Thick black smoke churned out of old brick buildings in downtown Douglas on Monday afternoon as firefighters battled a stubborn blaze that burned late into the night, destroying two businesses and leaving neighboring historic landmarks with smoke damage.
The Douglas Police Department responded to the first reports of smoke from the Used to Be Yours building on East Center Street just after 1 p.m.
Crews arrived to find heavy smoke already billowing from the building. Police barricaded downtown streets to make room for firefighters, and at 2:29 p.m. issued a public warning: "Downtown Douglas CLOSED."
By Tuesday morning, Used to Be Yours Consignment Boutique and 307 Vape Shop had been destroyed, Mayor Kim Pexton told Cowboy State Daily.
The neighboring College Inn Bar survived but suffered extensive smoke and water damage. The nearby Corner Barber Shop also was damaged. Other nearby properties were also affected.
Downtown remained closed Tuesday morning as investigators worked to determine what started the fire.
For Douglas, the destruction was more than the loss of commercial property. The fire struck at the heart of a downtown district where some buildings have stood nearly as long as the city itself.
"We all feel bad for the business owners, and we hate to lose these historic buildings," Pexton said.
A Piece Of Douglas History
The building where the fire was first reported stands on the site of the old Steffen Drug Store, which opened in 1887. The present structure was built around 1920 and later housed RD Pharmacy.
"It's huge to us, just because we're really working on our downtown and our Main Street program," Pexton said.
"When you have buildings that have been, you know, basically as long as the city has been around, then it means an awful lot when we lose things like this."
For Pexton, who owns a business directly across the street from the affected area, the losses were especially personal.
"When you live in a small city like this, you get to know everybody that owns a business, especially in downtown," she said.
"We're on a first-name basis with just about every business owner around. So it's really, really hard."
City officials had a front-row view of the unfolding disaster Monday afternoon, with City Hall just a block from the fire, as council members still gathered for their regularly scheduled 4 p.m. meeting.
By the time the meeting ended, Pexton said a large crowd gathered downtown to watch the aftermath of the inferno.
Pexton said the Wyoming State Fire Marshal arrived around 9 p.m. Monday to investigate.
As of Tuesday morning, the cause had not been announced.
The extent of the structural damage also remained uncertain, including whether the damaged buildings could be repaired or would have to be demolished.
Thick black smoke churned out of old brick buildings in downtown Douglas on Monday afternoon as firefighters battled a stubborn blaze that burned late into the night, destroying two businesses and leaving neighboring historic landmarks with smoke damage. (Courtesy: Dan Smith) 
Thick black smoke churned out of old brick buildings in downtown Douglas on Monday afternoon as firefighters battled a stubborn blaze that burned late into the night, destroying two businesses and leaving neighboring historic landmarks with smoke damage. (Courtesy: Dan Smith)
Filled With Smoke
A short distance away, Sara Borton was just pulling into Douglas from Casper when she learned that a fire was threatening the downtown, where she operates the historic Princess Theatre.
Her manager had arrived at the theater around 1:30 p.m. Monday to oversee the installation of new projection equipment, but before she could enter the building, a police officer stopped her and told her she wasn't allowed inside.
Borton drove straight to the theater, reaching downtown around 1:45 p.m. By then, police had closed off the area.
"You couldn't see any flames or anything, but lots of smoke," Borton told Cowboy State Daily on Tuesday.
Fire trucks and police officers were already at the scene, and crews were working to contain the blaze.
Borton and her staff could do little but wait. After about four hours, authorities allowed them to enter the theater.
Using the flashlights on their phones, they began surveying the damage.
"There is no water damage that I know of," she said, adding that inspectors had not yet completed their assessment. "Just heavy, heavy smoke damage."
Borton took over the Princess Theatre in May, drawn to the building's history and potential.
The theater dates to the early 20th century and has served generations of Douglas moviegoers. For her, it was love at first sight.
Now, she's worried about what the smoke might have done to the theater's specialized interior.
The theater's sound barriers are made of porous, fabric-like material installed throughout the auditorium, including on the walls and behind the movie screen.
"I don't know what the smoke's gonna do to it," she said.
The screen itself also has a specialized coating that makes it particularly delicate.
