Public ledger. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1865-1893, 1877-06-08
$3,O0O,OOO FIRE.
Thres Squares at Galveston, Texas.
Destroyed this Morning.
Fire and Loss Of Life at Bridgeport,
Connecticut,

Twenty-seeond streets and the bay, we're
destroyed by FIRE this morning. The
principal losses are the Grand Southern
Hotel, seeligson's bank, First National
bank, L g. H. Blum, A. C. Crawford &
Co., G. Seeligson & Co., cotton ex-
change, 7. G. Ayers, Jacobs & Beck.
hardt, I, c. Thompson & Co., J.. M.
Brown & Co., F. D. Harrar, and Geo.
Schneider & Co. A block Of buildings
between Carondelet, St. Charles, Phillip
and First streets was partly burned.
Loss estimated at So, OOO, 900.
B%RIDGEPoRT, June 8,-The most disas.
trous fire eve experienced here occurred
last night. At 1890 a light was dis
covered in the fourth story of Grover,
Sanford 4 Sons factory; an alarm was
sounded, followed by a second, and the
whole department responded, The wa
ter supply proved insufficient and the
fire thereby gained the mastery. The
flames were first seen in the dyeing or
mixed room in the northwest corner Of
the third story Of the main building, and
running along that floor was commuui
Gated by the dummy TO the stairs below.
The main building was two hundred and
eighty feet long, fifty feet wide and four
and a half stories high. To the top of
the high basement The walls were six
teen inches thick; above that was a
story eighteen feet high and two
others eleven feet high, surmount-
ed by aa attic, all supported by
,@elye inch walls. The windows we're
forty eight inches vide, and the columns
between them forty inches. While volun-
teers were removing goods from the
Office, the back and front walls of a one
story structure suddenly, and without
warning, fell out, leaving the two highest
walls unsupported. One Of the adjoin-
ing Offices leaned outward, and, as a
shrek went up from the spectators, fell
upon the roof Of the office, crushing
through to the basement and buryine
those within.
One man, who escaped With a cash,
stated there were a dozen men in the
ruins, and already eleven bodies have
been recovered. Nearly all are fearful
ly crushed, and more or less burned.
At the anne time the east end wall also
tell, carrying TIE fire into a wing ITO feet
long and 90 feet wide. This was also
completely destroyed, together with the
engine and boiler rooms adjoining. The
walls fell about 1890, and as soon as
possible search for the missing was com.
menced, but it was 5 o'clock before the
first body was recovered. During the
next hour eight we're found, and by 10
o'clock t~hirty.two others had been taken
from the ruins. The bodies we're placed
in wooden boxes awaiting the action Of
the coroner's jury.
The names of those recovered are o.
j. Acker, aged so, limbs burned of to
the knees he leaves a wife and two chill
dren; George Acker, son of O. j., Q
20, crushed; John Gallagher, age IS,
leaves a wife and two children; Edward
O'Toole, age IS, leaves a wife and chill
dreni Charles F. Dart, age 38. leaves
a wife and four children; John Maloney,
age 28i William Mcintyre, age %, head
severed from body; John Tomlin, eyed
30, burned beyond recognition, but was
identified by warts and a ring.
One other body, supposed to be hat
Of a young man named Sweeney, was
found with his limbs burned off. An.
other body was so crushed aud burned
as to be unrecognizable, but is supposed
10 be hat OF q man named Coyne. The
original building was erected at a cost Of
$1,000.
Sanford's loss on the building ,machin-
cry and stock will reach about a quarter
of a million dollars; insurance, $780,.
600. There we're about fifteen thousand
hats ready for shipment, the most Of
which we're destroyed The hat shop gave
employment to $50 hands, and was to
have started Monday with full force.
Sanfords say they will sell or lease,
rather than put up a new factory without
a better water supply. They had hose
IN every floor, but no water could be
had.