The Carbon advocate. [volume] (Lehighton, Pa.) 1872-1924, 1884-12-13
A Family Burnt to Death.

A small mining village known as rrcn.
ton, or Park Place, situated four miles from
Mahanoy City, was the scene of big fire
at 4 o'clock Tuesday morning, by which
block OF houses were destroyed and six
persons were burned to death. Park Place,
as it is generally called, has population Of
nearly 200 people, exclusively miners ana
their families. who work at colliery, upon
which the inhabitants solely depend for a
livelihood. The houses are all three.story
frame structures and are built in blocks OF
six houses in each block The fire broke
out in the dwelling occupied by Frank
Barlow. Peter Alspach who lives next
door to Barlow, in describing how the fire
was discovered SAID he heard loud noise,
as if something very heavy had fallen A
moment later SNAKE and flames began to
pour into HE room. He aroused his family
and all rushed nut in their night clothiIg.
Alspach gave an alarm ami tried tn
awaken the Barlow family, who were ap
parenlly sound asleep. The whole neigh.
bnrhuod soon reached the scene Of the fire
but all efforts to arouse Barlow or his lam ly
proved unavulling. Several miners broke
IN the front door, but were obliged To
retreat owing TO the sinpEe and flames
They. however, effected an entrance into
the building from the rear ran up stairs
where ct window they bpheld the arm e., t
man protruding. An effort was made o
reach hlm, but the rescuers were driven
bacI and the spectators were compelel tn
stand helplessly by and witness the Barlow
family perish in the flames. While a
number of men went to the rear with lad
ders, in the hope Of reaching some of the
family, they stumbled over wha. proved
10 be one Of BdrUw's children
The little fellow was picked IN and
carried into neighbours house, where
meOieal aid soop brought him around He
said his name was George aud when they
awoke and found the house on fire they
tined TO get down stairs, hut were cut Off bv
the flames. He said his father took him in
his arms, carried him to the window and,
after Kissing HIM good bye, threw him out.
The heroic father also made an eiIart to
ssye his son Thomas. but was overcome AMI
tell with his ann partly out of the window,
as he was subsequently, found The follow
ing are the victims who pershed IN the
flames: Frank Barlow, aged forty FIVE; Mrs.
Barlow, aged icrty five; Annie Barlow,
aged fourteen; Walter Barlow, aged ten;
Thomas Barlow, aged four, aud James
Fitzgerald, aged twenty one, who boarded
with the Barlow iamIy.
RECOVERING THE DEAD BoDIRs,
The wlldest excitement prevailed when
the flames communicated Ia the adjoining
houses and spread so rapidly that in
twenty minutes the entire block Of six
housrs were cnyeloped and completely
destroyed, together with their contents The
families who occupied them were So over
come by the fate of the Barlow family lhst
lhar were pnwerle's u move from the spit.
When the ilauI,s had unthing else to burn
the fire was suon eXlingulshed aud a search
for the dead bodies commenced. Portions
OF the bodies were recovered, bat were
burned beyond all naturalization aud pre-
srnled a most slckruing sight. There was
some louOt at first as To wetner the board
er, Fitzgerald, was one of the victims. from
the tact that he was pu the night SHIFT aud
could not be in bel more than hallau hour
before the fire bIoke out, but the finding ui
"A lantern which Fiz,erald's helper says lie
carried with INN when he left the breast al
2 u'cluck and the fact that three lull-grawp
trunks were eXhvmed from the runs is
sufficient evidence that he was ia led at
the time and prrish-d with the others.
Three Of the other burned houses were
occupied by Michael Drumheller, DAVID
Bevan and Peter Alspach. Two ot the
dwellings were empty, the families
having moved out only few days agn.
The loss will br about $40 600. The prop
erty was owned by the Delino Lqud Cum
pany aud leased by Lenlz. Lilly &Co., who
are the collIery operators
Deputy Coroner Taggar, Of FrackYille,
drove TO the stene and empaneled "A iary,
whose returned verdict that 1.-THE victims
were accidentally burned to death in the
house of Frank Barlow on the morning Of
December Q, 1854, and the origin of the
fire is to the jury unknown" The scene
Of death and destruction was visited by al
least two thousand people during the day.
Barlow and Fitzgerald were miners aud
usually worked together at the New Coli
cry Park, No. 2