The Emporia weekly news. [volume] (Emporia, Kan.) 1881-1889, 1885-11-19
TERRIBLE FIRE
Raging IN Galveston, Taras.
FIRST p1sPhrcH.

FIRST DIsPATcH.
81. LOUIS, Nov. ia great fire
started in Galveston at 80 O'Clock this
morning. and at latest adYices had con-
sumed several blocks OF buildings and
was burning within three blocks of the
beach. 1t started about Sixteenth street.
Hundreds of families are homeless.
SECOND DISPATCH
GALVESTON, Nov. 10, II 90 a. m.-The
fire has reached the beach, about mile
and half from its starting point, and |
ak or seven blocks wide, over 700 resi-
dences having already been burned. |
The wind il blowing terrific gale and |
the IRE is still burning fercelH.
THIRD DIsPATcH.l
3:45 a. m.-The fire has at this hour
spread over seven blocks and has become
grest coDfagration. Fully fifty dwell
ings are burning fiercely. and the path
OF the fire as it pro-
crosses southwark is filed with
finest residences In the city, but all are
wooden buildings for five squares south.
The fire was confined to the width of one
square. between 18th and 18th street; but
when it crossed Winnie street six squares
from the starting point, it jumped dag
onally to the southwest into the next
block and gives evidences of
consuming one-third of the city.
FOURTH DISPATCH.
GALVESTON, Nov. ia destructive
fire is now raging in the eastern part of
the city between Fourteenth and Seven
teenth streets. The fire broke out at
| 80 this morning In q small factory on
the north side of Strand street near the
corner of Sixteenth The flames rapid
! ly spread under stiff north wind and
the prospects are that Galveston is about
TO suffer a great loss. Six dwelling
| houses are already burned,
and immense clouds of sparks
are being carried four or five squares
over the roofs of wooden houses. The
entire department Is on the ground but
they seem paralyzed and unable to fight
the danes, because of the fierce winds
andsu ffocating smoke.
FIFTH DISPATCH.
800 p. m.-About four o'clock the
fire begun to spread to east and west OF
| 18th and 18th streets. The wind rose to
a gale and pandemonium reigned for a
time. 1t seemed as though the entire
eastern part of the city was doomed.
The fire spread rapidly to the southwark.
licking up blocks of elegant resi-
dences, hastily abandoned by their in
mates.
By five o'clock it had reached Broad
way which threds the center Of the Is
land running east and west. At O'Clock
the wind gave signs of dying away and
shortly it began to shift, then to decrease
until by 8 o'clock only fair breeze was
blowing but by this time the fire had
eaten its way to avenue N where at
o'clock it seemed to exhaust itself and
the firemen coming up checked its
further raYages at this point,
or within two blocks of the Gulf.
l FIFTH DISPATCH.
The burned district covers fifty.two
blocks, seven of which are not swept en-
tirely clean. 1t is sixteen blocks in depth
and averages width of three blocks.
From the house tops the smoking
burned district resembles huge black
desert.
1t resembled half oopen fan lying
across the Island from the bay nearly to
the gulf. The Island at that point is
nineteen blocks or one mile and quar-
ter wide. The fire started on the north
side OF the avenue, or better known es
the strand, which is one block from
the bay and it stopped within tive blocks
of the gulf. Sixteenth street is nine
blocks west of the extreme inhabitable
end of the island. The first resident
street being the sixth from avenue A to
avenue D, the fire was confined to the
strip bounded on the east by Sixteenth
street and on the west by Seventeenth
street.
The business part of the city begins at
Goth street and runs west ten blocks.
This outline locates the fire which began
to spread rapidly after it had passed av-
enue D. BY the the time 1t had reached
avenue ], or Broadway, it was
sweeping nearly three blocks in width.
From the west side of Seventeenth
street TO the east side of Fourteenth
street, about 800 houses were burned
which were occupied by fully 500 fam
lies. From avenue A TO avenue E, for
tour squares, the burned dwellingswere
occupied almost entirely by the poorer
class, and several families were crowded
in single house IN this strip. From
avenue E, however, the burned district
| includes the wealthiest and most
fashionable part Of the city. One hun.
dred elegantly furnished mansions are
In ruins. Many of these residences had
beautiful gardens attached and the
monied loss does not represent over half
their value.
Ali manner of estimates are to be
heard at this time. The city assessor
says the taxable value of the dwellings
burned Is $3.50, 600. This makes the
actual value of the property $500, 600.
which perhaps represents the loss In
money. The insurance Is estimated at
$500 600, although some insurance men
who haYe walked over the district
place the insurance at $500, 600. |
so far as can be learned not q single &C.
cident has occurred. The scene during
the progress of the fire was simply
frightful, so filed with misery and ter
Tor that whoever witnessed it must bear
its vivid impression for ever.