feet in length. It was the "gray cast" variety. There is 377 acres, in one body known as the Bales place 2.5 miles from town for sale. If you don't want to get rid of your lands, you'd better keep same out of the hands of the J. M. Mason Reality Co.