Dodgeville chronicle. [volume] (Dodgeville, Wis.) 1862-current, 1872-11-15
THE BOSTON FIRE.
Loss, s10o, 900, 900,
posroN. Noyemher iA--7 4

BosroS, November fe-7 q. m.
The Are which commenced at 80 lasi
night continues its devastation, and is nov
working its way through the large block be
tween Devonshire and Congress streets
north Of Water street. The fire first broke
out of the rear end of a large ive-story gran
ite building, Nos. 81, SO and 81 Summer
street, directly on the corner of Kingston
street. This building was surmounted with
a high Mansard roof, overtopping all Other
buildings in that immediate vicinity. Direct
ly the flames began to spread through the
story beneath this roof, and, before an en-
gine or hose-carriage was on the ground
great volumes of flames suddenly burst out
from the rear lower stories of the building
and in less than twenty minutes the whole
broad facade, extending fully one hundred
feet along Kingston street, was in sheet OF
1ameS, as was also at the same time, the
Summer street front, the heat being so in
tense as to force the firemen away from that
immediate Vicinity. By this time strong
wind had sprung up, and the flames began to
sweep over Summer and Kingston streets,
and despite all exertions of the firemen in
every branch of the department, the fire was
communicated to buildings on the the oppo-
site corner of Kingston and Summer streets,
as well as to the great block on the corner
of Summer and Otis streets, and, Unless than
half an hour thereafter, flames were bursting
Ouu VI 0HO IOOl0S duu oil UP anu uOWA buC
broad sides of the immense structures. By
this time the wind had increased to nearly a
gale, and the flames, having entire mastery
! OF everything, swept from story to story,
from roof to roof, from block to block, and
from corner to corner, driving the firemen
from every vantage ground they could secure,
| and rendering all their exertions useless and
futile. Wherever the flames reached they
rapidly consumed everything of combusti-
BILE character. ..t-a ... ..--a
The large block on the corner of Summer
| and Kingston streets, in which the fire first
started, was occupied on the first and upper
floors by Tebbits, Baldwin & Davis, dry
| goods jobbers. A. K. Young q Co. occupied
! the third and fourth stories as mandatory
for Skirts and corsets, giving employment to
| about 200 men. The second floor was oc-
cupied by Damon, Temple s. Co., furnishing
goods, &c. Notwithstanding this great
| building was in almost an incredibly short
| space of time completely leveled to the
| ground, its destruction had not progressed
far before the flames and sparks which arose
from it had lodged upon all buildings round
about. Thus the fire spread almost Instant
ly in three directions; first, to the adjoining
block on Summer street, then across Sum-
mer street to the opposite block; and then
to Kingston street. 3.
In the first-named direction the adjoining
building was occupied by Leland IL Whee
Mansfield 6 Co., importers of dry goods.
The next, Eager, Bartlett 81 Co., woolen
goods; O.. B. North d Son, caps and furs.
Next Farley, Amsden & Co., dry goods job
bers; and Rhodes & Ripley, wholesale cloth
ing. The latter firm owned the building.
The structure opposite the point of start
ing. was of granite, four stories and a
half high, occupied largely by Meyfin, Null
lin & Elms, dealers in trimmings, who used
the entire lower floor. Harding Bros. d Co.,
G. L. Ide, Carter & Co., occupied the upper
floor. From this building across tbs square
Smith, Rich & Corton, and Geo. M. GlaZier,
dealers in corsets, skirts, and knit goods.
On the corner of Otis and Summer streets
stood Everett Block, an imposing granite
structure owned by the Everett estate. 1t
included Nos. 50, 81, Sc, 5S, go, 62 and GA
Summer street, and was occupied by D.
Lyons Il Co., Neil Brothers, and Dreyfus,
Marr Brothers, dealers in clothing, furnish
ing goods, fancy goods, trimmings, etc. The
upper floors were used mostly as offices, and
occupied by various parties.
