The Lake County star. [volume] (Chase, Mich.) 1873-current, 1873-07-17
Fire at Grand Rapids.
An Area Of Twenty Acres
Swept Over BY Flames Loss
500, O0O-Full Particulars.

Sunday afternoon, shortly after
4o'clock, fire was discovered. in
the rear Of Bridge Street House
stables, in the city OF Grand
Rapids, and before It conld be
brought under eontrol it had swept
.ovor All area Of nearly or quite
twenty &C, es, destroying property
to the value of $3.50, oo0 to $30o,-
600. The Eagle Of Monday even.
ing contains the following &C
count. oh rlo
The hostler Of the stable IF the
Bridge Street House reports that
he saw two men, whom he did
not know, passing ont ut a rear
door of the stable, one of whom
had a cigar in HE mouth. Very
soon after "a pile OF straw aud
manure, thrown out from ard
lying partially. against the south
west corner Of the table, was seen
10 be on fire. 1t was very dry, as
was the stable and all Its contents,
and In an Incredibly short time
the whole structure was, wrapped
in fire aud smoke, which u
heavy and wa, ering wind from the
southwest was hurting on both
sides and driving forward, s'
The stable had not got fully to
burning before Swedish. board
ing house and saloon OH the west
OF the stable was also blazing. In
this house there were qnartercd a
dozen or more Swedes and Norwe-
gians, whose effects were all wiped
out clean and suddenly with tho
house. simultaneously with this
movement OH the west side of
the stable, the flames lcaped
across to the east aide Of Kent
street, where were the Sandasky
House, kept Cy @. II. Wagner,
the blacksmith shop OF Kinney &,
Mitchell, Cum.nings' livery stable
and dwellings to the north OF
these, on same side, to Hastings
street. Directly in tho course Of
the wind, next north Of the sta
bic, lay a honse owned by Frank
Bnxhoimeland occupied by Char
les ucbsrit, and five other dwell
lings, these being on the west side
OF Kent to Hastings street.
The buildings above decribed
were all Except perhapstbc last one
on the block OH each side) burn
ing more or less before q stream
of water could be got, although
the engines wero stationed and
their steam mp in an astonjshingly
short time, firemen at once realiz-
ing the fearful prospect before
them, and working with tel rifle
energy during the whole time OF
the conhAgration, and till long af-
ter its limits had been reached.
In fifteen minutes from the strik.
ing of the alarm the vast ihrongs
or people, crowding OH all sidss OF
the fire, except in it's swiftly advan.
cling path, were fully Impressed
with a sense Of the tremendous
destruction impending. 1t was
plainly apparent to all that no pos.
eible means OF managing it could be
brought to bear, to avert the great.
ost destruction ever yet experien-
ced hy fire in the number Of
buildings Involved, And so il
proved.
The brick block ofstores, shops
and ,encments, owned by Febig
and Rathman, was heated through,
and smoked at times, but by great
cxertions it was kept from catch.
ing. The Swedish boarding hoase
tell to ashes beneath its cast wall,
withou, burning it; but tho Grand
Rapids City Mills FIGURING mills
were now ablazo all through tho
two upper stories, bringing the
fro to face Canal street, with a
heat so unsupportable that only
by turning the nozzles upon
themselves, aud by OCCASIONAL y
leaping int" tho Canal, could the
fireman there stationed endure it.
But all through tho rest of thai
block, north to Hastings street,
and through the block cornering
northeast upon the ono in which
the fire started, bounded by Kent,
Ottawa, Hastings and Trowhridge
strcets, aud through, the north
half OF the block south Of that, il
was at once a roaring sea and tenn
pest OF fame, resistless, terrible, de-
tiant and overwhelming.
The wind seems to steadily
strengthen by the ruin II fed
upon, and by the time had
shifted from a little south Ia
abont due southwest, and had in
creased to an absolute gale. The
descriptions vi the Chicago and
tho Peshiigo fires wero shrinking,
ly brought to mind. Masses OF
blaze were continually hurled
through the air horizontally
above tho honsee without any
apparent enbstaDce accompanying
them. Sheets VI blaze soc med tU
eettle down the armament and
begin dcvouring the roofof honses
half a block to leeward Of the near.
ost one burning in tho principal
MACS, leaving several not vet
igni'ed between, bnt for q short
time only. Massive tree tops
suddenly dried to q crisp, singcd,
thQn hIaxed ny with nuo al,