"It's got a chemical on it, and you can't touch that screen, and I don't know what the smoke residue's gonna do to it," Borton said.
Despite the uncertainty, Borton was confident the Princess Theatre would recover.
"Smoke damage is horrible," she acknowledged, but said her losses were relatively minor compared with those of neighboring businesses.
"We are gonna be OK. We're gonna recover. We'll make it, you know, back to whole."
Thick black smoke churned out of old brick buildings in downtown Douglas on Monday afternoon as firefighters battled a stubborn blaze that burned late into the night, destroying two businesses and leaving neighboring historic landmarks with smoke damage. (Courtesy: Dan Smith) 
Thick black smoke churned out of old brick buildings in downtown Douglas on Monday afternoon as firefighters battled a stubborn blaze that burned late into the night, destroying two businesses and leaving neighboring historic landmarks with smoke damage. (Courtesy: Dan Smith)
College Inn Still Standing
Another historic downtown landmark, the College Inn Bar at 103 N. Second St., also survived the fire.
The building dates to 1906 and has long been a fixture of Douglas' downtown.
Its owners undertook an extensive restoration after purchasing the saloon in 2017, preserving architectural features and furnishings that have helped make it a local landmark.
On Monday evening, the College Inn posted an emotional update about the fire: "I'm so sad for the loss of buildings and businesses downtown. I'm heartbroken for everyone."
The business continued, "There aren't enough words to thank the fire department and first responders today. The College Inn survived the fire. Thank goodness she is so well built."
But the building did not escape unscathed.
The bar reported extensive smoke and water damage, along with damage to the brickwork on its south side.
"We don't know much yet but we have extensive water and smoke damage. Brick damage on the south side as well," the business wrote.
The owners said they did not yet know what repairs would be necessary or how long the bar might remain closed.
For a building that has stood for more than a century, surviving the flames was an important first step.
Pexton confirmed Tuesday that the College Inn remained standing, but said the fire affected more buildings than the two that were destroyed.
"Yeah, this was a huge, huge fire and impact," she said.
A Firefighter's Perspective
Dan Smith, who retired from the Campbell County Fire Department after 19 years of service, was traveling through the Douglas area for work when he spotted a large plume of smoke Monday afternoon.
Once downtown, he found a place across the street from the burning consignment store and watched firefighters battle the flames for more than two hours.
With nearly two decades of firefighting experience, Smith was watching where firefighters positioned themselves around the aging building and whether they were staying clear of areas that might become unstable.
"My big concern was structure collapse," Smith told Cowboy State Daily.
Smith said people gathered outside businesses across the street, watching the emergency response and wondering whether the flames might spread to other businesses.
He praised the firefighters' exterior attack, directing water toward the building from the outside.
"It wasn't safe for them to make entry to do an interior attack initially," he said.
He said wind didn't appear to be a significant factor, but the fire seemed to be burning deep within the building, sending turbulent smoke from the roof.
Smith briefly left to check into his hotel before returning as darkness approached.
By then, he said, firefighters appeared to be gaining control of the flames, although the work was far from over.
"They definitely had to be there for quite a while overnight," he said, describing the continued effort to extinguish hot spots and knock down the remaining fire.
Community In Shock
News of the fire spread quickly through Douglas, where business owners and customers know one another personally.
"Obviously, we're just all in shock," Pexton said.
For Borton, the speed of the fire and the scale of the response were striking.
"Everybody's heartbroken just to see this happen, and then how quickly it happened and how hard the firefighters fought just to keep it controlled," she said.
She credited firefighters with preventing the blaze from spreading farther through the historic downtown district.
"They did keep it under control to a point where it didn't spread very far, which was amazing," she said.
The Douglas Police Department also thanked residents who supported emergency crews throughout the response.
In its Tuesday morning statement, the department praised the public for avoiding the barricaded downtown area and bringing bottled drinks and snacks to first responders.
Pexton said a community meeting was scheduled for Tuesday morning at the hospital to discuss ways to assist those affected.
"Everyone's just kind of in a bit of shock, and it's just to see what we can do to help them out."
Kolby Fedore can be reached at kolby@cowboystatedaily.com.
