At the four-way stop sign we have three points of interest; the northeast corner is the former site of the Lammer’s Chemical Company (The Barrel Factory) that exploded on September 30, 1969.  The primary function of the company, as explained, was to chemically and mechanically clean 55 gallon barrels for re-use.

This Super-8 video of the fire was shot by Robert Deals and is narrated by Kip Smith, a battalion chief with the Beavercreek Fire Department.

This is probably the single biggest 'Where were you when...' in Beavercreek for the current generation.  Amazingly, no deaths or significant injuries occurred during the explosion, although several firefighters were treated during the multiple day event.  There are so many stories of families bringing lawn chairs nearby to watch the fire... exploding barrels launching thousands of feet into the air... globes on street lights melting from the heat... please add yours to the 'Comment' area below.

The fire reportedly started when a young man driving a forklift had a barrel he was carrying slip between the forks.  The resulting arc ignited the barrel, causing him to jump from the forklift.  It subsequently drove into a group of uncleaned barrels which grew the blaze - ultimately resulting in massive explosions of the pressurized chemical tanks on site.

The company operated as a chemical recycling facility from 1953 until 1969. During its operation, the facility maintained above-ground storage capacity of over 500,000 gallons as well as a number of vertical tanks, several transport trucks and semitrailers, and approximately 6000 55-gallon drums. The site was located on a two-acre parcel of land, and was divided into north and south portions by Little Beaver Creek. The facility burned to the ground in September, 1969.

• Lammer's Fire Lammer's Fire
• Barrel Factory Clean-Up #1 Barrel Factory Clean-Up #1
• Barrel Factory Clean -Up #2 Barrel Factory Clean -Up #2
• Barrel Factory Clean-Up #3 Barrel Factory Clean-Up #3
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• Lammer's Mushroom Cloud Lammer's Mushroom Cloud
• The Barrel Factory - Post Fire #1 The Barrel Factory - Post Fire #1
• The Barrel Factory - Post Fire #2 The Barrel Factory - Post Fire #2
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Xenia Gazette columnist Joan Baxter wrote the following remembrance piece in 2016

The Fire At Lammer's Barrel Factory

At the corner of Patterson and Shakertown Roads in Beavercreek, many years ago there was a company which provided chemical recycling and barrel reconditioning. Although it did not manufacture barrels, most folks referred to the business as the “Barrel Factory.” It was a landmark for several years and since it was the site of one of the largest fires in the history of the county, the site though no longer used by that business is still remembered.

The Lammers Factory, often known as the Kohnen-Lammers Factory was owned by Anthony Kohnen and Paul Lammers. The business was in operation from 1953 to Oct. 7, 1969 when the fire occurred. The tower of flame which erupted from the site could be seen for several miles. The newspapers reported that people as far away as Springfield, Vandalia and West Carrollton could see the flames, and certainly, folks in Beavercreek and Xenia were able to see the fire.

News media appeared very quickly on the scene and several residents elected to drive to the scene to view the fire firsthand causing a terrible traffic jam. This made it more difficult for neighboring fire and police personnel to get to the scene to help. It was reported that cars parked in the median or on the side of the road on US Route 35 in order to observe what was happening.

The business actually was involved in the cleaning and reclamation of industrial solvents. Several types of chemicals were stored at the factory, including lacquer thinner and alcohol. Because of the nature of the business, thousands of barrels were stacked on the property, and from this comes the title barrel factory.

Apparently the fire broke out just before 6 p.m. on a loading dock where workmen were unloading drums containing solvents, then apparently spread to three nearby trailers loaded with drums and barrels.

Soon the two-story brick factory building and hundreds of barrels stored on the two and one-half acre property were enveloped in flames.

The Beavercreek Fire Department was under the direction of Chief T.E. (Bud) Crawford at the time. This was entirely a volunteer organization. There was no central water supply and no fire hydrants from which to draw water to fight the fire, so that when the water in the tanker trucks ran out, the trucks had to be taken away to be refilled. This was a time-consuming chore whichallowed the fire to spread even more.

There was another problem with the tanker trucks. Not all the hose connections were the same size so that if a pumper truck ran out of water and another took its place the hose might not fit.

