Around midnight on Friday 24th October 1902, fire broke out at the Carsebridge Distillery in Alloa.

It spread rapidly causing thousands of pounds worth of damage to the mash mill where most of the distillation process took place.

The blaze had broken out at the mash mill and within a very short time had taken a strong hold. At the time, the night shift was working and as soon as the alarm was raised, they banded together to tackle the fire with the engine they had on site. However, it was not enough to stop the flames from spreading.

By this time, word had reached the Alloa Fire Brigade who made their way to Carsebridge immediately with their steam fire engine.

In less than 20 minutes from when the fire had been discovered, the whole of the mash mill was ablaze, and a column of smoke and flames around 100 feet high lit up the night sky.

John Stewart, the manager of the distillery, and Andrew Mackie, the captain of the fire brigade, got their men to concentrate all their hoses on the mash mill to prevent the fire from spreading to other buildings in the complex. As luck would have it there was no wind that night meaning there was a good chance this would not happen. Another stoke of luck was that there was an unlimited supply of water to douse the flames.

The mash mill stood opposite the warehouses which stood on the other side of the road. This was where thousands of gallons of whisky were stored in barrels. Thanks to the efforts of the fire fighters the fire did not spread to the bond.

By the time it was brought under control, little was left of the mash mill. It had been completely gutted with only the bare walls still standing. The valuable machinery that had been in it had also been completely destroyed.

The nearby tun house and engine room also suffered severe fire damage but the grain store, which was close to the mash mill, was saved, thanks to the efforts of the workers.

Due to the destruction of the machinery in the mash mill, where most of the machinery required in the distillation process was housed, the distillery had to close until it was replaced. It was estimated that around £40,000 worth of damage had been done, but the distillery was insured, and this covered the cost of replacing the damaged mash mill and its contents.

The cause of the fire was never established.