Events The Big Fire On May 9 1900, a fire started in DeSable that was to destroy much of the west end of Argyle Shore . A man by the name of Duncan MacKinnon was burning brush behind the DeSable Church of Scotland. He thought the fire was out but it lingered in some stumps. The wind came up and eventually the fire was out of control. It worked its way towards Argyle Shore following the pole fences to Charlie MacLean 's property. People tried to tear the pole fences down but couldn't do it quickly enough. Hand pumps and buckets filled from the well couldn't keep up with the blaze. The MacLean barn was burned to the ground along with two other buildings, but the house was saved. The Taylor property next door was lost, along with fifty tons of pressed hay. Residents tried to save houses within the path of the fire by putting wet quilts on the roofs. Although the barn burned down, Jack O' Brien was able to save the Inman house by staying on the roof and keeping blankets wet. Dougall MacDougall 's log house was leveled along with six other buildings. The smoke from the fire at Dougall MacDougall 's was so thick that no one noticed the barns and house of his son Alex burn to the ground as well. The fire spread through the woods towards Malcolm MacPhail 's property (presently owned by Ewen MacPhail ). Everything there had been removed from the house as the fire approached, but the wind shifted and moved the fire toward the road. It crossed the road and burned the barn and porch of the house of John MacDougall (present day property of Begley-Bakers). As the fire worked its way nearer the shore, nearby fisherman had to steer their boats away from the intense heat. The woods were completely burnt out and forty-three buildings are thought to have burned in just three and a half hours. The community collected two hundred dollars for relief of the affected families. Over that summer, people began to gradually rebuild their homes. At least one family built just the kitchen of their home where they lived through the next winter, continuing to build the rest of their home over the following years. si