Destructive Fire: A fire broke out at Exeter on Saturday night, about ten o’clock, on the premises of Mr. Strong, general carrier, of the Commercial road. The Sun fire-engine, under the management of Mr. Tucker, soon arrived and commenced operations, and did valuable service. It was followed by the Norwich engine, and the West of England engine, which, however, did not play. The premises, which were the property of Mr. Strong, were totally destroyed. They were let out in tenements, one to Mr. Ridge, and more property was destroyed by water and hasty removal than by fire. The other portion was in the occupation of Mr. Pinsent, a wheelwright, whose workshops were burnt to the ground. Mr. Bodley’s foundry, which is adjacent, was in imminent danger, but owing to the exertions of Mr. Bodley and his men, only a little damage was done to his smithy, boiler house, and plate foundry. He is insured in the West of England office. At the commencement of the fire, Mr. Strong had in his stables 16 horses, which were all rescued. A quantity of oats, barley, straw, hay, and harness, Mr. Strong’s property, were consumed: Mr. Superintendent Steel, and Inspectors Lake and Preston, with an efficient staff of police, rendered valuable assistance. Being Saturday night, the crowd was larger than usual. The estimated loss is from six to seven hundred pounds, which will fall chiefly on the Royal Insurance Company. The origin of the fire is unknown.
Transcribed in whole or part from scanned originals: Presented with or without modified text and punctuation. For absolute accuracy refer to the original newspapers. Source: The British Newspaper Archive.
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