Bertie Hendrix

On the night of May 17, 1923, approximately 300 persons local to the little country school southeast of Camden, South Carolina attended the children's graduation play. Unfortunately, the play would be upstaged by a tragedy that would capture nationwide attention. The following information was gathered to tell the story of the Cleveland School Fire and something of the Scarborough Family members that perished in that fire. Scarborough Family members losing their lives were: 16-year old Bertie Hendrix, her father Wesley E. Hendrix (husband of Johanna Irene "Aunt Ida" Burgess), Theresa Burgess Dixon, 32, daughter of James B. Burgess and three of Theresa's children, Thelma, Theda and Willene Dixon. Also losing his life was Jesse Smith, grandson of James M. Ross. The Kershaw County Library has two bound publications The Cleveland School Fire by Jean Pruett and The Terrible Cleveland Fire: Its Victims and Survivors by J. O. Moseley (date believed to be 1923), Southern Printing & Publishing Company, Charleston, SC. Both are based on notes, interviews, photos, articles, etc. made shortly after the fire.

The Cleveland School (Front or North side view, photo date unknown) One reference states that this is a photo of a "school building similar to the Cleveland School." That is very possible as there appears in the upper & lower left corners a portion of a roof and steps of another building. There was no other building near the Cleveland School at the time of the fire!

This two-story wooden structure served the children of the mostly rural community eight miles southeast of Camden, SC. Many "grades" were taught by the 3 teachers, some grades having only two or three students. Bertie Hendrix attended here. Thelma and Theda Dixon may have been students here as well. There was a tradition that on graduation night, the children would put on a play. During this day and time, before regular radio programming and television, a play was a special occasion to attend. This graduation's performance would be "Topsy Turvey" before an approximate crowd of 300. It was made even more special by news that, after tonight, the school would be closed for good and that the children would be attending other schools next year.

These photos are from the collection of David C. Scarborough. It is his handwriting that appears on the photos shown here. Their authenticity is considered to be very reliable. This picture of the school does bare a remarkable resemblance to the upper picture.

Cleveland School students. The gentleman is leaning against a pole that may have been a sign.

The building's auditorium was located on the second floor. The seating capacity of the 40-foot long auditorium was even less considering the eight-foot stage that ran across the west end of its twenty-foot width. And, an open area to the left and just in front of the stage was reserved for a piano and music section. Individual chairs were placed in rows facing the stage. A small aisle separated the rows into two sections.

At night, interior lighting came from oil lamps. One such lamp was hanging from a nail near the ceiling of the stage. Some report the nail just gave out, others believed that heat from the lamp loosened the nail.

A fatal design of the building was the 30" wide stairway to the second floor. It started in the boy's cloak room, just to the left of the main entrance. After a few steps, it made a left turn and continued to the second floor. Water was provided by means of a pump outside behind the school. Also out back was a wood pile. For heat, there were three wood stoves, one in each of the two downstairs classrooms, and another stove upstairs. Light came in from the large windows on the North, East and West sides as there was no electricity. Apparently there were no windows on the South side.

Around 9:00 P.M. and the start of the last act of the play, the lamp fell to the stage floor and quickly spread oil and flame. Several men immediately rose, took off their coats, and began to smother the fire. At first, the attempt appeared to be working. Even the crowd was orderly and calm as many began making their way toward the head of the stairs. But the oil fed flames made their way to the old curtains hanging from the stage. These quickly caught afire, touching the ceiling and fanning an annoying and choking smoke. In an instant, the crowd began to sense the pending danger. Chairs became obstacles and were soon overturned and tripped over as loved ones sought out each other and pressed toward the stairs. Smoke and flame quickly gained on the fearful as they waited their turn to descend the narrow stairway.

Some not wishing to wait their turn at the stairway opened windows and plunged into the darkness. Many who did were seriously injured by the 15-foot fall. Those early survivors gathered outside the building and looked with horror at the second floor windows. As the jumpers screamed for help, no ladders could be found to effect a rescue. Would be rescuers attempting to break the jumpers' falls became injured as well. Panic increased as the fire and smoke spread. Compounding the exit problem were several reports of people re-entering the building in search of loved ones. Wesley Hendrix was one. He made it out early, but soon realized that Bertie was still inside. Unable to bear the thought of losing his only daughter and not having done something to save her, he re-entered the building. According to Moseley's The Terrible Cleveland Fire: Its Victims and Survivors, "Mr. Hendrix had only one child and she was taking a leading part in the entertainment, and was possibly as bright a girl as the community afforded, and she was the idol of her parents' hearts. Mr. Hendrix had made his escape from the burning building, when he perceived that his only child was un-rescued. He rushed back into the flames and they perished together." Despite the warnings that he would face certain death by going back upstairs, an eye witness reported that his last words were "Watch me die with her." Aunt Ida (Johanna Burgess) stated that she remembered seeing them through a window reunited at last and holding onto each other to the end.

A tragic end came to those crammed into the narrow stairway. First-hand reports stated that several individuals had fallen and were unable to get to their feet in time before being trampled to death. During the final moments, the stairs themselves broke under the weight of so many. By now, the fire had weakened much of the upper structure which was crumbling down into the first floor.

Officials, family members and curiosity seekers, are shown sifting through the ashes of the spot where the most deaths occured: the stairway. Any item that could identify a victim was helpful - a watch, jewelry, a pocket knife - just anything that could be associated with the missing.

The fire lasted only minutes. Soon, the light of the fire grew dim. The smoke became invisible against the dark sky. The cries of the injured were intermingled with those mourning dead friends and family. Help began to arrive from Camden and other towns. Before long, the light of a new day illuminated the charred remains of The Cleveland School and those who would be ever after associated with that dreadful event.

A disbelieving crowd surveys the ashes!