The northern galaxy. [volume] (Middlebury, Vt.) 1844-1848, 1845-07-30
Great C~onfagration.
Three hundred stores and build
ings burned! Numerous lives
lost! Millions upon Millions
destroyed! Military called
out Mayors Proclamation.

destroyed! Military called
out Mayors Proclamation.
We record with pain and anguish the de-
tails of The terrible calamity that has O.
vertakcn one of The richest and most COM
n.ercial parts Of the city. The fire is in the
vicinity OF our office, were, one Time, IN an
alarming proximity. None, however, con-
necied with our Press. anticipated any Il
overwhelming con1agaiioIi. when the alarm
bells were first sounded al 3 A. NJ, and when
t,e rst Edition OF our MorRing paper was
put 10 Press. 1t was net lelt tc be SO terrible,
mill the explosion took place.
Atabout iour O'Clock, Crocker& Warren's
store in New street, in which was stored a
veIy large quantity of saltpeter, blew up with
one Of the most tremenderous explosions
ever herd or felt in this city. That building
itself was of course.scartered in fragments in
IN instant and those neBr it were little bet
ter oil. The explosion created one OF the
most frightful spectacles il wac ever our mis-
fortune TO witness, and the noise and uprOar
could only be eqalled By the explosion OF a
magazine.
The first explosion which was compare
lively moderate, filled the room Of the writer
of this paragraph, with Il light more intense
than ut noon day, and, upon looking out upon
Broadway, a scene met his gaZe, that can
never be forgotten. Hardly had he reached
the window when the second and grand ex-
plosion took place. The buildings, rs far us
the eye could reach appeared one mass OF
fagles, while the buildings on the west side
Of Broadway, from the Mansion House 10
The Astor, were so brilliant that the eye could
H.. Ill., 1910 81 ~
Church looked like a pillar of fire. and the
moon, which Il moment before we saw just a
bovc The root, paled under this vivid light,
and was invisible. The sky, over the region
ofthe fire, and along the range of Nassau
street, was filled with a mass of flame from
the burning gas, alcohol and ~camphine, let
loose at the explosion. High in the air as
the eve could range appeared an immense
quantity of fire, that had the appearance of
scrpenis darling spirally upwards, like the
sm1ll rockets of a fire work These ioun-
gnes offame, loo, shot Out in all directions
from the centre, making together the whole
look like Il mountain OF fire, which created IN
the mir Il noise like that caused by n flash Of
electricity in n thunder storm. The panic
caused by such ar explosion, who can des-
cribe? The street, from The Waverley
House TO our office, on Broadway, presen-
ted il thick multitude ofmen running as if Tor
their lives, shricking rs though they were the
aranies Of death. Those who could keep
their feet were fortunate, indeed, Tor the
masses behind, in their terror, over-ran many
who fell, regardless ofany hing but their own
safety.
Through The other streets a like scene was
libited, but as the Others were narrow
the confusion was greater. The fremen and
left those parts only 10 receive
in another place the shower Of bricks and
other missiles forced off by the explosion.
So awful was the shock that The thick plate
glass in nearly all the buildings in Wall
street, was broken in fragments and strcwed
over the pavement, in many instances the
substantial window sashes themselves bcing
broken in. The cries of frightened people:
the fall of missiles on the roofs Of buildings,
the crash of glass upon the pavemenis; alb
ded 10 the ~tunlbling of buildings from the
force OF the explosion, and the vivid glare
ofIhe flames, assaulted the numerous multi
tud-s now out 10 see the fire, and grave i'm
preston that a great CONFUSION oil nature
hid taken place. The windows Of The City
Hotel and buildings near us, were in Il mo-
ment filled with the tenantry ofthe houses,
who. until the great rsInGsinn, had remained
quiet in bed, thinking the fire an o%:linary
matter, but not until now thoroughly rouscd
by this awful shock.
The CONCLUSION in the Courier Office WIS so
severe that The substantial stone walls nj The
building shook to their foundations, and the
people there thought for one moment that
they were iumbling TO their base. The
workmen in the composing room in The nth
story found the stone on which the form was
making mp, rise several inches from lis res
ling place; all went out instantly and during
The darkness that followed, the scene was,
TO say the least oft, an exciting one. The
worbnen employed in the Press and Engine
rooms III the basement story fully believing
that The entire building was about 10 fall up
OF them in mass, few with rapid steps. into
tie street.
The same occurrences took place with the
the workmen in our Office. In a moment
they were in darkness and a%s;ounded
by The shock, they flew rs if in an earthquake
were tumbiing the walls upon their heads
All soon recovered, however. and went TO
work TO give our readers. a second edition,
the details ofthe progress OF the fire.
The number of stores already destroyed
are 10 on The west side ofBroad street, all on
Exchange place. both sides. across New. and
tHFCHSl 10 DTOduNdS . luc Cd"Hiei "dhCiiu'>e
of W. l.. Branch, two doors below the Wa
verify Hotel. being now in flames.
On the east side Of Broad street, 10 stores
are on fire, including the warehouses of Davis
Brooks AMI Co., and. the flames spreading
along Exchange Place.
tits stated that a number Of men, women
and children were blown up with The buildings
at the time Of the explosion, and that a mum
her of fremen are killed, but to the certaini,
Of this We have no means of asceriainiug-
This connagraIion will no doubt prove IN,
the most serious, in amount Of property DIES
rroyed, since the great fire 1873. A part u
the buildings destroyed formed the point u
Broad street and Exchange Place, al which
the great fire stopped in that direction.
HALF PAST FIVE O'Clock.
The great cause of The extent of The hr'
was The explosion OF 5000 bags of sal;petre
in the rear of the carpenters shop.
The Custom House also occupied cellar
Nos 40 aud 45 Broad Street for storage, whicl
were full of brandies and other importei
liqnor. They had also o!her cellars in tn,
vicinity. Most OF the liquors were Of a yer,