Clarksville weekly chronicle. (Clarksville, Tenn.) 1873-1890, 1879-11-01
GREAT FIRE IN NASHVILLE.
Burning OF nEcKemdree Church.


Burning of rEcEKendree church.
McKendree Church has long been
looked upon as a kind of cathedral
or metropolitan church of the Meth
odists of Tennessee. One Of the
oldest and certainly the largest
Methodist congregation in Tennes-
see has been worshiping there al
most since Nashville was city. In
our Nashville days (which were be-
fore the war; the building was quail
flied by the staid, dignified and
somewhat dingy responsibility OF
the old Nashville of those days.
Since then Nashville has been as
Stunning more and more the airs of a
modern city, expressed in four-story
business houses, plate glass win
dows and Mansard roofs; and, as
the congregation of old McKendree
had become much too large for the
limits in which it was confined, the
rulers of the communion seriously
mooted some years ago the proposal
to replace the old building by new
one which should be of dimensions
sufficient to accommodate the vast
congregation of over seven hundred
COMMITMENTS, and at the same
time be ethetically in accord with
the improved architecture of the
city. The result was new McKen-
dree Church, perhaps the largest
Gothic building in the State. Built
in the most forid style of Gothic
architecture, with its vast dimen-
sions and its three spires, the larg-
est of them said to be 230 feet high;
it was, next to the Capitol, the most
conspicuous building in the city,
and an object of pride and veneer
alton to Methodists throughout the
State.
OF this church the Rev. J. B.
West, formerly so well known and
we'll beloved as a citizen of Clarks-
vile, was the pastor appointed at
the recent Conference of the Metho-
dist held at MurfreesborO. He
preached his first sermon there on
Sunday morning, to very large
congregation, and his second to a
still larger one on Sunday night.
Two hours after service was over,
the sextOn's wife, who lives at the
back of the church, was going home
and noticed a red light and some
smoke in the basement of the
church. Her husband, on being
alarmed 1--WE here us the words of
the Nashville Banner), "entered the
Sunday School room by the window
near the main entrance. His first
thought was that the building had
been ignited by sparks from the
furnaces, although he could not
imagine how the fire could be start
ed that way on account of the doors
being tightly closed; thus prevent
ing sparks from being blown around
the apartment. Opening one of the
doors, he saw that there was no fire |
there. but upon entering the room |
next to where the furnaces are lOcat- |
ed was met by q sheet of flame,
which caused him to retreat rapidly. |
Closing the door in order to prevent |
the fire from communicating to the |
furnace room, Hammel left the
building. One of the men who was
standing near the church when Mrs.
Hammel first appeared, opened the
door of the room next to the fur
naces, and with deafening roar
huge volume of fame shot up
through the tower above the room,
and broke through the windows in
the front part of the building"
The description of the fire is that
of all great fires. Its terrible gram
deur eliminated when the flames
lowered above the central spire.
which, for a short time, stood like
IldTlNE at lHS SittkCy anu NliCil 1CiA
in with a mighty crash sending up
a dazzling shower of sparks to the
sky, which were soon carried miles
away by the wind. Thus persisted
Church! Neighboring
with exception of Mr..
Luek's store (tOys and fancy goOds),
were not much injured. The store
lost Its roof, and the
stocks in neighboring stores were
much injured by the water used in
saving them from the fire.
Our warmest sympathy is tender
ed to the Nashville MethodistS, and
to our old friend, DE-.
West, whose ministration, however,
will not be cut short by the fire, as
will doubtless be
made for continuing them in some
temporary building till a new
church can be erected.