Hingham’s ‘suspicious’ Hobart Street fire investigation closed

Nov. 27--HINGHAM -- The town's fire chief says a lack of evidence has forced officials to close their investigation into a September fire that officials had deemed suspicious.

The two-alarm fire on Sept. 1 caused no injuries but it took firefighters an hour to get under control and destroyed a vacant house that had stood on Hobart Street for more than a century. Hingham Fire Chief Steve Murphy said investigators still consider the fire to be suspicious.

"There was a strong suspicion that this was an arson type of fire, but police weren't able to find any witnesses to corroborate that," Murphy said. "We did canvass neighbors and post on social media looking for any witnesses, but police didn't get enough evidence to deem the fire an arson."

Murphy said the compromised structural integrity of the building and danger it presented made it difficult to conduct a thorough investigation. In addition, because the homeowner did not have insurance on the house, he said there was no insurance company pushing for an investigation.

"We're thankful nobody was hurt," Murphy said.

The wood-shingle, Colonial-style home at 17 Hobart St. was last valued at $611,400, including the land, according to town tax records. It is owned, in part, by a realty trust based in Lakeville.

The tax records list the home's date of construction as 1775, but records maintained by the Hingham Historical Society indicate that it was actually built in 1871.

Murphy said the owner is working on having the house torn down.

Reach Mary Whitfill at [email protected].

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