The Bloomfield times. [volume] (New Bloomfield, Pa.) 1867-187?, 1871-10-17
CHICAGO IN RUINS!
One Of the Most Terrible Fires on Record.

day night, the 7th inst, fire started in a
planning mill on jackson St. The immediate
vicinity is built up mainly with small wood
en- tenement houses and two-story frame
buildings, occupied as groceries, saloons,
&C. The inmates of many of these houses,
startled from slumber had barely time to
rush out in their scanty night attire, leav-
ing their household goods go to destruc-
ton. In several instances children were
| hastily wrapped in blankets and quilts to
/ break their fall, and thrown from the sec
ond-story window to the ground. When
considerable magnitude was burning on
Wells street, near Adams. Several engines
were necessarily kept at work upon this
fire. The rest of the engines soon arrived
upon the ground, but the fire had spread
over so large an area and was SO rapidly ex-
tending that their efforts seemed of little
avail. l.uu .a.i wI s'
The scenes in the vicinity of the confla-
grafton were indescribable. Half the pop
ulation of the city seemed gathered there.
The tugs in the river were engaged in tow
ing to places of safety the vessels moored
in the neighborhood, while locomotives
were hastily pulling out the great number
of cars standing on the track in flames.-
The glare from the burning buildings light
ed the streets half mile away so that one
could see to read. s'
In an hour the fire had made a clean
sweep from Van Buren, street north two
blocks to Adams, west to Clinton. Three
blocks from the river, between Van Buren
and jackson, were burning, and the wood
work of the western approach to Adams
street bridge was destroyed. A large coal
yard, containing thousands of tons of soft
coal, and situated between the tracks of
the Chicago and Alton and Pttsburg and
1 Fort Wayne Railroads and the river, was
| burning furiously. The immense grain ell
evator of Vincent, Nelson u Co., one of
the finest in the city, is Immediately ad-
joining, and though intended to be fire
proof, it was feared the intense heat would
crack the slate with which it is covered.
The depot of the Pittsburg, Fort Wayne
and Chicago, Alton and st. Louis Railroads
is between Canal street and the river.
The space burned over embraces four
blocks bounded on the north by Adams
street, on the west by Clinton street. on
the south by Van Buren, street, and on the
east by the Chicago river. Some four or
five buildings within the limits named
remain uniniuTed among them Vincent,
/ Nelson g. Co.'s grain warehouse, one of
the largest in the city, which escaped any
serious damage. This is due to the fact
/ that large piles of anthr acte coal lay be-
tween the burning buildings and the eleva-
/ tor, and by continuous application of large
quantities of water to the coal, the ware
house was prevented from being burned.--'
The space burned over was covered with
lumber yards, coal yards, wood yards,
planing-mill, vinegar factory, and a large
number of dwelling houses and saloons of
!, the poorer class.
I ANOTHER FIRE.
About half-past nine on Sunday evening,
/ the 9Th inst, the fire alarm again rang out
its fearful peal At first it was not thought
by the fire department that the affair was
dangerous, so that but few of the engines
regularly assigned to duty in that vicinity
were at first despatched to the scene, the
! rest, with the exception OF few whose at
tendants were resting from their exertions,
remaining to play upon the still shoulder
ing fire of Saturday night which was liza
BILE to again break out its hellish fury
Probably half or three quarters of an
/ hour elapsed before the extent of the new
eruption became known, when the entire
! fire brigade was ordered TO the rescue. ?,
| a half hour sufficed to show that the fire
department was utterly powerless-nl fact
no department in the world could have
stemmed the irresistible current of flame.
In two hours twenty blocks, containing
three hundred buildings, were devastated
| No description can give an adequate idea
Of the awful scene. From the south divis-
ion dense cloud OF smoke could be seen,
which gradually crept along borne by the
wind, in a northeasterly direction. Through
the smoke assembled showers of sparks and
! burning brands, while an occasional column
of livid flame shot upward from the lurid
sea below. With frightful velocity the
devouiing element tore along in its course.
For time there seemed to he faint hope
of averting it from the lumber yards, but
this too faded away MS the flying cinders
fell t1uon the vast niles of saasnnad tim har