The Atcherson house, one of the oldest hostelries in this section of the state, and a landmark of the village, was totally destroyed by fire last Friday night, about 8 o'clock. The building was a frame structure, and the fire caught from a defective chimney in the dining room. Owing to the intense cold, and a lack of an adequate supply of water, it was seen from the first that the building was doomed, and all the guests in the house as well as others turned their efforts toward saving the furnishings. Most of the furnishings on the first floor were saved, but the furnishings of the bedrooms were lost, except those in the room, occupied by Dist. Atty. Gilman, and owned by him, which were saved. The hotel was the property of Mrs. H. E. Fuller of Easton, and was occupied at the time of the fire by Mr. and Mrs. F. H. Burkhart who had been in possession since last summer. Mrs. Fuller owned some of the furnishings burned and Mr. Burkhart the remainder. There was an insurance of $1,000 on the building but none on the contents. The hotel was founded in 1857 or 58, by the late Wm. Wright, and was conducted by him, until his death in 1882, after which it was conducted by W. R. Atcherson until 1902, when he sold the property to W. R. Greenwood, who after conducting it a year or so, sold it to Mrs. Fuller, who ran it a few years, and has since rented it to various parties. Under the Wright - Atcherson regime the house gained a most enviable reputation, and for years the Atcherson House was famed as one of the finest country hotels in Wisconsin. The loss of the hotel is most keenly felt at the present time; as that, as well as the Friendship House have been taxed to their full capacity for several months. Landlord Thompson is doing his best to supply sleeping quarters for the traveling public, still many have to secure accomodations at private dwellings. We are informed that no effort will be made by Mrs. Fuller to replace the burned building. A. F. Hill, who has been a constant boarder at the hotel for the last eight or ten years, lost the furnishings in his room, as well as much of his wardrobe. Mr. Burkhart is undecided at the present time as to what he will do, but efforts are being made to get him to engage again in the hotel business in the village.
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