History of Fires in Athens

 

The history of fires in Athens is extensive. With the current happenings on the

rooftop of the RTV building that is still being investigated as arson, it is clear that

fires have traced there way through the history of Athens. Here is your chance to go

back through time and visit a few other fires that have carved a space in the history

of a town many of us call home.

 

The first fire we are visiting occurred in February of 1912 when the Cline Building

caught fire despite an outside temperature of 8 degrees below zero. At the time, the

building housed a drug store with Athens’ first high class soda fountain, a dance hall

known as the Athenian Club and even a factory in the back that made Cline’s famous

ice cream. Despite the cold, the fire destroyed the entire inside of the building but

was contained and did not spread to any neighboring buildings. Once the blaze

idled, all that remained was the outer walls, which were covered in ice. The inside

was rebuilt and remained in business until 1964.

 

Sixteen years later the Berry Hotel, owned by Edward Cornelius Berry, caught fire.

The hotel, known as one of the first to have Bibles placed in its rooms, survived the

fire and stayed in business until 1923. It later was transformed into Berry Hall, a

dormitory that housed students until it was demolished in 1974. Court Street Diner

currently resides in its place.

 

The final fire we will visit from the 1900’s took place in 1984 when a fire destroyed

the entire block of South Court Street including the Moore-Russell Building and the

Phoenix. All that was left was badly damaged walls, but both buildings were rebuilt

and became businesses that house apartments up top.

 

More expansive in our recollection are the fires of the 21 st century, starting with

the 2010 Halloween block party. On the night of festivities as sparks lit in the eyes

of many students at Ohio University, a different kind of spark ignited in the Athena

Movie Theatre. It turns out this wasn’t the only fire the theatre had experienced. In

fact, a much more devastating fire did significant damage to the building in 1988

when the popcorn machine caught fire. The building has been well restored and

continues to show fun unique films.

 

The final, and debatably most devastating fire we will visit is the one that occurred

during the 2012 Palmer Fest. Recent Palmer Festivals, which have seen their fair

share of couches and chairs ablaze, were somewhat notorious for fires. The 2012

fest took that to a higher level when a cigarette was thrown in the basement of a

house causing it to ignite. Nobody was injured but police, uniformed in riot gear,

quickly moved to clear the streets, subjecting anyone who remained outside to be

arrested.

 

We now know what fires have contributed to the history of this college town but

what will the fires that spark destruction in our present lives relay to the future

residents of Athens Ohio?