95 Years Ago
On this date in 1930, the Golden Fire Department successfully battled a fire at the Gow house on 12th Street. The cause of the fire was unknown, but it started in the attic. Fire Warden Crawford was nearly overcome by the smoke in the attic and second floor. He speculated that recent heavy rains kept the roof from catching fire.
Mrs. Pansy Parshall Hook had grown up in the house and was its new owner, since her mother’s death in June. She attempted to rescue her mother’s jewelry from the rear upstairs room. Firefighter William Webster stopped her, promising to get the jewelry for her. He crawled through the room, keeping his face close to the floor, and emerged “almost overcome with smoke but with Mrs. Hook’s prized possessions.”
The firefighters managed minimize damage to the home by using chemical fire suppressants rather than water. The estimated cost to repair the damage was $300.
The Gow House is now Pansy’s Parlor Bed & Breakfast (named after the aforementioned Pansy Parshall Hook). The “rear upstairs room” is now named “the Schoolmarm’s Room.”
