Delaware gazette and state journal. (Wilmington, Del.) 1883-1902, 1884-01-03
THE DEVASTATING FLAMES
NINE BUILDIhGS RAZED TO THE
GROUND.
$4,000 worth OF DuPOnes Prop
erty Near Henry clay Burned
Eriday-A COmmunffy's Alarm
and Peril.

n erty Near Henry Clay Hurne
Is Friday-A COmmunfty's AIarI
a and Peril.
's The cluster of workshops, sheds an
a store houses, be.onging to E. 1. DUPONT
|. de Nemours x Co., where barrels an
h kegs for shipping powder are made, wa
d destroyed by fire at 2 80 Friday morning
i entailing loss, including stock, esti
8 mated at from 360,000 to &75, 900. Th
burned buildings nestled closely togetha
e at the foot of sharp, wooded hill alont
the BrandywiDe, at the place called tn,
l Heg mill by reason of the product of tn,
8 factories.
7 Henry Clay wooden mills are directly
1 opposite, rolling mill filled with powder
In Hagley yard short distance above
Just below Oh the opposite side OF the
creek is the barley mill and around the
horseshoe bend in the water's course Ia
an0ther large powder yard and magazine
with numerous tenanted houses interven-
ing. narrow road or lane separates
the smoking oinders of the buildings,
where manufacture was carried on, from
the store houses where material in
different stages Of completion WAS kept.
The buildings were partly frame and
those on each side OF the road were built
directly adjoining.
At 2o'clock in he morning John Brown,
the watcdman of the buildings, made his
rounds, but detected no traces of fire.
Soon after Henry Carter, another en-
ploye, discovered small fire issuing from
the cooper shop on the first floor near the
chimney. He instantly gave the alarm
and with Brown rang the fire bells which
brought large numbers Of those engaged
in the mills from their beds to the soene
of the fire, The cooper chop being filed
with shavings and dry materials WAS an
easy victim to the fsmes. which soon
burst from the weather boarding and
windows completely enveloping it.
| The cold wind blew hurricane from
the northeast and carried the sparks to
the adjoining buildings, and instantly
famed them into flames. The large four
storied stone and frame cotton factory
just across the way, in use as store
| house, very soon caught fire from the
| cooper shop. 1t WAS filled with barrels
and slaves, thoroughly dried, which were
excellent prey for the flames. The whole
interior of the building in rev instants
was aglow with the fire which burned
madly and drove the men from the fire
pump in the basement, cutting off every
nope of being able to quench the flames
before they communicated to buildings
adjoining. The intense heat soon cracked
the factory walls and sent the roof
heavenward in clouds OF brilliant sparks,
which threatened destruction to every
object upon which they alighted.
From the cooper shop the flames made
an nnresisted attack upon the keg mill.
Quantities of do
machinery and the building we're soon in
ashes. The hoop pole house was an easy
victim to the tempest OF fire and was
swept away with its entire contents in a
very few minutes. The tar house WAS
the last building in the row on the upper
side of the road. Its oombustible contents
were fascinating prey for the flames.
On the opposite side o. the road the
flames had leaped from the factory to the
staye shed, the drying jhouse, heading
stock platform, and store house, and
swept furiously on, aided in their de-
structive efforts by the driving hurri-
cane. The volume of fire lighted up the
surrounding country as bright as day.
The men worked bravely almost in the
very midst of the fire, saving as much
stock as possible by throwing it out on
the 10y surface Of the creek and t.ans-
porting it ont of the, flames reach to the
opposite bank.
The work of destruction to the entire
property at the keg mills W as complete save
platform of barrel headings to which It
was thought the flames had updisputed
claims. Just as they had approached the
upper portion of the platform the wind
veered several points, and blew right
into the teeth of the fire. Then the battle
of the elements began and was fierce and
furious, Aided by the men the wind
beat the flames back, and this pile WAS
saved from destruction. Soon after day
light the flames died out, and left opIy
piles of chsrred, burning embers, and
cracked staggering walls in the places Of
the buildings through which they had
swept.
The cooper shop, like other buildings
IN the upper row, was a two.storied
structure with basement. In 1t were
great quantity of stock and tools. In the
keg mill adjoining were stored innumera-
BILE barrels and about $4,000 kegs which
with the valuable machinery were des-
troyed. Four thousand vanished kegs
and great deal OF stock went up in the
flame with the hoop pole house, and
large pile OF 24-inch cooper stuff shared
the same fate. Barrel stuff in great
quantities, 1000 varnished kegs. &c.,
were destroyed by fire in the tar house.
The large four-stOried stone and frame
mill building was completely filled with
barrel AND keg stuff all of which with an
engine, fire pumps and machinery we're
victims to the flames. On the platform
adjoining 5000 sets of keg slaves were
iying in process of seasoning, all of which
we're burned. Next came the dry ho, re
filed with stock, barrel heads, keQ and
barrel slaves all of which went up in fire
and smoke. In all about &c, 900 IN ade ul
kegs, stock for 100000 more, 1900 gov.
ernment barrels and great quantity of
material in different stages Of manufac-
ture were burned.
The loss will not be definitely known
for some days, but estimates from relia-
BILE sources place it at from $780, 900 to
SIS 900.
Nothing that may be regarded as
positive is known as to how the fire
originated, but it is believed to have
caught from the chimney. Whether or
not new buildings will be erected upon
the sites of those destroyed has not been
stated by the company.
During the burning of the buildings
the residents Of houses in the vicinity
were completely terror stricken lest the
flying sparks communicated with the
roofs OF powder mills near by. The men
employed at saving the material from the
flames We're also laboring under the same
weight of fear. They appeared dazed
and while doing their best seemed
momentarily expecting an explosion that
would wreck everything in the CON-
munity.
In one Of the buildings burned was
quantity of OLD powder loosely packed in
barrels, and when the fire reached it the
barrels were sent liRe TO. kets through the
roof and followed by a shower of sparks
shot upward above the tree tops.
Their fall was watched with intense and
almost bresthless excitement. Happily
none landed on any of the adjoining
powder mills or the result might have
been very disastrous both to life and
property.
The wind sent sparks and even burn
ing pieces OF barrel heads through the
trees, over and on the roof OF
mill in the lower yard where
a large smount Of powder was stored. A
ooatihg OF snow, however, promptly ex-
tinguished the embers and prevented an
explosion. The shifting OF the wind early
this morning drove q train OF sparks
directly toward Hsgley yard rolling
mill, but the fall OF snow did like SER