In Janesville, Wisconsin, the city's centerpiece Hyatt House building is destroyed by fire.

The ten years old, five story Hyatt House Hotel was the most impressive building in the center of Janesville, Wisconsin until an early morning fire broke out in the kitchens.  The rapid spread of the fire caused an immediate alarms and, remarkably, most guests were able to escape.  On young woman, a hotel employee named Margaret Emerson, however, was trapped on the top floor of the building and died in the flames.  The destruction of the hotel was complete and immediate complaints were raised in the city as to the ineffectiveness of the local fire department.  (By John Osborne)