From 1918, for several years horses would still be the dominant means of transportation. Dray wagons would haul merchandise and items from the north end railroad depots. People from the country would come into town on the horse & wagons or buggies. The square was set up for horses. The automobile was common, and would mix with the horses. In addition, Charleston had the interurban train running on its streets. The square very busy and had a fairly new courthouse sitting in the middle. Remember that at the south end of town was the Normal College. You could catch an interurban to take you to Old Main in the old days. Charleston was really up-to-date. It had one of those new-fangled gasoline fired engines!

HORSES NEED LIVERIES
Madison Street, between 5th and 6th Street was a conglomeration of livery stables and boarding houses for horses. There was even a hotel and dwellings for the owners of the liveries. All of these structures were of dry •wood construction. Hay and straw would be throughout the structures. Men smoked stogies and the danger of fire was possible all the time. In 1922, the danger became fact. The w^hole section burned to the ground. The large livery was owned by John Story. Pete McCabe owned a boarding stable next door. Along with the livery and boarding stable, the fire took the home of the same McCabe and Gilinea House Hotel, another house next door, a Hennessy house, a Hostetler house and two sale barns. It is amazing how many structures were crammed into the block. Ironically, the sight of this fire was just across the street, 1/2 block from the Taylor home (then owned by John Loving). The house "was definitely there long before 1922.