The daily phoenix. [volume] (Columbia, S.C.) 1865-1878, 1866-07-11

". III.
SWm. Moore, Abbeville G. H..
julius Poppe, anderson G. II.
The Great Portland Fire.
The dispatches from Portland,
Maine, heretofore published, have
told the story Of the calamity which
has oyertaken that city. From our
Northern files we gather some inte-
resting details of the confagration.
The fire originated in pile Of shay
ings into which q boy, celebrating the
glorious Fourth, threw n pack of pop
crackers:
Two hundred acres of territory,
compactly bnilt with dwellings, and
business houses, have been swept by
the tornado of flame, and 10000 or
1900 men, women and children
were turned into the places which
had once been streets. The heaviest
loser was Brown, the sugar refner,
whose loss is estimated at 81, 600, 900,
which includes not only his immense
works, but houses in various parts of
the city. Fortunately, his fine resi-
donce was outside the burnt district.
The destruction of the new city hall,
the pride of the city and the State, is
generally lamented. 1t was not be-
heved that this would go, and many
articles were taken there for safety.
and were, of course, all lost. It
caught III the dome, and this falling
through the roof, set the interior on
fire, and it was quickly burned to the
ground. A few of the city records
were saved aud a great many de-
stroyed. The building cost original-
ly about S4O0, 900, but it cannot now
be replaced for twice that sum. The
Methodist Church, on Chestnut street,
near the city hall, the most valuable
In the city, was saved by the precau-
tlonary measures of iron shutters to
the windows, which it is said many of
the Society opposed when the church
was erected. It is worth about
$40, 900. By the destruction of the
Natural History Building, that cor
poration will lose $50, 900, exclusive
of the valuable collections which it
contained. The Custom House and
Post Office, both in the same build.
':.g, were badly damaged in the inte-
rior. OF the eight churches destroy
ed, that of the Roman Catholic I'M
macnlate Conception Society, on
Congress street, together with the
parsonage, was the most valuable,
and the loss will not fall short of
500, 900. Seven hotels were de-
stroyed, including among others the
partially finished structure known as
the Marble Hotel, owned by the Hon.
John M. Wood, once a member of
Congress from Maine. The hotels
destroyed are the International, Free
man, Commercial, American, Sailors
Home, Kingsbury's and the Marble.
The two principal ones in the CITY,
the Preble and the United States, es-
capped, although the latter was scye
raj times on fire.
f The banks of the city, seven in
number, were all DESTROYED. The
opening of the vaults shows that the
papers and money of the National
Traders and the First and Second
National Banks escaped unharmed.
The City Gas Works were DESTROY
ed, so that the city now is in dark
ness when night comes down upon
the widespread desolation. The
burning of nearly all the supply
stores renders it impossible also to
sebtaln lamps and oil to supply the
place of the gas.
A letter from Portland says that
the greatest apprehension among the
business men is that their misfortune
will carry down many of the insur-
ance companies, particularly the local
ones, who have the largest risks. If
the insurance losses are promptly
met, very many will resume business
again. The people are not disposed
to be discouraged, if it is possibility
to again establish in business. MI.
Brown will probably commence the
work OF rebuilding at once, and the
Proprietors of the Portland Press
have already ordered new types and
presses, and advertised for an Office
OF proposals to build one.
The scenes in the city during the
progress of the fire were such as eve
witnesses will not care to have re-
peated in their experience. All the
vehicles obtainable were impressed
into the work Of transferring furni-