Wilmington journal., 1873-08-01
BALTIMORE BURNED DISTRICT.
Four Squares ISIOtted Out-A Hum
dred Houses in A. shes Two Cl.ssch.
es DcstrOyed-A Thousand a1Ome-
less PcopIe-FuIl Account OF the
Burning.
From the American Of SAT turjay

less PeopIe-Full Account oi the
Burning.
[From the American Of Saturday
A great catastrophe fell upon Balti-
more yesterday, snch as she has not
experienced these many years. There
may have been fires in former years in
which the losses were nearly as great,
but never before were so many homes
destroyed. Great warehouses and fac
tories have heretofore melted away in
the consuming breath of the confagra-
tions of former years, but ,!as general
rule, it was only capital that was de-
stroyed, and the loss could be compu-
ted in dollars and cents. The disaster
of yesterday not only turned houses
and goods worth Il million dollars or
more into ashes, but it ruthlessly swept
away that which money cannot replace;
it invaded the inner sanctuary of home.
and all that clinging affections and
tender associations made inestl11ably
precious withered and perished be-
meath it's touch.
TOf the origin and rapid spread OF
the fire our readers were informed by
telegraph The following additional
| details are interesting
The square between Saratoga and
Mulberry streets is intersected with
alleys built up with small houses, oc-
c1pied chiefly by negroes. The roofs
of these houses were
| MoMENTARILY TAKING FIRE,
and it was only by tie strenuous cxcr-
tions of a number of policemen and
some colored men, who were not quite
unnamed by fright, that the flames
were prevented from gaining headway.
With the fires upon Mulberry and Sar-
atoga streets, the frightened denizens
of that locality thought themselves sur
rounded with flames, and ran about
screaming and crying, throwing their
furniture into the streets with reckless
and altogether unnecessary haste, and
giving vent to their feelings with the
Characteristic gush and effusion of ne
groes.
THE SCENE WAS TERRIBLE,
and was enough to strike terror into
those whose dwellings, were in proxim-
ity to the fire. 1t seemed at one time
as if the flames would cross Liberty
street, and the inhabitants of the fine
row of houses between Liberty and
and Charles street began to move out
was piled upon the pavements, and
dray and wagons were moving it as rap
idly as possible Charles street was
blochaded with long procession of
laden wagons carrying away the goods
of the frightened people. At times
there would be complete jam, and
there would be the greatest uproar
and confusion before the mass of We
hicles were extricated. All along the
east side of Liberty street the panic
stricken people We're endeavoring to
get out such Of their furniture IS they
could remove, ftG the flames were en-
. croaching llpon the row of houses on
the east side, and We're leaping forth
SO ravenously ly that they were expected
. to seize the houses upon the east side
as well. In one place large number
of books were thrown upon the pave
ment only to be torn and muddled
under the feet of the restless crowd
passing to and fro. In another place
il number of oil paintings and costly
, parlor furniture were lying unprotect
ed upon the pavement. Along Sara
toga street of Park there were piles Ot
fumture, bedding, and clothing, which
lay in the street, and no effort was
made to remove or preserve them
, Beds trampled under foot and THEN
contents scattered ont, aud furniture
was broken up, but the inhabitants of
the locality seemed overwhelmed by
. the magnitude of their disaster, and
waited the result with proverblal Ger
man phlegm. All along Mulberry stree.
people were also endeavoring to move
ont, and it seemed as If every one be
, lieved a
: SECOND CHICAGO FIRE
was ilnpendinr As the fire extended
, along the various streets they Were
roped in, and the police endeavored
to keep back the crowd. Eotwith,
standing their efforts, however. tholl.
sands of peopc g We're within the en-
closures, drawn thither by interest ol
curiosity, or because their homes were
in the threatened district. The fire
men worked with the greatest energy,
and by unremitting toll quite clrly i'll
, the afternoon the area III which the
fire originated was under control In
fact, the fire had burnt itself ont
Park and Clay streets being smoking
ruins. The fire along Saratoga street
was also under control, aud foul
houses on the south side, near Howard
street, were preserved intact, rs we'll
as the house on the southwest corner
of Park and Saratoga streo's. The
others were wholly or partially de-
stroyed. At "A latter period the row OF
houses on the south side of Saratoga
street, extending from Park to Liberty
streets, were brought under control,
but not until the greater portion was
III shapeless ruins. standing i'll Sara
toga street, one could look down,
through tottering walls and isolated
piles Of brick, almost to Lexington
street. Clay street was SO completely
covered with bricks that in some places
the sidewalks We're llndistinGuishabie
The heat WAS intolerable, scorchine
the face and binding the eyes, SO that
the smouldering piles were hardly APP
the north side of Mulberry street be-
tween Park ard Cathedral streets was
perhaps
TIE BURNED DISTRICT.
The fire did not destroy the build
ings on the north side of Saratoga
street, nor quite extend to Lexington
street on the south. It did not alto
gether grasp the houses on Liberty
street south of the Central Presbyte-
IIttu tutiiCl. llOl 1iNdSt NcSuW dItl
quite to Howard street. There were n
number of houses outside the burned
district that caught fire, and some of
them were badly damaged. Among
them was the store and dwelling of
Joseph Wetghman & Son, No. 80 Park
street; the fine residence of Miss Kate
Sears, fashionable dressmaker, corner
of Park and Mulberry streets; Dr.
Risley's residence on st. Paul street;
Miss Johnson's house on Calvert
street; Rev. Mr.. Watkins house on
Centre street; Mr.. Stacks dwelling on
Hamilton street; and the Baltimore
College on Mulberry street.
The latest sacrifices to the flames
were the fine row of dwellings, on the
south side of Saratoga street, west of
the Presbyterian church. The church
and all the houses on the south side of
Saratoga street, for q distance of two
blocks, were entirely destroyed