The Cecil Whig. [volume] (Elkton, Md.) 1841-current, 1869-07-10
Terrible Explosion at DuPont's Powder
Mills.

Terrible Explosion at DuPont's Powder
Mills.
4 paragraph in last Saturdays Wing an
nounced the blowing up of DuPont's Pow
DIES Mills, situated about four miles from
Wilmington, on the banks of the Brandy
wine. The following is 4 detailed account
from the Delaware Statesman and journal
of Friday last:
The explosian took place in the granting
and rolling mills in the Hagley yard, COM
pletely destroying everything in the vicin-
ity.
The scene after the disaster was terrible.
women and children crying and screaming.
and begging for admittance through the
gates of the yard, which had to be kept
closed and guarded. For some time the
extent Of the injury done and the number
of killed and wounded was not known. but
it was at last discovered that two men were
killed and three wounded. The names of
the killed are Peter Massey and John Ma
loney. The former, who had been employ
ed at the mills for thirty years, leaves
wife and seven or eight children.
There were seven tons Of powder in the
mills at the time of the explosion. but for
tunately only four of them exploded. The
remaining three tons, were afterwards
wheeled out by the workmen. The gate at
the main and front entrance to the yard was
torn to pieces. All along the creek the roofs
of the buildings were to be seen floating
down the stream, thrown there by the ter
rible shock. The large structure known as
the Stone Block. situated on the edge of
the hill from the first gate where many of
the workmen reside, was shattered almost
to pieces. The doors, windows and roofs
were carried off hundreds of yards and the
furniture torn into thousands of fragments.
\ ncver-failing spring near by, which furn
ishcd the nei ghborhoOd with water was in
an instant dried up. In one house, fully
mile distant from the exploded mill, pack
age of sugar of some five pounds i'll weight
which was lying OH the window sill, was
torn to pieces and scattered all around,
merely by the conclusion. All along the
pike the leaves were torn from the trees as
though Il violent hurricane had been sweep
ing past. A large field Of corn quarter of
a mile distant was completely leveled to the
ground and uprooted.
Henry Clay Factory. which is a quarter
Of a mile distant from the first gate, had all
its windows and doors torn out not pane
of glass remaining. The girls employed in
the building were terribly cut up by the
glass from the windows, and came rushing
out covered with blood. A man engaged in
wheeling powder about thirty yards from
the mill was knocked down by the concus-
sion. Another was badly injured by fly
ing missile and jumped into the creek for
safety. y Mrs. Gangher narrowly escaped
death from being struck a terrible blow in
the back by !, stone. \ Mrs. Dearey re-
ccived severe cut in the head by stone.
A huge hinge from one of the doors of the
mill passed within few inches of the head
of IL woman and child she was carrying
in her arms, and buried itself in Il hen-coop.
The woman, thinking only of her child,
threw herself on her face on the ground,
and held her child beneath. A man who
was near the mill with a load of flour had
his horse knocked down, and ran to save
himself. The horse got up and started off
at Il rapid rate, bringing up against the gate
post, and tearing the wagon to pieces.
Men were sent inside the building to dis
cover the extent of the injury there, taking
with them kegs, in which they gathered up
the remains of the dead. Massey was torn
into small fragments, but Naloney was not
SO much mutilated.
For miles around the excited people flock
cd out to the scene of the disaster in multi
tudes, never stopping for conveyances or
following roads, but running across lots and
fields. AS each one had some relative or
friend in whom they were interested, the
excitement was intense and painful to be-
hold One woman III Wilmington started
out Madison street, and ran all the way to
the mills.
There has never been SO great shock to
this city since the explosion of the powder
wagons at the corner of Thirteenth and
Orange streets, many years ago, and never
have the buildings in the vicinity of Bran
dywine Banks been so badly injured. In
Wilmington the heavy report from the ig-
nited powder created the greatest excite
ment, and every one appeared to anticipate
the cause of it. SO great was the shock
that the large window of Ferris & CARROTS
plumbing and gas fitting store. 5O4 Market
street, was shattered to pieces. The ex-
plosion sounded like the discharge of a
large cannon in our midst. Over the city
a dense volume of white smoke rolled, so
nearly resembling the clouds as to be
scarcely distinguishable from them, and the
air was mpregnated for a long time after
wards with the smell of gunpowder.
Photographic dispatches from all parts
of the country report a general and enthu-
siastic observance of Independence day ex-
cept in the South, where the celebration of
the occasion was almost entirely left to the
c"lored people.
NEU TERII.SEHENIS.