The Cincinnati daily star. [volume] ([Cincinnati, Ohio]) 1875-1880, 1877-08-03

flame-enveloped building. beheld seven
or eight imprisoned girls standing at
and i'll the windows, Wrlnging their
hands In terror and beseeching help,
their voices sounding loud and clear
above the din and confusion of crack
ling flames and the noise OF the excited
crowd.
Still the flames ragged; the board piles,
frame houses, stables and fences SUI
rounding the Peistring factory were
being devOured with rapidly never be-
fore equaled. Still the girls were at the
windows, with the fire crawling swiftly
and surrey to where they stood with
ghost-!ike laces, and trembling forms.
They realized that a
HORRIBLE DEATH
awaited them, and they seemed to be
dumb with either terror or despair.
Soon after this the clothes OF two or
three caught fire, and the poor victims,
with arms thrown above their heads
and SCI cams Of heart.rending agony,
fell back among the ruins.
AT this writing it is impossible to
state how many lives We're lost, but
| only two of the many girls who are
known to have reported for duty this
morning at the usual lime OF gong TO
work are known to nave been saved.
DESCRIPTION OF THE BUILDINGS.
The building, Nos. 271, 273, 27J Broad
way, in which The fire began, was a five
story brick, erected about year ago by
j. g. j. A. Nurre, manufacturers OF
molulngs, SC. 1t IS situated on lot
fronting on Broadway and stands back
from the pavement about twenty feet.
On the north of this house Is A. DER
ker's four-story saloon; the rear part oil
| : hui 4 hau N hf
the nor,h wall OF Pelstring's factory.
North Of this Is L. Wheaton's one-story
frame, used for storing hams.
| South of Pe.string's factory is Books
feed store, a tWo-sJory frame. Next TO
this, fronting both on Broadway and OIL
Eguth street, is Jacob AnschutZ's feed
and grain mill. Adjoining on Eighth
street is a two-.tOry frame, used as d
feed store. VIM. Millers horse-shoeing
shop, a one-stUry frame, comes next.
Then MINORS three houses-a twO-Story
frame, d two-anG-a-halt story brick and
then two-story frame, running back
along the canal. Back Of this place was
a frame used as acooper shop.
| The fire spread southWardly, owing to
the wind, and destroyed The rear Of Mil
lers house, the whole o! No. 81 Eighth
street, Which was occupied by family
named Dolan, the rear OF the
house No. 6o, occupied by
another. family named Hennessy .DJlah's
place and the cooper shop were COM
pletely gutted by the flames. BOOKS
feed store and Anschutz's mill were
not injured, except the former, which
was sllgbtly damaged by water. Dierk-
ers saloon was badly scorched and
damaged in the upper story in the rear,
by the falling wall ofthe factory. Wheat.
ley's place in the back was knocked
down and lot of hams buried in the
ruins.
South of Pelstrings and back of
| Books feed-store was situated Il. d.
AlbrO's veneer factory. This was a
four-story brick and was entirely swept
ouL of existence. The building is a
total loss, as also its contents, consist
| ing of lot OF finished yeneers, boarding
and stock of valuable veneer blocks.
THE FALLING WALLS.
| The fire had lasted but three or four
minutes when the north wall from the
top to the second story toppled in, leav-
| ing only the immense chimney in the
rear and the first and second stories
standing. The latter bulged out at
least six inches and also threatened to
tumble. The front of the building fol-
lowed Dy lalllng 10 lne west.
| The whole OF the south wall and the
rear or western part went next. The
two corner columns of the building 'front.'
| ing Broadway alone remained to show
| that a tive-story building had stood
| there. The falling of these walls damp
ened the tierceness of the flames, which
previously had shot high up in the air,
carrying with them bars of iron and
pieces Of timber weighing as much as
two hundred pounds.
THE ROOF LIFTED UP.
The roof, which was tin one, was
lifted up, and partly melting was scat
tered in pieces through the air. Some
OF these were carried as far as three
squares, and then dropped on the houses
or street.
On Eighth the houses on the lower
side were badly damaged by the Ire, sew
eral OF them being considerably burned.
ORIGIN OF THE FIRE.
A STAR reporter this morning met Mr.
Ambrose Black, the engineer OF the
Pelstring establishment, and from him
learned the following regarding the
cause OF the fire:
Mr.. Black and his son Edward, who
is the assistant engineer, had got
pretty good fire under the boilers, and
uad stepped away to attend to
some other duty 4. in the engine.
room, when they noticed blaze
in what is called the shaving room,
place where the sawdust and stuff that
they use for fuel is placed. This room
Is not tar from the furnace-door, and MIR.
Black Is confident that spark from
the furnace fell into this mass
Of debris, which is as combustible as
gun-:etton, almost, and thus started
The hre. lie says that it was not more
han three minutes alter he and his son
escaped from the cellar before the
whole building was in flames.
KILLED AND WOUNDED.
At this writing lour bodies have been
taken from the RUNS and are lying in an
Office near by, but it is impossible to
identify them, as they are burned be-
yOnd recognition. Not shred of cloth |
Ing remains by which their friends could
ell who they are. Every exertion is
icing made to clear away the debris |
nat the other bodies may be brough, |
out, but the heat makes it work OF
.lfficulty.
A large number were seriously, and
some fatally, injured. John Piacken.
berg lives on Bauk Lick street in Gov |
ngton, and has wife and four chill |
iren. He was in the building, having |