
Pampa Threatened By Prairie Fire
Prairie fires, swooping furiously across the plains, were a constant threat to early settlers. From late summer through the autumn months, endless miles of tall prairie grass became vast tinderboxes, dry and brown from scorching summer heat.

Eloise Lane

Eloise Lane
It took only a quick spark from an untended campfire, a passing train engine or a stroke of lightning to set the countryside ablaze. Little tongues of flame wrapped around dry grass, and sudden flames shot up when a tall dry bunch was reached. Within minutes, great clouds of heavy black smoke filled the air and skies reddened from brilliant infernos below.
In those days there were no modern fire trucks to call when prairie grass caught fire. Everyone who was able soaked feed sacks and brooms in water before trying to beat out advancing flames. Those with water wagons filled their barrels with water to take to the fires. Some made fireguards by plowing two parallel furrows and burning grass off the strip between the furrows. Often the fire would “jump” the burned strip and set fire to the grass beyond. Sometimes the wind would pick up a burning cow chip, toss it thirty feet or more and start a new fire.
Often men would kill a cow or steer, split its body open, tie ropes to its legs and drag it along the black line of fire with one man on the unburned grass and another man on the black smoking area. Between the men, the bleeding body of the animal was pulled wide open. The carcass would smother flames faster than sacks, brooms or wagon sheets.
About 1901 or 1902, a “drag” was developed by the White Deer Land Company. The “drag” was a square sheet, about 12 to 14 feet on a side, constructed out of row upon row of chain. Ropes were attached to two of the corners. One of the ropes was attached to a wagon while the other was held by a mounted cowboy. The cowpoke and the wagon traveled a parallel course down one part of the roaring fire while several persons followed behind with wet sacks and brooms to stamp out any part of the fire that remained. This was repeated over and over until the fire died out.
Sometime in 1907 a prairie fire was started north of Pampa by someone burning a haystack. The fire burned all the way to Red Deer Creek and came within 600 yards of the pioneer cottage where Katie and Wiley Vincent lived. (At that time the pioneer cottage was in the 501 block of East Browning—present parking lot of the Central Baptist Church .)
After Wiley and the Vincent boys left to help fight the fire, Katie looked around the cottage and saw things she would really hate to lose — such as 100 pound sacks of flour and sugar. She dragged the sacks and anything else the family might need to store in the dugout.
She came back to the cottage and was looking around and checking to see if she had missed anything when she noticed Wiley’s new Stetson hat — his prized possession. She was going out the door with the hat when a strong wind blew the hat from her grasp and it began to roll. Valiantly, she chased the hat and managed to rescue it from the wind and fire.
Whenever Katie related this story in later years, she laughed until tears rolled down her cheeks as she remembered how she had chased the windblown hat.
When news of the fire reached the schoolhouse (in the next block south of the pioneer cottage), the boys were eager to go to help fight the fire. However, the teacher, Clara Deen, feared that the boys might be burned or injured in firefighting and locked the door to keep the boys in the building. When Clara left the room, the boys broke a window and jumped out to join the firefighters. From the C. P. Sloan house (711 East Browning), three-year-old Ralph Sloan brought his little bucket of water to help.
The schoolhouse was soon cleared of everyone except Clara and the “big girl” (oldest), Lottie Sills (later Mrs. Alex Schneider, Jr.) Clara and Lottie thought it was a shame for the precious school books to be burned, so each of them stacked as many as she could carry and left the building. As they started through the turnstile gate, the gate swung around hitting one of them and knocking her into the other. The books were scattered all around.
Eight-year-old Laura Hobart (Mrs. Clyde Fatheree), who was always climbing things, had to be in on everything if possible. She climbed to the top of a chicken house and stationed herself to give “bulletins” on the progress of the fire. Fortunately, she was able to report that the fire was extinguished and Pampa was spared.
Over 200 Articles, written by Eloise Lane, were published in the Pampa News. These articles may be accessed by clicking on each section below. A list of articles will be revealed that are linked to a page containing the text of the article.
Closed Accordian Default Hidden
Your content goes here. Edit or remove this text inline or in the module Content settings. You can also style every aspect of this content in the module Design settings and even apply custom CSS to this text in the module Advanced settings.
Articles 1-20
- Origin Of The "White Deer" Name
- The Log House On White Deer Creek
- Obtaining The Land
- The Lands Organized
- Cattle Brands Tell Story
- Ghosts And All
- Southern Kansas Railroad
- Fire Guard Dam
- When The Railroad Came
- The Sutton RR Station
- Post Office At Pampa
- The Bell Family
- J.C. Short
- Pampa 1892-1902
- Pampa Laid Out In 1902
- Crystal Palace Founded
- Gray County Organization
- Organization - Continued
- Gray County - Lefors
- McLean - The Largest Town
Articles 21-40
- Gouge Eye
- The "Mother Road"
- German Family Reunion
- Desks From Hopkins
- Grandview School Begins
- The Oil Money
- History Wall Painted
- Boydston Or Boydstun?
