Fire at historic Firestone mansion likely was arson

NORTH LIMA — Tom and Connie Ellison, owners of the historic Firestone mansion that was destroyed in a fire Oct. 21, can’t imagine why anyone would have set fire to the 134-year-old house.

They do, however, believe that someone did it on purpose.

The state fire marshal’s office thinks so, too.

“The investigation is ongoing. But they do believe it was an arson,” a spokesperson for the office said. They are asking anyone who has information to call 1-800-589-2728.

“It’s one of those things when you first hear it, you think you can’t feel worse,” Connie said. “But each day that goes by, it’s more confusing that someone would do this.”

Beaver Township firefighters responded to the call at 3:44 a.m. that Tuesday at 600 Lipply Road.

By the time they got there, the house was destroyed, fire Chief Russ Osborne said.

And Tom has since demolished the little that remained.

“It’s a pretty gut-wrenching scene,” Tom said of the lakeside property that now features a large debris-filled crater where the house once stood.

For the complete story, read Sunday's Vindicator and Vindy.com