Originally published in The Vidette-Messenger of Porter County on October 7, 1950.
FIRE LEVELS 6 FARM BUILDINGS
Call 4 Crews To Blaze In Portage Twp.
Property Owned By George Lute; Crowd Attracted
A spectacular fire destroyed six farm buildings late Friday afternoon at the George Lute farm in Portage Township, occupied by his son, Howard Lute, and his family.
A large barn, about 90 by 50 feet, was the source of the fire and that building was the major loss.
Four fire departments answered the call to the blaze which broke out in the hay mow about 4:40 p.m. and the last unit left the scene about 10 p.m.
The fire, which consumed the barn, milk house, implement shed, garage, an older implement shed and corn crib, could be seen for miles around and attracted hundreds of cars which lined the road for nearly a mile. Residents in Crocker, about five miles away, reported seeing the flames.
The 267-acres farm is located on the first east-west road north of U.S. 6 in Portage Township, near the south end of the Willow Creek Road.
Spontaneous Combustion
Spontaneous combustion in the hay mow was believed to be the only possible cause for the fire, according to Mrs. George Lute, who said that hay and straw had been stored in the barn for only a month.
A south wind contributed greatly to the loss in property as the fire spread rapidly north from the barn, consuming the other buildings and much machinery as the flames progressed.
The large farm house, occupied by Mr. and Mrs. Howard Lute and their two children, was saved although neighbors, whose efforts were although neighbors, whose efforts were praised by Mrs. George Lute, had cleared the house of all its furnishings, even tearing the cupboards from the kitchen walls. Also saved was a new corn crib.
Improvements costing $4,000 were affected on the barn, which was built in 1913, last summer. The building, which had facilities to house 39 head of cattle, had no cattle in it when the fire broke out. But had the blaze started 10 minutes later, the cattle might have perished in the conflagration since it was almost time for the evening milking when the fire started, Mrs. Lute said.
Milkhouse Destroyed
The milkhouse, which was joined to the barn, contained a milk cooler, cans and tanks used in washing milk implements which were destroyed.
The implement shed loss included a corn shredder, corn sheller and corn picker and numerous smaller articles.
A car was driven out of the garage before flames engulfed that building. The corn crib loss included the building. The corn crib loss included the building and a brooder and fanning mill. An old implement shed, formerly used as a granary, also contained several farm implements which were destroyed.
Damage to the silo attached to the barn was confined mainly to the doors, Mrs. Lute said.
The East Gary Fire Department, first to arrive at the scene, was assisted by units at the scene, was assisted by units from Chesterton, Valparaiso, and Hobart. They concentrated mainly on saving the farm house and also were instrumental in saving some machinery from the smaller buildings.