Public ledger. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1865-1893, 1881-12-10
Holocaust.


a terrible and shocking holocaust
which occurred at Rock City, seven
miles from this city this morning at
3 o'clock, by which sixteen men we're
burned to death, and large number
fatally burned has been received here.
The fire occurred in boarding house
in which nearly fifty workmen, en-
plOyed at Davis Island dam, were
boarding.
The horrors in Pittsburg follow
close upon the heels of each other.
Last evening terrible explosion oc-
Cured at the Keystone rolling mills
in the Fourteenth ward, but this
morning comes another which exceeds
in horror anything which hasoccurred
in this vicinity since the terrible de-
Struction Of life occurred by the col
lision on Tweuty-eighth street. Be.
tween 2 and 3 o'clock this morning a
frame clearinghouse located on the line
of the Pit;sburg & Lake Erie railroad,
some seven miles below the city, was
set on fire by the explosion of lamp,
and Of forty persons known to be
sleeping, only twenty.four escaped
alive, and even they were more or less
burned, and not one of them succeed
ed in securing their clothes, SO rapid
was the progress Of the flames. TIE
others we're literally roasted to death
without the possibility of an effort be.
ing made to rescue them.
The building in which the fire oc-
cured, as stated above, was located
about seven miles from the city at a
place called Cut Rock, and was owned
by Martin Joyce, contractor, but was
under the management of a Mr..
Krown as a boarding house keeper.
1t was about thirty feet vide and f ty
feet in length, and was CONSTRUCTED of
sixtOen-foot boards placed on ends.
1t had a board roof with very
steep pitch, and the loft formed
bya sloping root, was the place in
which the laborers were huddIed to-
gether for the night. In the lower
story was the dining room, and at one
end of the building was the kitchen.
The stairs leading to the lot were a
little better than a ladder and we're
located just at the side Of the door
leading from the dining room to the
kitchen. In the loft hunks were tr-
ranged, and but only one light which
penetrated was through two
openings without glass, but
which were closed at night with slid
ing doors so as to keep out the chill
night air. In this dark loft some
torty-three men we're supposed to have
slept last night. At least that num-
Der we're at supper last evening, and
none were reported away when the
hour for rising came. The origin Of
the flames which wrought such terri
bic destruction to human life, and
which caused such agony to those
who escaped FROM the death trap, was
the upsetting and explosion OF kero-
sene oil lamp.
The story as told by an eye witness
Of the FIRE was substantially as fol.
lows: Between 2 and 3 O'Clock this
morning Mr.. Known, the boarding
house keeper, rose and kindled a fire
in the kitchen stove. He left a
lighted lamp GU the table near the
door leading to the dining room, and
went to arousC bis vile and servant
girls. While he was gone the cxplO-
sion occurred, and in an instant the
dining room was filled with flames.
Mr. Known succeeded in escaping
with his wife and girls, but could not
do moro than call upon those up
stairs to escape for their lives. In
another moment the flames had en-
velOped the stairway, thus cutting off
the means of escape for the doomed
mon above, except through small open
ings at either end, and from those the
sliding doors had to be removed.