On Tuesday, June 9, 1908, sparks from a chimney started a fire that totally destroyed the bottling plant of the Maribel Mineral Springs Company in the town of Cooperstown, about 2 miles east of the village of Maribel in northwest Manitowoc County.
According to the Manitowoc Daily Herald, the fire was discovered by Michael Bartelme, an employee of the company, at 9:30 in the morning. Despite the efforts of a bucket brigade, the fire spread quickly and destroyed the two-story frame 50-foot-by-80-foot building, machinery and a large stock of mineral water, resulting in a total loss of $5,000, of which $1,500 was insured.
Other buildings on the property, including the Maribel Caves Hotel, were undamaged. The three-story rustic-style hotel, reminiscent of an old castle, was built in 1900 to accommodate people who came to see the nearby Cooperstown Caves, located along a picturesque ledge of the Niagara Escarpment on the west side of the West Twin River (now Manitowoc County Cherney Maribel Caves Park)…