Perrysburg journal. (Perrysburg, Wood Co., O. [Ohio]) 186?-1965, 1877-07-27

hillsides, merely as spectators, served to in
| crease the bitterness of the crowd By eight
o'clock in the evening mobs were moving
| about the city in various directions, seeking
stores to secure arms, breaking into the
armories OF the military companies, and pre-
| pairing themselves to execute the threats
| freely expressed Of massacring the entire
Philadelphia command BY this time the
| military had withdrawn from the railroad
crossing at Twenty-eighth street, where the
| first conflict took place, and were ordered to
| one OF the round-houses, where they could
| find better protection.
About ten O'Clock in the evening a mob
numbering several thousands cofgregated
about the round-house. They had previous
| ly captured the guns belonging to the Hutch
| inson Battery, local organization, and
| planted them so as to command the round
| house. Several solid shots were fired at the
building and breach made in the walls, but
| when the infuTiated mob attempted TO rush
into the building the military were ordered
| to fire. The volleys Of musketry Which fol-
| lowed, and the rumor that the GatlinE guns
OF the command were being brought into
requisition, caused panic and the mob fled
| precpitately, the military meanwhile keep.
ing up the fusilade. The rioters, hosever,
were soon reassured, and as thousands were
nocking to their assistance, retu"1ed 10 the
| attack.
Finding 1t difficult to disID e military
| from the building they resolved to burn
/
aud it was carried into execution with slac-
| rity by the rioters. As a consequence of the
| blockade which had existed for two days the
sdings in the outer depot yards as well as
| those extending eastward some three or four
| miles were crowded with freight cars filed
with grain, products and merchandise of all
| kinds, besides which a number Of laden
oil, coke and coal cars were piled up in the
mass.
While a portion of the mob surrounded
Oh
refuge, large bodies proceeded to set fire TO
the oil cars, and in a moment the work Of
| destruction commenced. The sight of the
flames seemed to craze the rioters, some OF
whom rushed wildly about with flaming
torches in their hands, applying them to the
sounded and the Fire Department promptly
responded, but the rioters, who had COM
plete control of the city, refused to permit
| them to make any effort to extinguish the
flames They said they were determined to
| destroy the railroad companies property,
but would do no injury to that belonging 10
private citizens. They kept their word, too,
and when lumber pile belonging to a
citizen took fire the rioters themselves
turned in and helped to extinguish the
| flames and remove the lumber to a safe
place.
Train after train was fired by the infuriated
| crowd, but the cars were so far distant from
the rOund-hOuse that the heat did not seri-
ously affect the military, although their posi-.
ton was one of peril Finally large party
| OF strikers captured a car filled with coke,
which they run from the Allegheny Valley
| Railway track to a siding connecting with
| the Pennsylvania Railroad. They then pro-
cured large quantity of petroleum oil, and
| pouring it over the coke ignited the material.
| In very few moments the car was mass
of fire, and it was then pushed along the
| track and forced against the round-house
! The building was soon ignited and the sol
diers were now compelled to prepare TO fight
| their way out through the frenZied mass of
| humanity clamoring for their blood. The
| building did not burn as rapidly as was
desired, and the mob, bent on revenge,
rushed out on the road and sent burning
trains toward the doomed buildings. From
midnight until o'clock this morning the
main efforts of the crowd were directed to
rng the 9gidipgs ags qPS 6oPs Rpt eRgnmt If
ual danger of being roasted alive, an oppor-
tunity to emerge from the building, and they
succeeded in reaching Liberty street in very
few moments. They marched up TO Thirty
third street. and thence to Butler street
Their objective point was the U. s. Arsenal,
where they expected to obtain shelter
While turning into Butler street the leaders
of the mob had discovered their retreat, and
fully 1000 men, fully armed and supplied
with ammunition, followed in pursuit. Some
| of the troops fired at the citizens, either ac-
| cidentally or Intentionally, as they moved
along, and this added fury to the cry for re-
venge. When they reached the arsenal the
| commandant refused to admit them. He
said he had but ten men and would be pow
erless to hold the place if the mob should
attack it. He consented to take care of the
wounded and they were accordingly carried
| into the hospitals. The main body of the
| troops continued their march out Butler
street, a fusilade being kept up on them by
| the mob as they moved forward. The shots
fired killed one of the soldiers before they
reached the arsenal and nearly opposite the
cemetery gate, fully mile above the arsenal,
two others were killed and were left lying on
| the sidewalk. They continued their flight
and crossed over the river on the Sharps-
burg bridge, the mob following. After reach
las tIIV th si1O the troops scattered, aud
in this way the mob was divided into very
| small bodies.
In the meantime the city was in a state OF
anarchy. Thousands who had not Joined in
the pursuit of the fleeing troops gathered
about the burning buildings and trains and
assisted in spreading the flames wherever
they had not been applied. By seven O'Clock
| the fire had extended from Milvale station to
Twentieth street, and enveloped hundreds of
cars, the extensive machine shops, two
round houses, the depots and offices CT the
Union Transfer Company, blacksmith shops,
storehouses, and numerous buildings max
ing up the terminal facilities of this nam
moth corporation. In the round house were
| l25 tirst.class locomotives, which had been
housed in consequence of the strike. These
were totally destroyed; but even the i'm
mense loss which will be sustained in this
item alone is but trihe in the aggregate
damage done.
The scenes transpiring on Liberty street
along the line of which the tracks of the rail
roads run, simply beggars description. While
hundreds were engaged in firing the car:
and making certain of the destruction of the
valuable buildings at the outer depot, thou
sands of men, women and children were en-
gagged in pillaging the cars. Men armed Will
heavy sledges would break open the cars and
then the contents would be thrown out anc
carried off by those bent on profting by the
reign of terror existing.
A mass meeting of citizens was called al
noon and a committee was appointed to wall
on the railroad authorities and suggest 8
compromise and another to confer with the
rioters. The latter committee failed in theil
effort and the railroad authorities could moi
be fonnd.
AT $3.50 p. m. burning car was run dowr
the grade under the sheds surrounding the
Union Depot. Up to this time it was hoped
the building would escape, but the mass OF
pine timber used in the shedding over Sht
tracks was soon q sea of fire, and the flame;
soon reached the depot "a four-story build
ing, used, except the ground floor, as a no
tel. This was totally destroyed, together
with the Pittsburgh, Cincinnati ~ St. Louii
freight depot aud offices, the depot of the
: Adams Express Company and the immens,
elevator near by.
Another meeting of citizens was held ant
o vigilance committee organized to preven
further destruction Of property. Hundreds
at once Joined the committee and order wal
partially restored.
The railroad buildings destroyed are al
follows: Two round-houses, one machine
shop, Superintendents Office, car.repai
shops, blacksmith shop, three or four oil
houses, Union Transfer Depot and offices
Pullman Car Company's laundry and offices
dispatcheT's office, powder-house, UnioI
Depot, hotel, the Panhandle Railroad engine
house, general offices, and freight depot
and the freight depot of the Adams EXPIRES
Company. The loss can only be estimated
J Along the Pennsylvania Railroad from TIL
} Union DeTot to East Liberty the numerous
tracks were filled with loaded ears. Thes
were burned from Thirty-third street Il
Thirteenth street, a distance of twent.
! blocks. II is estimated that 1000 cars loade'
with Oil, coal, and all kinds OF merchandise
were totally destroyed. All these, togethe
with the locomotives, buildings, and othe
I property destroyed, swell the Pennsylvania