The black smoke rose into the sky. According to a report in the Xenia Daily Gazette, Taylor Holland of Beavercreek saw the smoke column as he was driving away from Wilmington about 8:30 p.m. He said, “It was a very black sheet of smoke. As I got closer to Xenia, I could see the flames billowing into the sky. I guessed right that the barrel factory was burning.”

The flames continued to rise through the early hours of the evening. More than a dozen fire departments, perhaps as many as 20 from neighboring communities rallied to help0. The flames were so hot the firemen could not get close. Barrels exploded all evening long, some hurtling high in the air before landing back on the ground.

Beavercreek fireman Lt. Larry Vogel was injured when a drum exploded and engulfed him in flames. Fortunately the fire gear he was wearing kept him from more serious injury. Lt. Howard Geradine and Majusick of Mad River Township each received leg injuries. Fortunately there were no more serious injuries.

The fire began to come under control after about five hours when Dayton and Wright-Patterson fire trucks spread foam. Since there was no real way to fight the factory fire, water was sprayed on neighboring businesses which included three service stations and an animal hospital in the attempt to protect them from the flames.

Chief Crawford said, “Drums were flying all around. Men would hear an explosion and run, looking up in the air to see what was coming down on top of them.”

Finally the fire was out, and only the charred remains were left. Nearby service stations had plate glass windows cracked, and paint on the buildings was blistered. Street lights nearby melted on their poles from the heat and gasoline tank hoses were burned. At the Apple Valley Animal Hospital, a sign on the front caught on fire; heat charred the front door and broke the plate glass window. Even the draperies were scorched from the heat. Fortunately, the staff was able to move the animals to the back of the building away from danger. Power lines and telephone lines were burned through. Grass and shrubbery was scorched for hundreds of feet around the area.

The next morning the chemical smell was strong in the area. Thousands of blackened barrels littered the ground. In the center of what was left of the factory two giant tanks remained. Three burned out tanker trucks were amidst the rubble and the fire still smoldered.

The company had suffered a previous loss in November 1963 from a considerably smaller fire with damages estimated to be about $10,000. The estimates for the 1969 fire ranged from $400,000 to $500,000.

Joan Baxter is a local resident and a long-time historical columnist.

Continue through the four-way stop at Shakertown Road.  The land around you has been owned by the Miami Valley Research Foundation for decades in the hopes of growing the Research Park area near the Bergamo Center.  Recently, the large tracts have gone up for sale with the Bethel Christian Assembly of God buying the first at the northeast corner of the intersection.  This area will change tremendously over the next decade for certain.

At the base of the hill on the west stands a residence at 945 Grange Hall Road that has had many additions over the years.  The central building, visible by the chimneys found at either end, was the original Brown School #1.  On the opposite side of the road and block further north at 1024 Grange Hall Road is the second, larger Brown School #2 – also now converted to a residence.

• Brown School #2 Now Brown School #2 Now
• Brown School #1 Brown School #1
• Brown School #2 Brown School #2
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Up the hill and down the sweeping right curve leads you through farms owned by the Custenborder family as well as additional Hawker land including the Hawker-Graham House at 581 Grange Hall Road.  John Martin Hawker, Civil War veteran and grandson of Andrew Hawker, built this home in 1894 on the limestone foundation of his father, Frederick’s home which had been destroyed by fire.  John had lived in a small home at the southwest corner of Shakertown and Grange Hall Roads.  The house, barn and outbuildings are part of what was a 163 acre farm that was part of the original 3,000 acres purchased in 1803 by Jacob Coy, father-in-law of Andrew Hawker.  The original 1894 house interior remains, including the modest ballroom on the third floor.

A beautiful farmhouse at the southeast corner of Shakertown and Grange Hall Roads first appears on an 1896 map of Beavercreek and was likely a member of Valentine P. Coy’s family.

Head north on Grange Hall Road and note the beautiful brick homestead of the John Archer family on the west side of the road, originally built by a member of the Darst family in 1841.  The east end of the wooded lot across the road was one of two stone quarries operated by the family.  Quarries then were either a hand-dug gravel pit or an open creek bed where limestone slabs were extracted for the construction of foundations and cellars.

In the image above, the quarries are the crescent-shaped hash marks.

