A fire heavily damaged a historic lumberyard in Clinton on Saturday, adding to a string of unfortunate events for the small western Minnesota town.
Lumberyard fire is yet another blow for a small Minnesota town
Clinton, on the state’s western edge, also faces the closure of its elementary school, lost its grain elevator to a blaze, and lost the town cafe in a windstorm.
The Minnesota Star Tribune
February 27, 2025 at 5:29PM
The blaze, reported around 11:40 a.m., sent plumes of smoke billowing from the lumberyard, and by noon flames were shooting out 20 feet horizontally from the structure, city Fire Chief Jake Lillehaug said.
No injuries were reported, but the fire dredged up painful memories for Clinton residents, who witnessed the destruction of the town’s grain elevator in a 2021 fire. That blaze required the assistance of over 100 firefighters.
The town of about 300 residents also recently lost its cafe after a windstorm and is losing its elementary school to consolidation.
“Not much left in our small town,” Lillehaug said.
Saturday’s blaze had Clinton’s firefighters at the lumberyard until 10 p.m., with departments from Graceville, Ortonville and Beardsley assisting. At one point, firefighters had to draw water from a nearby slough after the town’s water tower ran dry, Lillehaug said.
The cause of the fire remains under investigation, he said.
The fate of the lumberyard, which dates back at least 50 years, remains uncertain.
“We lost probably two-thirds of our inventory and our main warehouse,” Clint Gilsdorf, the owner of Big Stone Lumber, said on Thursday.
The lumberyard is open, Gilsdorf said, adding that the company is attempting to move its warehouse to nearby Wheaton. A grocery store, assisted living center, gas station and bar remain in the town known for its annual ice golf tournament on Eli Lake.
The community rallied together during Saturday’s fire, providing pizza, chicken wings and encouragement to the firefighters, Lillehaug said.
Lillehaug, who has been fire chief for two years, said he came back to his hometown after serving in the military as a logistics officer.
“We’re a pretty tight-knit small town, out on the edge of Minnesota,” Lillehaug said. ”It’s been a rough couple of years, but it’s the community that comes out strong.”
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