Schoharie High School Is Totally Gutted by Fire Early This Morning

THE REPLACEMENT LOSS ESTIMATED AT $100,000

Building With Entire Contents Is A Complete Loss–Insurance Held To Amount Of $40,000 – School Was Built In 1904 And Village Had Just Completed Payment On Bonds For It.–Cause Of Blaze Undetermined — Firemen Hopeless To Save Anything–Plan To Use Community Hall And Church For Students.

Fire of undetermined origin early this morning totally destroyed the high school building at Schoharie causing a loss estimated at $100,000. The blaze, which was discovered about three o’clock in the morning. was beyond control and the firemen were unable to save anything, the entire contents going up in flames which gutted the building completely.

All that remained of the building this morning when the school children were at the scene with their schoolbooks under their arms, were the brick walls and chimneys. Insurance to the amount of $40,000 was held by the village.

Sixty tons of anthracite coal in the building were also consumed in the conflagration.

Village officials were unable to determine the cause, some believing it the result of a chimney fire, others placing the responsibility on defective wiring causing a short circuit, while stilt others held that it might have resulted from a discarded cigarette or pipe as the last persons in the building Wednesday night were members of the school basketball squad who held their regular practice in the building.

The building was of brick, three stories high with a large auditorium and was fairly modern having been constructed in 1904. The loss to the village of Schoharie is extremely heavy as the taxpayers had completed only recently the payment of the last outstanding bonds for the building.

With the building went all the equipment and the valuable school records. Members of the Schoharie Board of Education were in conference with officials of the State Education Department today to make arrangements for the continuing of the school somehow. It is planned to hold classes as soon as possible in the community house and the community church house.

Nearly three hundred students, comprising both of the elementary and the high school departments were attending this school this year. It is estimated that the loss, when figured on the basis of the replacement of the building and equipment at the present cost of construction and material, will reach at least $100,000.

A dance was to have been held in the school Friday evening of this week. The orchestra is now arranging for a benefit dance in the community hall tomorrow evening to raise funds to replace the school books lost by the children. The use of the hall has been provided free and the orchestra is donating its services also.

Source: NYS Historic Newspapers