• Mr. and Mrs. John Archer Mr. and Mrs. John Archer
• Darst-Osborne House Marker Darst-Osborne House Marker
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Tragedy struck this very spot on November 2, 1959 when an F-104 Starfighter lost power and crashed into the former schoolhouse that had become the residence of Grace Shoup and her family.  Grace, who ran from the home with her clothing afire, later died from her injuries.  Daughters Lynn and Lora were killed in the crash.  Ten year old Billy and eight year old Tommy Shoup were at school and learned of the devastation to their family as news spread through the community.

Tom Shoup graduated from BHS in 1969, his father owned Shoup Sporting Goods in the Knollwood area.  A recollection has been shared of the tail section of the plane sitting in the middle of the burned wreckage that used to be the home.

• The Journal Herald Article #1 The Journal Herald Article #1
• The Journal Herald Article #2 The Journal Herald Article #2
• Tragedy Tragedy
• Grace Shoup Grace Shoup
• F-104 Starfighter Stock Image F-104 Starfighter Stock Image
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Editted Text of the November 3, 1959 Journal Herald article:

'A jet Starfighter crashed broadside into a house near here today and buried itself in the ruins.  Two young sisters were killed.  The pilot ejected to safety.  The mother of the girls, Mrs Grace Shoup 37, ran from the house her clothing in flames after the supersonic craft crushed the house and exploded.  She is in critical condition.  The sisters were Lynn Shoup 12 and Laura 2.  Their brothers, Billy 10 and Tommy 8, were in school.  Lynn a was to have reported for her half-day session of school at noon. Their father was at work.

Wallace McCormick 27, was driving past the house when the plane hit.  Flames from the blast shot clear across the road more than 50 feet away and enveloped my car, he told newsmen.  The fire was all over the car could feel the heat.  I lost control and hit the ditch about 50 yards down the road.  When I got a look at the house it was a complete wreck and Mrs Shoup was running cross the yard with her clothing afire.  McCormick was uninjured.  Shaken neighbors beat out the flames and hustled the screaming woman to a hospital.  The pilot, Maj James W Bradbury 34, ejected at low altitude when his craft lost power on takeoff.  The house, a converted brick school building, is located about eight miles south of Air Force Base where Major Bradbury is based.  Major Bradbury is one of the few men to survive ejection from a Starfighter one Air Force source said.

The Cherry Hill nursery once stood where the Cherry Hill shopping center now stands.  Ahead on the left was Riffle’s Carry Out, a neighborhood grocer, sandwich shop and center of political debate operated by the Reid and subsequently the Hamlin families.

As you approach the intersection of Grange Hall Road, this loose-knit area was known as Concord.  The northwest, pie-shaped portion of the intersection was the location of the Concord Meeting House, a church as well as Concord School #1.

The Greene Town Center on the south side of Indian Ripple Road Was once a large orchard owned for generations by the Spigler family.  The mall was completed in the mid-2000’s.  On the north side is the Crestview Nursing Home, which was damaged by a tornado in 1963.  Several orchards lined Indian Ripple Road as you head east on lands that were farmed by the Prugh and Benham families, both now closely associated with Kettering.

In the image above, The Greene would be located just north of P. Baker's home.  Indian Ripple Road was not yet cleared, but will later connect with Grange Hall Road at the upper right of the image.

• Beavercreek Tornado at Crestview Nursing Home Beavercreek Tornado at Crestview Nursing Home
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Continue south on County Line Road to the intersection of Indian Ripple Road.  Large landowners in the area during the 1870’s were the Stutsman, Real and Darst families.

A quick little aside, near the intersection of Woodman Drive and Dorothy Lane to the west of here once stood a town named Beavertown.  The Beavertown Cemetery off of Valleywood Drive is the final resting place of many early Beavercreek Township settlers.  Beavertown was likely the closest town for many in the southwestern part of Beavercreek Township as well as those in southeastern Van Buren Township (Kettering).  If you enjoy searching for old headstones, add the Beavertown cemetery to your list.

Soon you’ll approach one of the large tracts of another respected dairy farm; a  HUGE 495 acre operation owned by John Moler.  You’ll find his beautiful 1856 Federal style mansion at 2544 County Line Road.  Mr. Moler’s children expanded the dairy operation into Montgomery County, eventually opening Moler’s Dairy, a popular ice cream and dairy store that survived into the 1970’s!

