The spirit of democracy. [volume] (Woodsfield, Ohio) 1844-1994, 1861-05-08
Correspondence of the Buffalo IN. Y.) Courier.
Explosion of an Oil Well
Terrible Loss Of Lifs-Fightfal Scenes
-Immsase Destruction Of Property--
Eighteen Dead and Missing, and be-
ta0een Thirty and Forty Seriously Burnt
TIDIoUTE, Penn, April 18.

TIDIourE, Penn, April 1S.
Ga the Bnchapan Farm, Warren coun,
ty, Penn., seventeen mics from Tidioute,
where a.large number of oil wells have
beer sunk, within the past four mopths,
with great success, on Wednesday last
occurred Que of the most frightful acci-
dents that it has ever been the province
of newspapers to record. The telegraph
has furnished a skeleton of the accident,
but the details have net yet been made
public.
A well which had been drilled over
two hundred feet by Hawley & Merrick,
had struck oil, but the yield being less
than expected, the pumping was aban.
doned aud the drilling re commenced.
Over one hundred feet further were
drilled, when at half past FIVE on Wednes>
day evening, sudden rush of oil through
the five aud half iuch tubing threw out
the drills and gushed up in the air forty
feet above the surface of the ground. At
the least computation, it was throwing
| from seventy to one hundred barrels an
hour. Above this mass of oil, the gas
| of benzine rose in a cloud, for fifty or
! sixty feet. A soon as the oil commenced
gushing forth, al! the fires of engines in,
the neighborhood were Immediately ex-
tinguished. AT about half past seven, as
g largo number of men and boys were
around the well, engaged in saving the.
Ioil, the gas from the well, which had
spread in every direction, took fire, from
the engine ola we'll over four hundred
rods distant, when in second the whole
air was in a fame, with crash and roar
like discharges from park of artillery.
Il a soon as the gas took Ere, the head
of the jet of oil was in furious blaze,
and falling ike water from fountain
fove- o space one hundred feet in diameter,
leach drop.came down a blazing globe of
boiling oil. Instantly the ground was a
fame, Increased and augmented by the
falling oil. At once a scene Of indescr-
bab!e horror took place. Scores were
throwa fat, aud for distance of twenty
feet, and numbers horribly burned, rush
ing blazing from the hell of misfortune,
shrieking and screaming in their anguish.
| Just within the circle of the fame
could be seen four bodies boiling in the
seething eli; and one man, who had been
digging az ditch to convey away the
oil 20 lower part Of the ground, was
killed as he dug, and could be seen, as he
fell over the handle of the spade, roasting
in the fierce element. Mr.. Fl. r Rouse,
of the firm of Rouse, Mitchell & Brown,
of the village of Enterprise, Warren
county, q gentleman largely interested in
wells in this localitya and whose income
from lhtm amounted to $1,000 day,
was standing near the pit, and was blown
twenty feet by the explosion. He got up
and ran about ten or fifteen feet further,
aid was drlgged out 10y two men, and
conveyed to shanty some distance from
the we'll. When he arrived, not vestige
of clothing was left upsn him except his
ockipgs and boots His hair was burned
of, as well as his fnger nails, his ears and
his eyelids. while the balls of his eyes
were cris2ed up 20 nothiagness.
In this condition he lived niue hours
made his will, leaving 100000 to the
poor os Warren county; the same amount
to repair the roads ef Warren county
! to be disbursed by the couaty commits
sioners. and $500 year to his father
; his only living relation-for life lie
died, however, without signing the will.
: His body was taken on Friday to West.
field, Chatauque county, and buried, as he
requested. by the side of his mother.
{ La addition to Mr.. Rouse, the follow
t ing were taken out of the flames, dead:
Two Messrs Wa ker, brothers, of Cls
rion county, Penn.
Wesley Skinner, engineer of Dobbs
well, from Wattsburg, Pa.
: A man named Stevens. from Cattarau
gas county, New Y York.
A Mr.. Judd Mason, residence un
known.
A boy named Albert Gardner, fror
Michigan.
: The above were recognized In addi
tion, there are the skeletons of five 9th
ers visible within the circle of fame, ant
= as many are missing, strangers who cam
:. ;. to witness the operations of the wells
= is supposed that number of others hav
been reduced to powder, close by tn
mouth of the well.
Some thirty four were wounded.
At the time of the explosion, every
thing in the neighborhood-sixt or se1
enty rods-took Are, and shanties, derrick
engine houses, dwellings, were at once il
= volved in flames. The boiler of Dobb
!, we'll, eighty rods from the original fl:
blew mp with tremendous explosion
killing instantly the engineer, Wesley ski
% ner, adding another intensity TO the ever
ing's horrors At this time the whole a
IS was on fire The jet of oil rushing d
forty feet was almost pillar of lvid fam
is while the gas above it to the distance
to hundred feet was flashing, explodin
A dashing toward the heavens and app'
r. rentIy licking the clouds with its furior
is tongues of heat. All this time, durin