Major General Stephen T. Johnson '72

MONMOUTH, Ill. —
Fire ripped through a college-owned theme house at 625 N. Sixth St. late Monday morning.

None of the five student residents of the "Science House" was in the building at the time.

"The house is apparently a total loss," said Don Gladfelter, vice president for finance and business. "We are currently waiting for the fire department to finish its work before we can enter the building and determine what student possessions may be salvageable.

"The important thing is that no one was home when the fire started and there were therefore no injuries," he said.

Although the investigation into the fire's origin is still in progress, Gladfelter said it appears to have started in a corner of the kitchen. It was discovered by a member of the college maintenance staff

The students displaced by the fire will likely be relocated to another college-owned house at 110 S. Eighth St.

Located at the corner of East Clinton Ave., across the street from the college's newly opened residence hall, the two-storey frame Cape Cod-style cottage was built circa 1930. It was the former home of legendary Monmouth College piano instructor Grace Gawthrop Peterson.