This would have made national news today
These two photos are among the most frightening old photos ever posted on the Icon - for that matter, ever photographed near Bluffton.
Here's what we know about these photos. They show three burning oil tanks that were struck by lightning somewhere near Bluffton. Each tank contained 35,000 barrels of oil.
The photos are in post card format taken by Sidney Hauenstein.
In 1900 rural Bluffton boasted over 500 oil wells. However, we do not know where these oil tanks were located and we do not know the year of the photos, except that they must be somewhere between 1895 and 1905. All we know is that the fire was "near" Bluffton.
"The Town at the Fork of the Rileys" lists major fires in Bluffton and these tanks are not list among those fires.
Stories Posted This Week
Friday, August 28, 2026
Thursday, August 27, 2026
- One seriously injured in Union Township crash
- President Sider introduces Reinvest, Reinvent, Reimagine framework in State of the University
- Bluffton girls tennis loss vs. Wapakoneta
- Pirate volleyball sweeps Rockets
- EMS Chief Noah Babcock is Sept. 1 Bluffton Lions speaker
- Mercy Mercy Me (The Ecology): Air pollution and rheumatoid arthritis
Wednesday, August 26, 2026
- Aug. 24 Bluffton Council recap: MHCO duplexes and long range Village planning
- Beaverdam installs AED at village park
- Pirate girls tennis edges St. Mary
- Pirate boys soccer tames Bearcats
- WIP Wednesday: Window on your world
- OPEN POLL: What do farmers wish non-farmers knew?
- 2026 PorchFest preview: LeBlanc Zepplin, CAWZ, Marlena Rock
Tuesday, August 25, 2026
- Headlines on the Ada Icon, August 22- 25
- Sue Corle worked for Ohio Northern University
- Pandora's Niese Ag LLC wins 2026 Red Gold Stewardship award
- Goshen College innovation leader to explore AI through a liberal arts lens
- Pirate volleyball loses to Shawnee
- Pirate boys golf sweeps NWC tri
- Figurines and household items recontextualized in "Amusings" exhibit
- Bruce Chesser: A Ceramic Retrospective, Aug. 24-Sept 26
- Bluffton Lions reach 80% of All Abilities Playground fundraising goal