Essex County herald. [volume] (Guildhall, Vt.) 1873-1964, 1875-03-13
A Disaster In . Church.

Among all the Sudden and heart-rend-
ing calamities that have happened in
this city, says the New York Hcrald,
there was never one SO fitted to stir the
public heart to mingled emotions of
horror, pity, sympathy, indignation and
an awful sense of the uncertainty of life
as that which befell the quiet worship
pers in st. Andrews church, ON Duane
street. This edifce stands on the north
side of Duane street, near Chatham
street. Sweeny's Hotel, large and
high brick building, is located on the
corner, facing both streets. just west
of it, on Duane street, and adjoining it,
was tall, narrow store, six stores in
height, whose interior was consumed by
fire on the 18th of January, leaving its
iron front and brick sidewalks standing.
The next building to this is st. Andrews
church, a Catholic place Of worship--a
low, large structure, capable of seating
on its floor and in its broad galleries
about fifteen hundred people, Between
this low-roofed church and the western
side-wall of the tall, deep store left
standing since the fire of January II was
a space of some two or three feet.
This was the condition of things ex-
Gerior to the church and in its close
neighborhood when the congregation
assembled for worship. The prayers,
chants and other services which precede
| the sermon had b Ell gone through with
in regular order, and Father Carroll, of
st. Stephens church, was in the pulpit,
in the midst of a discourse which rose
to an unusual pitch of solemnity, as if
some mysterious premonition were oper-
ating on the mind of the preacher. He
was speaking of death, and warming the
| dense and crowded congregation Of the
fearful danger Of postpOning preparation
/ for that event, when, with dreadful sud
denness, his discourse was interrupted
by loud, Supplying crash, followed in
a second or two by another. The wild
amazement and frantic terror which en-
sued defies description. Those stupen-
dous crashes came through the roof on
the east side of the building, bringing
down portions of the roof and heavy
crushing mass of loose bricks upon the
heads of the people in the gallery on
that side. In the CONSERVATION, astonish
ment and horror which seized that
crowded congregation persons in the
gallery leaped over upon the heads Of
people i'll the pews, and there was {
trlmultuous rush toward the doors, il
which many were either squeezed an(
crushed to death or dreadfully injured
In the confusion nobody knew how
many had been killed OF how many
wounded in the gallery by the weigh
which came down upon their heads witt
the falling roof. After great effort ant
difficulty the church was at last cleared
the dead decently removed, the severel,
wounded taken to hospitals and thc
more slightly wounded to their homes.
The cause Of this horrible spectacle o
death, manning, fright, confusion ant
horror, which came without warning
and with such terrible swiftness upol
that peaceful religious assembly, il
apparent from the description of th'
locality. The long, high, western wal
of the six story burned building, lef
standing since the FIRE of the 10Th o
January, had suddenly fallen upon tn
low roof Of the church, breaking through
and driving down the heavy incumben
mass upon the heads of the people in tn
gallery directly underneath. The seen
which ensued in the church fills tn
imagination with shuddering horror.