The Leavenworth weekly times. [volume] (Leavenworth, Kan.) 1870-1880, 1874-05-28
CONFEDERATION.
Full Details OF the Central City
Fire.
Loss About One Million Dollars.

t1fe.
Loss About One Million Dollars.
Vivid Description Of the Fearful
Scene.
Intense Feeling Against the
Chinese.
List or the Losses and Insurance.
From the Denver Neus ard n ibuae IL
ceise yests rlay We get full particulars OF
terrible Il { which dsvs.t ,ted Central City,
,ni LETT the residents Of the town
homeless.
The ire originated about 1880 a. H., in
q Chinese wash-hOuse, or laundry, on Spring
street The air at the time was perfectly
sill, scarcely ripple to disturb ; serenity
1t Is stlied that dsa.h has occurred in
tie amily, aoj While they .ere celebrating
the funeral ceremonies in their Own way,
With fire and Chinese formula, the fire
caught in The tn, lding, which wss slight
PiIe structure. dry u, matches and - CON-
bustitle rs paper. Adjoining this Chiress
hou-e was q wsgon and blacksmith shop
KEEP; ty u ~ named M.rgan. This at once
took Gre from the sdioin!ng shaLt,. and in
a minute or two the fire was going in earn
ct.
1t was nearly eleven O'clock when the
ire got starte1 on its mi ssion of deslru. tioa'
The wind, which was blowing down from
towards Nevads, waited tie flames across
the street and sped the destructive element
4 own towards Black Hawk, and for time it
appeared as though clean sweep would be
made eastward. About Il O'Clock the wind
changed, and the FIRE started, roaring and
dancing, tOwards Main street. This change
Of the wind snd the course Of the Ere took
| the inhabitants completely by surprise.
People who hal. up To this time, regarded
the fire as one that threatened nothing seri
ous, rushed to their own houses and places
OF business in hopes to save what might be
pCS-lDie hOm tnIedteotu INSTRUCTION..
When the wind changed the city became
hopelessly doomed to de,truciion- The
houses were mostly Of dry pine frame, aud
clustered ~ closely to2e her Is possible to
build them, each filled with heavy stocks oil
combustible good, which offered new en-
coura2tment to the rambling flames, and
soon all became wrapped iniheltiery winding
sheet. Reaching the narrow winding street
/ llol Assy ID III G.
ross the barely allowed time for the people
TO escape before 10th sides Of the street
we're developed in fire. Thoee who were
present describe the seine at this time ss
terrifcally grand. The entire gulch or
valley was covered with dense black pail
OF smoke, which swept and curled slowly up
the ovsrhanging mountain side and up To
the clouds. The heat nov became intense
and it was plainly evident to all that the
entire business portion Of the city must go.
Both OF the local FIRE companies set them
selves to work energeticaly to isolats the
dwelling from the sheds and tinder-boxes
| around it, 70 a. to prevent its spread to the
more thickly settled parts Of the city on
Main, Lawrence and upper Spring street,.
They succeeded in levellng most Of them,
but ~ soon a. the flames broke through the
Chinese qusrter, they leaped With frightful
impeluosity from roof to roof, until it
seemed - though the. main portion Of the
town Was but one vast ocean Of IRE. IL
ruehed up Spring to Bridge street, crossing
the gusch meanwhile, and attacking the
rears of the row Of frame mercantile houses
fronting en- Main street, swept them out Of
existence in q few moments, divided its
strength here, one column moving rapidly
moving rapidly toward Lawrence, the other
toward Nevada street, swallowing up every
thing within reach on Spring, Bridge, Ne
vada and Main streets, driving the defend
ers Of their property far up on the hillsides
for protection from death. Fortunately,
many merchants, seeing the danger ut the
start, carried away their wares to places Of
safety.
Ai,acking the o. X. store, the chariot OF
flames tore madly down the street. consum-
ing With the velocity OF wbirl wind all
that had heen left TO consume, leaped wildly
III the b!ufi to Pine ant soon had every
tning on that street in aches but the granite
church Of the Catholics. Reaching Law
renee, the msin column Of destruction jump
Cd across to Concert Hall, the express Office
and theatre, roaring, crushing and sbrieking
its way through these, then leaving the
massive sheet to sssail the Register building,
the principal torrent passed down Lawrence,
taking in both sides, scattering devastation
to every combusible thing but Freas' and
Daynclds' fre-procfs, within its path, until
checked at the burnt district Of 1873, where
there was nothing to feed upon.
The now seven times heated atmosphere
began to create . stiff breeze which blew first
from the east until the FIRE had consumed
Judge Morse's dwelling and Office, next to
Register block, when it suddenly yeered and
blew almost u gale from the wet. greatly to
the relief Of the citizens. The Teller house
va, saved only by the utmost ext riions.
About hundred and twenty-five build
iugy were destroyed, the most OF which we're
business establishments. With but few eI-
cepiions, tie burned sdiGces we're frame.
and many Of them very much dilapidst'd.
The burned district, which IL nearly all with
in the fire limit, and covering about eight
acres, will he rebuilt, and in u more sui stan
tial manner.
The heaviest individual losses are cub
s.antially as follows: l. Baum & Coin
Bros, stock 5000. building IS. 900; Tel
Ter Il Van Deran, building on Nevsda street,
SIG, 900; Van Deren block on Main. Sl2.-
900; A. jacobs & Co., stock AMI building.
$50. 900; Se.sler & Sauer, stocks in store and
one warehouse, $40, 900; Jas. Miller, huild-
ing, corner Main and Lawrence, Sl2,OOO;
john Best. loss on stock $4,000, W. H.
Tsppin & Co, stock and bui!dingp, sol 800;
Fred Sasser. stock, $l4, 900; O.csr Per.
stock, SIS 900; Thomas Mullen, building
and securities, $1,000; California Powde,
works, stock, 5000; First National bank,
81. 600; s. 3. Hahn, buildings and aecuri.
ties. IS 600: Judge Bslford, library, g, 900;