Ovid Dance Hall Fire
Montpelier Examiner, Friday, 21 June 1918, page 1
OLSON BROTHERS HALL
About two am last Sunday morning, Olson Bros. dance hall at Ovid
was discovered in flames and the building was practically burned to the ground
before any fire fighters arrived. There had been a dance in the hall the evening
before, the building being vacated about midnight.
While the cause of the fire is unknown, the general supposition is that it started from a cigarette which had carelessly thrown on the floor in some part of the building. The building was erected six years ago and was the first modern dance hall erected in the country, outside of Montpelier. Many pleasure seekers all over the valley regret that it has been destroyed.
Another building will not be erected at present and probably not until after the war is ended. The loss is estimated at over $5000, which is partially offset by $2500 insurance.