This would have made national news today
These two photos are among the most frightening old photos ever posted on the Icon - for that matter, ever photographed near Bluffton.
Here's what we know about these photos. They show three burning oil tanks that were struck by lightning somewhere near Bluffton. Each tank contained 35,000 barrels of oil.
The photos are in post card format taken by Sidney Hauenstein.
In 1900 rural Bluffton boasted over 500 oil wells. However, we do not know where these oil tanks were located and we do not know the year of the photos, except that they must be somewhere between 1895 and 1905. All we know is that the fire was "near" Bluffton.
"The Town at the Fork of the Rileys" lists major fires in Bluffton and these tanks are not list among those fires.

Stories Posted This Week
Sunday, May 4, 2025
Saturday, May 3, 2025
- Pirate baseball win vs. Tigers
- Bluffton softball edged in battle of Pirates
- Committee meetings scheduled for Bluffton Council
- #1 recommended attraction in NW Ohio is in Ada
- Mental Health Awareness event with Seth Gehle
- Ohio highway patrol promoting motorcycle safety
- Recap of Bluffton Board of Education meeting for April 2025
- Weekend Doctor: Antidepressants in the long term
Friday, May 2, 2025
- BHS seniors exhibit art at Gallery 323 through May 7
- What's in your weekend?
- Pirate softball blanked by Lancers
- Pirate baseball blanked by Lincolnview
- Laman Promoted to VP Retail Credit Manager by CNB
- Local land conservancy hires first Executive Director
- Steiner to present Swiss Family Migration program on May 21
- 850 Days of Caring volunteers will pitch in for Hancock County
Thursday, May 1, 2025
- Angel M. Langhals owned LFE/API Meters
- Allen Co. task force targets target sex and human traffickers
- Blessing of the Bikes, May 4
- Metzger honored at 2025 Black Swamp Council meeting
- Volunteer invitation for Bluffton Pathway Count in May
- Pirate tennis edges Ottawa-Glandorf
- Bluffton EMS station staffing goes 24/7 on May 1
- You are what you eat: Link to immune system
Wednesday, April 30, 2025
- Observation deck added to Motter Park cascading pools project
- Bluffton Women in Business meet May 15
- Four sportsmen stock 200 trout at Buckeye Lake
- Pirate girls, boys 2nd at Minster track quad
- Pirate baseball win vs. Riverdale
- Pirate softball loss vs. Riverdale
- Field reports from NW Ohio wildlife officers