Fire, Corydon, Indiana, October 1948, Sunshine Hatchery

Description:	The offices of Sunshine Chicken Hatchery on East Walnut Street in Corydon, Indiana, is engulfed in flames during one of the most disastrous fires in the town’s history. The late night fire that took place on October 16, 1948, devoured three businesses at the corner of Walnut and Capitol Avenue, that included Donahues Restaurant, and Websters Restaurant. The fire began around 1:45 a.m. and originated from a burning pile of refuse behind the restaurants, which faced Capitol Avenue. Passersby noticed the smoke and flames and alerted the Donahue and Webster families, which lived on the second floor above their businesses. The blaze spread rapidly after a fuel oil tank burst. Numerous fire crews from throughout Harrison County and New Albany, Indiana arrived to fight the flames. Although the three businesses were a total loss, firefighters managed to prevent the fire from spreading to nearby residences and businesses in downtown Corydon. The Griffin residence stood about ten feet east of the hatchery building and the framework of the concrete house caught fire several times. Members of the family stuffed bed clothing soaked in water in the windows to keep the flames from advancing indoors. Owners of Sunshine Hatcheries, Mr. and Mrs. Joe McClaren, elected not to rebuild at this location. The Donahue family, however, erected a new building on the corner and reestablished their restaurant business.
Origin:	1948-10-16
Created By:	Wallace, Albert (1909-2002)
Source:	http://cdm17251.contentdm.oclc.org/cdm/ref/collection/p17251coll30/id/10
Collection:	Fires and Floods
Rights:	http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/CNE/1.0/
Copyright:	This image may be printed or downloaded by individuals, schools or libraries for study, research or classroom teaching without permission. For other uses contact: genealogy@hcpl.lib.in.us
Geography:	Corydon, Harrison County, Indiana
Subjects:	fires chicken hatcheries commercial buildings volunteer fire departments

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