• Moler Dairy Milk Bottle Moler Dairy Milk Bottle
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Formerly at the southeast corner of the intersection at Shakertown Road was the Belmont Auto Theatre.  Whether with a butter-saturated paper grocery sack full of delicious, coconut oil popped popcorn or a cooler full of Little Kings, going to the Belmont Auto Theatre was always a memorable night!  Often it'd be so hot you'd stick to the vinyl, rear-facing seat of the LTD wagon.  Make the trip past the ticket gate in the trunk or huddled up on the floor board became a sport of its own!  The Belmont Auto Theatre operated until 1997 and was demolished in 1998.

• Belmont Auto Theatre Belmont Auto Theatre
• Early Sign On Back Of Screen Early Sign On Back Of Screen
• Belmont Drive-In Ad Belmont Drive-In Ad
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Thanks to our friends at Dayton History Books:

Belmont Auto Theatre

Maxwell A. Milbauer and his wife, Emma, enjoyed entertaining children in the Belmont area by showing 16 mm movies on a large sheet that hung in their back yard. On one particular evening Elvin Doll, and his wife Edith, came over to watch a movie. Max and Elvin, who worked together at the Hyland Machine Company, had talked a few times before about beginning a business of their own, but hadn’t really thought of any venture that suited them yet. Edith remarked that perhaps they should open an outdoor theater where people could watch a movie in the comfort of their car. The two men agreed that this was a good idea and brought in another co-worker, Joe Flory.

“But when they built the Belmont Auto they got into trouble quickly, declares Elvin and Edith Doll’s son, Alan, who was general manager of B.A.C. Theatres from 1966 to 1979. “Miller Brothers (Excavating) was out there building for them and they just practically got into a monsoon. They had a terrible time trying to build that place. They about went out of business before they even got started because the weather wasn’t on their side. The weather was really bad, they got stuck in the mud, literally, and they had to bring in another partner, which was Al Foor. And they were trying to make a go of it and they just couldn’t do it and ran out of money. They’ve got Miller out there with that big equipment. So they brought in Kenny Curp. Next thing you know they still didn’t have enough so they brought in Bill Swaney.” This was the beginning of the Belmont Amusement Company, later to be known as B.A.C. Theatres.

“We built the business on a shoestring, and did a lot of the work ourselves,” laughs Joe Flory. This included mixing the concrete for the bases of the speaker posts, as well as pouring and finishing the floor of the concession stand.

Finally, as the theater neared completion, August 6, 1947 was chosen for the grand opening date.

“We even sent out invitations,” says Flory. “Unfortunately, up came a big storm. Dayton Power and Light didn’t have the electricity hooked up yet, we were running that close to getting open. They came out and it was lightning and thundering. They didn’t want to go up the pole and I didn’t blame them so we had to cancel the opening night.”

The Belmont Auto Theater finally opened at 2060 County Line Road in Dayton, on August 7, 1947. The Belmont would become the first drive-in in the area to introduce stereophonic sound, car heaters, 3-D movies and CinemaScope, and one of the few one-screen theaters to offer two concession stands. One sat in the middle row and another was placed in the back.

In 1954 the Belmont added new sections to its original screen to make a CinemaScope screen 96’ wide and 65’ high. It was the second largest in the country at the time, surpassed only by Sherwood Twin’s new 100’ x 65’ screen. Belmont’s projection screen was nearly three times as wide as the CinemaScope screens in downtown Dayton’s indoor theaters, which averaged thirty-five to forty feet across.
To celebrate the new screen the owners booked a new 3-D Rita Hayworth movie entitled ‘Miss Sadie Thompson’, “which, to say the least, should bring out all the young lady’s advertised dimensions”, noted Journal Herald’s film critic A. S. Kany.

Since the 3-D process needed two projectors to run at the same time, an intermission was usually needed during the film so that the projectors could be reloaded to show the second part of the movie. According to Alan Doll, Max wanted to be able to show a 3-D movie without any interruptions.

“Max was a fellow who wanted do to everything and do it right. So Belmont because the first drive-in to be able to do a 3-D change over without intermission. They had four projectors rather than just two.”

At first Twentieth Century Fox, which controlled the new CinemaScope process, refused to release C-Scope films to any drive-in that did not have a stereo sound system. Such a setup was an expensive investment, since it would entail a two box speaker system that allowed a patron to have a speaker for each side of the car. Seeing how well the CinemaScope films were being received in downtown theaters, the Belmont purchased stereophonic sound equipment.

