1950: Holy Trinity Catholic Church destroyed by fire

Nov. 30, 1950

HARTINGTON - A fire which is thought to have been started by defective wiring, swept through Holy Trinity Catholic church here early Friday morning completely destroying the building and all the contents. Church records, however, were in the safe at the rectory, and were not destroyed as had been reported.

The fire was discovered shortly after 4 a.m. and Mrs. Vernon Sudbeck turned in the alarm which sounded the first time at about 4:20 a.m. When discovered the fire had already broken through the roof, and by the time firemen arrived on the scene it was impossible to do anything towards saving the building or contents.

Driven by a strong northwest wind the fire traveled through the entire building very rapidly and within an hour after the fire was discovered the building was reduced to a mass of burning wreckage. The steeple of the church collapsed about 30 minutes after the alarm sounded. A second alarm was sounded about 10 minutes after the first alarm.

The temperature was hovering near the zero mark Friday morning and made the task of preventing the fire’s spread even more difficult. Frozen fire hydrants also hampered the fire fighters.

Wind Carries Sparks

The strong north wind carried sparks and burning embers from the fire for more than a mile. A small fire was started in a corn field about a mile south of town. Fortunately there were no other buildings close by in the direction of the wind, or the fire might have spread and done even more damage. The rectory north of the church and the school across the street east both escaped damage.

Louis Burbach, church custodian, was in the building at about 1:30 a.m., and at that time everything was okay. Mrs. Sudbeck, who later turned in the fire alarm, was up at 3 o’clock and at that time she did not notice anything to indicate the fire had started at that time.

The fire made a most awe-inspiring spectacle, and the glow from the flames could be seen all over town and for some miles around. In spite of the early hour and the bitter cold, some 200 people were attracted to the scene.