Sunday afternoon, Oct. 16, 1988, was a picture-perfect fall day, just right for getting those fall outdoor chores done.

Jim Gourley Sr. was on the roof of his Twin Lakes home doing some tuckpointing when he came down to get a tool.

Gourley was the co-owner of Southport Lumber and Supply, a full-service lumber yard at 6203 28th Ave., a local landmark in Kenosha for 76 years. It had large inventories of lumber, millwork, construction hardware, roofing materials and kitchen cabinets.

It served local construction companies and home repairmen alike.

“When I was in the house, the phone rang. I picked it up and it was the fire department, telling me the lumber yard was on fire,” Gourley, now 82, said. “We got in the car, and in Wilmot I could see the plume of smoke. My wife said it must be the power plant. No, it was my lumber yard.”

It was a day that Gourley would replay in his mind for years to come.

Gourley’s grandfather, W. S. Brannum, bought the business in 1916. Brannum would become the largest retail lumberman in the United States, with 101 lumberyards, including one in Racine, expanding to seven in the city.

Brannum sold what would become Southport Lumber to his son, James H. Brannum. James hired his brother-in-law, Kenneth L. Gourley, to manage the business in 1923.

In 1950, Kenneth sold his farms in Illinois to buy the lumber yard.

Jim Gourley Sr. (Kenneth’s son) inherited his father’s stock in the company, giving him control of the business in 1988.

The fire was discovered at 2:15 p.m. by passers-by, who ran to Dick Derby’s Bar a block away on 63rd Street to report it.

Longtime Southport Lumber customer and carpenter Fred DeLacy was on his way home from church when he saw the smoke. He grabbed his camera and started snapping away.

He later presented a photo album full of pictures of the event to Gourley.

Seven engine companies were called to the fire, putting companies in Pleasant Prairie and Racine on standby to answer any other Kenosha calls.

When firefighters tried to enter through the front door of the office, they were forced back from the heat. When the door was opened, officials said the fire mushroomed and spread, indicating that it had been smoldering for some time.

Black smoke soon filled the sky above the area, drawing spectators from miles around. The traffic jams were fierce, creating gridlock on the narrow side streets in the area.

People walked along the railroad tracks trying to get a good view of the inferno, and police were kept busy controlling the crowds.

For an hour, the fire raged before firefighters took control and could make progress extinguishing it.

City front-end loaders were commandeered to move stacks of lumber so hot spots could be extinguished.

The fire leveled four of the 15 buildings on the 2.5-acre site and sent four firefighters to the hospital for burns and smoke inhalation. The main building was 200 feet long and 80 feet wide. A light southwesterly wind kept the flames from spreading to the west or jumping to the buildings to the south.

All through Sunday night a fire crew remained at the scene, pouring water on the steaming, charred ruins. The last two fire engines left the yard at 8 a.m. on Monday, but returned 90 minutes later to extinguish a rekindled fire.

The total loss from the fire was $2 million, equaling more than $3.6 million in today’s dollars. Included were several company vehicles, a snowplow and a 40-foot truck belonging to neighboring Otto Nelson & Sons Inc.

It was the worst fire in the city’s history up until that time in terms of dollar value lost.

After an investigation, it was determined that the fire was arson. No arrest was ever made in the case.

According to fire investigation reports, a few weeks before the event, the burglar alarm had been disconnected to facilitate a remodeling of the office.

Jeffrey Washinger Sr., the Federated Insurance Co. investigator on the case, determined that someone had broken the window in Jim Sr.’s office, poured in accelerant and tossed in a Zippo-style cigarette lighter. A wheel from just such a lighter was found in the rubble.