- Ontario???
- Laketon - Early Farming
- Laketon - Continued
- First Couple To Marry
- Hoover
- Water Well Drilling
- Kingsmills Visit Pampa
- George Tyng Left
- Tragedy In Utah
- T.D. Hobart - Manager
- M.K. Brown Arrives
- Rider Livery Stable
Articles 41-60
- The Pioneer Cottage
- Pampa's First Doctor
- Doctor Makes House Calls
- A Red Cross Nurse
- Pampa's First School
- Hobart Went To London
- Cemetery Began In 1904
- First Business District
- C.P. Buckler Arrives
- Five Barrett Brothers
- Influence Of The Santa Fe
- Trains Still Roll
- John V. Thomass - Teacher
- Cattle-loading Center
- Rolla J. Sailor & Arrowheads
- A.H. Doucette Arrives
- Lands Are Advertised
- The Holland Hotel
- Wheat Left Pampa
- First National Bank Begins
Articles 61-80
- Pampa News Begins
- First Denominational Church
- 2nd Office Of WD Lands
- J.N. Duncan Arrives
- Nels Walberg Sells…
- Dormer Simms
- Fourth Of July Celebrations
- Pampa's First Cars
- Pampa In 1907-08
- J.S. Wynne Family Arrives
- Gray Count State Bank
- Baptist Church Organized (Under Construction)
- Joe & Lizzie Bowers
- Threatened By Prairie Fire
- Library Began In 1907
- J.R. Henry
- Sir Gordan & Lady Cunard
- Three Vicars Brothers
- Dodd Grain And Produce
- December 29, 1991
Articles 81-100
- D.C. Davis Family
- Long Christmas Celebration
- First Christian Church
- Facts About Pampa
- Buster Brown
- The Last Hanging
- Bones Hooks
- The "Red Brick" Is No More
- The Purviances Family
- The Dr. E. von Brunow Park
- Boards Of First Headquarters
- Mary Jane Purvis
- Cook - Adams Addition
- Nativity Scenes
- Clyde Carruth
- The Mine Tragedies
- Additions To Pampa
- Third Family In Pampa
- Frank Dittmeyer
- Bricklayer Indian Jim
Articles 101-120
- A.A. Tiemann
- First Movies And Lights
- Pampa Incorporated
- Mark And Sara Fletcher
- Annie Baker Daniels
- Pampa's Business District
- Birthday Tea Of 1919
- Former Pampa Minister
- John Mack Patton
- The First Brass Band
- Early Graduating Class
- "How We Met"
- F.P. Greever Is Assassinated
- George Tyng's Father
- L.H. & Lula Greene
- John & Lena McKamy
- Robert & Mary Yeager
- "Dear Old PHS"
- Supt. Believed In People
- William A. & Ruth Green
Articles 121-140
- Jason A and Alice Poole
- Wayside School
- Pampa Football Begins
- The Pampa School Building
- Rev. C. E. Lancaster
- Panhandle Lumber Co.
- Will Wilks & Mora Hughey
- An Unusual Valentine
- Charles A. Tignor
- O. A. Barrett
- Poppies In Flanders Fields
- Barnard & Williams Families
- 4th of July Celebrations
- Cuyler Street Underpass
- The King Family
- Kretmeier and Baer Families
- Stephen B. Oates
- Phebe Worley
- Organization of Gray County
- First Courthouse
Articles 141-160
- Pampa Laid Out in 1902
- Pampa in 1902
- W. R. Kaufman
- The Pampa Country Club
- Living In Pampa in 1902
- Pampa Buildings of 1902
- May Foreman Carr
- Scaffers - Early Residents
- Nita Luna
- Former Sub Debs Reminisce
- PHS In 1932
- PHS Appreciated
- The Forth Worth and Denver
- From Pampa to Childress
- The Origination Of "Taps"
- The Warners
- J. C. Studer
- Floyd, John and Otto
- Our American Flag
- Stories and Memories
Articles 161-180
- Museum in Pampa?
- The Franklin Farm
- The Franklin Family
- Beryl Wayne Vicars
- Historian Made Cookies
- The Pioneer Cottage
- The Orginial Swastika
- Library Clerk
- Women's Clothing Store
- Jon and Pat McConal
- Whitey Walker Gang
- How Rudolph Began
- Gwendolen Avenue
- Jerry Kerbow
- Two Paintings
- Second Part - Paintings
- Bones Hooks
- Original Nativity Figures
- Why "V" Instead of "U"
- Pampa Incorporated