“In order to have stereo you couldn’t just have two speakers per car,” says Alan. “That really didn’t give you stereo. You had to have special equipment inside the concession stand, there in the projection booth. They had all that. It was true stereo. They were the only drive-in I know east of the Mississippi that had stereo.”

The first movie to be shown was CinemaScope’s ‘Beneath the 12-Mile Reef’ on May 23, 1954. Unfortunately, Twentieth Century Fox soon changed its mind and began allowing drive-ins without stereo systems to show C-Scope movies and Belmont’s monopoly of this type of movie came to an end.

The Belmont eventually became a year-round drive-in. It was the first in the area to offer car heaters for use in the winter.

“When you entered the Belmont Auto you went to the box office. But, also, as you went through, there was a garage to the left. That’s where they gave out the heaters,” Alan Doll recalls. “Then as you exited the theater you had an office where you dropped off the heaters. And then during the day the maintenance man would move them all back to the other building. In the heyday of the Belmont there would be snow out the kazoo and that place would be packed. I remember as a kid handing those things out. It was exciting.”

In 1977 the Belmont brought back stereo sound with the showing of “The man Who Fell to Earth” and “Zardog”. The stereo system had not been used for a number of years, but after investing $30,000 to rebuild the system it was good as new. At the time it was reported as being the only known drive-in to still have stereophonic sound.

The last few years the stereo speakers were replaced with newer technology. Patrons tuned in their car radios to an AM frequency to listen to the movie. The car heaters were also gone, being too expensive to maintain.

In 1983 the Miami Valley Research Park bought the land from B.A.C. Theatres as part of a future plan to build a 1250 acre research park. The drive-in was operated for them by the Chakeres Theaters throughout he 1997 season.

Unfortunately, as is happening more and more, the land became too valuable to keep as a drive-in. In the spring of 1998, even as I was finishing the final draft of the first edition of this book, the Belmont was being torn down. Many will miss it.

Sidebar comments in book about the Belmont:

The original screen tower burnt down in 1948. “We had our office under the tower,” says Joe Flory, who arrived at the scene dressed only in his trousers. “I had a key to the door in my hand and was started toward the office door when the whole front of the screen tower blew off. I remembered that while we were building it a piece of the cement board got away from us and fell down, hitting a 2x4 and almost cutting it in two. That was in my mind as the boards started popping off the front of the screen. I just turned and got out of there.”

The Belmont Auto could be a very busy place, according to Joe Flory. “Once we showed ‘The Greatest Show on Earth’. Before the movie ever started, we were filled up. Traffic was backed up from the theater all the way down Patterson Road. All we could do was wave them on past.” Although speakers were available along the side fences, there were times when patrons waiting to see the second show had to park in a nearby field until the first movie was over.

This sign above the ticket booth was left from the days when electric car heaters were offered to patrons of the Belmont theater. The heaters allowed the Belmont to be open year round. Unfortunately, they were expensive to run and maintain, so theaters did away with them. Gone were the days of cuddling together on a December night while watching a romantic movie under the stars.

The Belmont Auto eventually expanded to thirteen rows. The theater had two concession stands, something rarely done at a drive-in with only one screen. In the 1950’s a large box was attached to a three-wheeled Cushman motor scooter, which was used to deliver sandwiches, popcorn and other items on the menu to patrons in their cars. Popcorn was a favorite item, says Zelma Flory. “We used to stick free passes to the theater in the popcorn boxes every so often as we filled them. One season we put three tons of raw popcorn through the popper.”

In 1977, a 30th anniversary celebration of the theater was held. Maxwell Milbauer, who had passed away, was honored by Alan Doll. A sculptured bust of Max was unveiled, the memorial reading ‘A leader in showmanship whose insight made this theatre possible.’ A drawing for a stereo set (to remind everyone that the Belmont had been the first theater to offer stereo), and a fireworks display were next, followed by a special triple feature of ‘Freaky Friday’, ‘Gus’, and ‘Bite the Bullet’. “Max was big on Walt Disney and westerns. He didn’t appreciate X-type movies,” stated Alan during the celebration, a policy that he followed as well during his thirteen year tenure.

Belmont Auto Theatre’s first newspaper ad invited the public to watch ‘Three Little Girls in Blue’. A map to the drive-in was important since the Belmont was not located on a main thoroughfare.