Explosion Of A Stove
This family at Chippewa Falls have a surprising experience at early morning.
– Eau Claire Weekly Telegram | Jan. 30, 1902

Chippewa Falls- At Chippewa Falls yesterday a large range in the kitchen of Frank Ihle’s home on Elm street exploded at 6 o’clock in the morning from some mysterious cause and resulted in damaging the home and contents to the extent of $250. About 5 o’clock Mr. Ihle arose and built the fire in the kitchen stove after which he returned to bed. Some time later, presumably about 6 o’clock he was startled by a terrific explosion which shook the house and was followed immediately by a clatter of pans and kettles which made the house a veritable pandemonium.

Hastening to the kitchen Mr. Ihle was confronted with a scene of confusion and wreckage that was appalling. The stove had been completely demolished, the upper portion of it being blown into the ceiling by the force of the blast. Parts of the stove and cooking utensils were scattered about the room which was on fire in a half dozen places. Cause of explosion unknown.

Chad’s Take: Bombing in Chippewa Falls!

Chippewa Falls is often overshadowed by the bizarre stories coming out of Eau Claire, but the smaller neighbor city is home to its fair share of weirdness as well. This is just a great little story of a mysterious bombing in Chippewa Falls. Ok fine, it wasn’t really a bombing, but bombing headlines grab the attention of readers, plus the cause of the stove explosion was never found so it certainly could have been a bombing. Of course using this reasoning means that it could have been blown up by a dragon too, but that is beside the point. What I really enjoy about this article is something that is not even mentioned anywhere in the text, and that is feeling that I got that Mr. Ihle’s family simply would deal with the problem and move on. I know that it is all too easy to believe that people of yesteryear were stronger and more self sufficient than we are today (a belief that I have often dispelled in several books) but for some reason after reading this article I really believe it to be true for this case. First of all during the January cold Mr. Ihle had to wake up at 5 am to try and get a fire going in order to heat the house, as he did not simply enjoy the heat from the turn of a thermostat. The hot stove would have also been a necessity for cooking breakfast, warming the water to wash and clean up with.

Here is what I think happened after Mr. Ihle discovered the dragon’s terrific work. Word of the explosion would have quickly spread causing Mr. Ihle to spend the morning showing the damage to curious neighbors and worried friends. He then would most likely have set about in fixing the damage in the kitchen and acquiring a new stove either from the store or by borrowing one. By the end of the day Mr. Ihle would have heat roaring out of his new stove and his family would have a crazy story to entertain people like me with.

Keep an eye out ...