Now the fire began to creep steadily up
both sides of Summer street, crawling along
from roof to roof. Opposite the Everett
Block the buildings, as they were engulfed
in rapid succession, were as follows: A brick
swell front, occupied by A. Folsom & Sons,
floor cloth and oil cloths; George III. Butler,
hair goods, and Eugene Chaplin, commission
merchant. A granite block, occupied by
Morse, Hammond & Co., hosiery and gloves;
Stiles, Beal d Homer, wholesale clothing; 8.
Klous & Co., hats, caps and furs; Strucker
Brother, hat and cap manufacturers; Wy
man q Arklay, imported goods and linens;
Ewing, Wise q Fuller, linens and white
goods; Rothwell, Luther, Potter 81 Co.,
clothing; Mitchell, Green & Stevens, cloth
ing. .s.-...- --- .-s-st...
At this time, about ten o'clock, the flames
burst from the top of buildings on Arch
street, dozen doors removed from Summer
street, and almost before the existence of
flames in this quarter was known they had
spread down through the building, and were
bursting in perfect torrent from all the win.
dows in front of the fancy goods store of
Hawley, Folsom & Martin. The fire spread
to each side, enveloping the stores of Thorn
as Kelly & Co., D. NJ. ~Hogdon, clothing;
March Bros, Pierce & Co., Miner, Beale &
Hackett, all of which were quickly blazing.
At ten O'Clock the whole roof of the Ev-
erett Block was sheet of flame, sending
high into the air a colume of fire, smoke,
and lurid sparks. Having thus gained per-
feet control of the Everett Block, the fire
stretched it's arms across narrow Arch street, |
and moved rapidly up toward Washington
street, taking in the establishments of Geo. |
FL. Lane; Brett & Co., wholesale clothing;
Messenger & Co., dry goods; Edgerton q
IOOul5f SudnCO W wv hIDASJt
sewing silk; Lee, Tweedy & CO., dry goods;
Lewis, Brown & Co., gloves; Mareau d Co.,
commission merchants; Seavey, Foster q
Bowman, agents of Canton Silk Mills; Ket-
tie d Jones, commission merchants; Price, |
Task & Co., thread and trimmings; Porter |
Brothers, commission merchants; Nicholas
81 Sons, imitation hair. ...s gi,.-., .f.--e o. !
AT the opposite end of Summer street, |
near the junction of Bedford street, among
buildings destroyed were the following:
Heyer Brothers, importers of fancy goods
Gilbert Lovejoy & Co., woolens; No. %
John Cotter, hosiery, gloves, etc. No. 1922
Winthrop Square-the very center of the
great wholesale trade of the city, embracing
some of the most costly mercantile build
ings ever erected in this country, and occu-
pied by such great firms as James NJ Beebe
& Co., Stewart q Co., Anderson, Heath d
Co., and forty or fifty others, was before ten
O'Clock one mass of ruins.
On Kingston street-No. ii, occupied by
J.A.Hatch & Co., commission merchants. The
next were Nos. 16 and IL, occupied by CLARK
& Blodgett, commission merchants, and
.Mellen & Goodwin. The other buildings on
Kingston street were dwelling houses, which
were all destroyed
About eleven o'clock the scene in Lincoln,
Essex, South, Federal, and other streets in
that immediate neighborhood was one of
the saddest of the night. Hundreds of men,
women and children were hurrying along,
laden with every variety of household goods
behind them roaring flames tapping up
their houses before they could get half or
even a quarter of their goods into the /
street. - s84ssat rs.t tas.., ,a.f.s,g. .-s.f ~
The fire extended on both sides of Lincoln
street. On Russia wharf all the buildings,
mostly used by the rag, paper and junk mer-
chants were destroyed. There were vessels
lying at this wharf. At Robbins wharf
schooner was destroyed, as were the coal
sheds and large quantity of lumber on the
pier.
The wharf of the Hartford & Erie Railroad
was burned, and the passenger station OF
this cnrnnratinn- on Broad street.. at the toOt