The Sun.
London, England, 1853-09-12 00:00:00

FIRE AT MILL WALL, POPLAR.

On Saturday morning last Poplar was visited by a
fire which, in the course of a few hours, laid in ruins
property roughly estimated in value at upwards of
100,000/. sterling, besides throwing out of employment
several hundred workmen.
The scene of this misfortune was the extensive iron
steam-ship manufactory belonging to Messrs. J. Scott
Russell, and Co., at Millwall, within a short distance of
the Poplar railway station. The fire was discovered by
a police officer on duty in the neighbourhood, and by
the watchman employed on the premises. An alarm
was raised, and several of the men hastened to the spot
to render assistance but, notwithstanding their exer-
tions, the flames, which it was at first expected would
be confined to one particular building, made fearful pro-
gress, and very speedily extended to the floors above.
The stock contained there proved such a powerful aux-
iliary that the fire spread in four directions, igniting in
succession the erecting shops and the long range of
carpenters' and painters' workshops.
The powerful engine belonging to the firm was at
once got out and set to work, but the water thrown by
one engine made not the least impression upon the fire,
which quickly broke through the roof. Mr. Braidwood,
the superintendent of the fire brigade ; Mr. Henderson,
the chief officer of the D section of the establish-
ment ; Mr. Fogo, the head officer of the A district ;
and Mr. Connorton, the foreman of the West of England
office, were all hurrying with their engines as fast as
possible, as they supposed, towards the seat of the
calamity. Unfortunately the light of the fire deceived
them, and, instead of taking the Middlesex side of the
river, they crossed the bridges, and proceeded at full
speed towards Deptford Dockyard ; but on reaching
that establishment the firemen, for the first time, as-
certained where the fire was raging, and the engines
had to be turned back and cross London-bridge. The
powerful steamfloat, at Southwark-bridge was sent
down the river as fast as possible, and thereby reached
the place almost as soon as some of the land engines
which had taken the wrong side of the water. The
floating engine belonging to her Majesty, for the pro-
tection of the dockyard at Deptford, was also brought
across the Thames and set to work, and also the lower
float of the fire brigade from Rotherhithe station. The
whole of the land engines present (10 in number) and
that of the West of England Company were likewise set
to work from a bountiful supply of water furnished by
the East London Company's mines ; but, in spite of
their exertions, the work of desolation continued, and
the smithy, containing a number of forges, cutting and
ploughing machines worked by steam, estimated to be
worth 12,0001., and the carpenters' cutting department,
a building nearly 90 feet long by 25 feet broad, became
enveloped in one immense sheet of flame. From these
premises the flames seized upon a lofty stack of heavy
timbers, used principally for constructing the docks and
internal fittings of the iron ships. The wind, which had
been blowing fresh all the night, had by this time
greatly increased.
The firemen tried all that was possible to prevent the
flames communicating with the pattern lofts, the mould
lofts, and the coal sheds, but without success : and in a
brief period the whole of these premises, composed of
brick and timber, considerably over 150 feet long, nearly
100 feet broad, and three stories high, filled with ar-
ticles of great value, were wrapped in fire, which com-
municated with a spac:ous timber building belonging to
Messrs. Napier, the steam engine manufacturers, ad-
doining the west side of Messrs. Russell's shipyard.
The firemen, upon finding that there was every proba-
bility of the whole of Messrs. Napier's premises also
falling a prey to the fury of the flames, brought all their
force to bear upon the building that had just taken fire,
and by great perseverence succeeded in preventing the
spread of the flames in that direction ' • but the building
itself, which was of great extent, and used as erecting,
polishing, and fitting-up shops, was levelled with the
ground and the valuable contents destroyed.
By 3 o'clock the whole of the fitting-up and erecting
shops of Messrs. Russell were burning from the base to
the roof, and the heat was so intense that the firemen
were frequently exposed to imminent danger.
Two splendid iron ships built for the North of Europe
General Steam Navigation Company, each 600 tons
burden, one of which was intended to be launched on
ahlasvoeexhzseedd
wtohilseuclhyianng intense
heat Sa tu rtdheayt nt
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slips.
A vast amount of property that was in the mould lofts
has likewise been destroyed, and the destruction of pat-
terns, among which were those of the intended largest
ship in the world, to be built by the firm for the Eastern
Steam, Navigation Company, has been most disastrous.
Fortunately the premises on the opposite side of the
yard, although much scorched, are not destroyed, and
it is understood that business will not be entirely sus-
pended.
Throughout yesterday many thousand persons flocked
to the spot for the purpose of inspecting the ruins, and
it required the services of a strong body of police to keep
them out of danger.
The damage done is thus officially reported :—The
erecting shops, the fitting-up shops, the carpenters' and
moulders' shops, the smithy, destroyed ; the stores, sheds,
and contents severely damaged by fire, and the heads of
two iron steam-ships on the stocks damaged by fire. The
erecting houses, pattern shops, mould lofts, the carpen-
ters' shops, the smithy, the engine and boiler house, and
the tool warehouses, the steam-engine house, the boilers
and machinery therein, the stock and utensils in trade,
the painters' shops, the stock and utensils in trade, with
the vessels on the slips were insured in the Sun, Atlas,
Globe, Phcenix, and West of England offices to the ex-
tent of 90,0001.
Although no lives were lost during the raging of the
fire, a body of the fire brigade were nearly killed while
proceeding with their engine in search of the conflagra-
tion. As the horses were galloping with their engine
through the Borough they ran into a hole eight feet deep
in the middle of the road, which broke the forecarriage of
the engine, forced the driver off his box, and pitched the
firemen off the machine. Hambleton, the engineer, and
the firemen, together with the driver, were all much
shaken and bruised, but fortunately no limbs were
broken. The engine was so much disabled as to be un-
able to proceed to the fire, and it was in consequence
taken back to its station in the Waterloo-road.

A very strict investigation has been made by the bri-
gade authorities, and also by Messrs. Russell, for the
purpose of ascertaining how the fire occurred, but no-
thing satisfactory could be elicited.
Such an extensive fire has not taken place in the
neighbourhood for several years.

LIVERPOOL, SEPT. 10.—The British and North
American mail steam-ship Africa, Harrison, commander,
took her departure hence for Halifax and Boston, at
1.30 p.m. to-day, with 150 passengers on board, besides
a very full cargo—as much as she could carry—and the
usual mails.

DONATION TO THE LICENSED VICTITALLERS' SCHOOL.
—Messrs. Bass and Co., the celebrated pale ale brewers
of Burton-on-Trent, have just contributed one hundred
guineas to the Licensed Victuallers' School, in addition
to very handsome donations which they have made on
several former occasions, for the support of this excel-
lent institution,