Juniata sentinel. [volume] (Mifflintown, Pa.) 1846-1873, 1872-05-22
POWDER MILL EXPLOSION.
1,20O Kegs of Powder Destroyed.
The Woods on Fire for Radius Of Half
Mile.
LOSS ABOUT $4,000.

The Moosic powder mills. located on
the Lackawanua river. between Archi
bald and Gibsonburg, had their third
blow-up within the Las, eighteen months
yesterday. The fire originated in the
refinery II. consequence OF died nitrate
of soda opping and setting fire to the
Goor. The dried soda, when it comes
off the drying pans, is very hot As soon
as it was discovered that the floor was
on fire they threw water on the soda,
which exploded it at once. and away
went the refinery. There was a strong
north gale blowing at the time. which
carried he flames from the refinery to
the pres house, a distance of about $50
feet, where there were two hydraulic
presses, used for dressing The meal into
cakes from the press house. the flames
were carried al.ng by The high wind
and communicated with the corning
mil, distance of $50 feet from the press
huusa, where the cake is broken into
grains.
From the corning mill the flames
were communicated to what is called
the barrel mill. distance of about 400
feet farther down the stream. where the
ingredients are mixed from the barrel
mill t, the glazing mill, distance of
about 600 feet further down the river.
There is not a vestige of any of these
buildings left standing, with the except
rion of the engine stack at the refinery.
The prlveI zing mill, which was locat-
ed about 100 feet from the refinery,
where tie charcoal aud birthstone are
prepared, was blown to atoms. The
quarter of a mile distant, across the riv-
rr, was also destroyed, together with
about 800 bags of nitrate of coda and
thirty barrels of birthstone. They were
also Goo barrels of charcoal and thirty
barrels of birthstone near the refinery
that were burned.
The magazine and drying houses were
not destroyed. They contain about
a 900 Kegs Of powder. 1t was a close
call for the dry houses. The padlocks
were blown off, the outside doors blown
in, and the inside doors blown out. The
fire was within about twenty feet of
those buildings when the wind vecred
around, and the men, headed by Mr..
Boise, rushed in and threw water around
the structure, and fought back the fire,
and thus saved it from the fate of the
other buildings The woods for half a
mile around are all on fire, and the men
and boys in the neighborhood are work
ing with will to extingursh the fam 5.
Ihe bridge across the river, some dis
tance below where the explosion took
place, caught fire from the burning en-
bers that were hurled through the air,
and the one end was burned down. On
the other side of the river piles of saw
logs are on fire. In every direction,
and for quite a distance. can be seen
charred pieces of powder kegs, and large
sticks of lumber
We saw eight kegs of powder, all
charred, that Lad been blown about one
hundred feet from the building they
were in and did not explode. 1t is most
remarkable tha; there was no one killed
Or even injured. There were some men
about the mills, but the majority were
at dinner at the time of the explosion.
The shock was quite severe in the
immediate vicinity, Mr.. Boise, the
President of the company. was about
three miles distant when the explosion
occurred. He was on his way to make
an examination and see that all things
were going on right. He expects to
commence at once to rebuild the works,
and hopes to have them in running order
in abont two months He thinks they
have sufficient powder on hand to sup
ply the trade until he gets the mills
erected, providing nothing happens to
the Spring Brook works.