The Middlebury register and Addison County journal. [volume] (Middlebury, Vt.) 1883-1885, 1885-11-20
GALVESTON'O GREAT FIRE.
Forty Blocks of Houses Swept
Away by the Flames.
Hundreds of Families Rendered
Homeless in a Few Hours.

Details of the great fire which has just raw
aged Galveston, the leading city of Texas
nre as follows:
At 40 o'clock A. M. the most destructive
fire in the history Of Galveston broke out in
q foundry and car repairing shop on the
north side of Avenue A., known as the
Strand, between Sixteenth and Seventeenth
streets. A gale from the north was blowing,
and the flames spread with rapidity to both
of the adjoining buildings, one being a gro
Gerry and the other q dwelling. Soon the
long tongues crossed the street, and two more
buildings were in flames, the inmates barely
escaping with their lives At this moment the
fire department got two streams going, but
they were of no avail The heat became so in
tense that the firemen had to abandon their
places, and the wind rose and carried myriads
OF sparks to premises east of Avenue A. In
half en- hour two blocks were burning flercey.
and by o'clock every one saw that great
corhagration was upon the city. People for
squares around on either side of the
burning blocks soon became panic
stricken, and the cries of fright
ened women could be heard above the roar of
the fire and the mournful wind. At $3.50 the
fire had Travelled three blocks distant from
its starting point but in a straight line being
confined to the blocks bounded by Sixteenth
and Seventeenth streets.
About o'clock the fire began to spread to
the east and to the west of Sixteenth and
Seventeeth streets, and the wind rose TO
gale. For time it seemed as though the
entire eastern half of the city was doomed.
The fire spread to the southwark, lick
ing up the blocks of fine residences
hastily abandoned by their inmates.
BY o'clock it had reached Broad
way, which threads the center of the island,
running east and west. At o'clock the
wind began to shift then to decrease, until
by o'clock only fair breeze was blowing.
| But by this time the fire had eaten its way
| to Avenue O, where at $50 o'clock, 1T
seemed to exhaust itself, and the fire.
men coming up, checked its further raw
ages at this point or within two
! blocks OF the gulf. From the housetops the
smoking burned district resembles huge
! black half-opened fan, lying across the island
from the bay nearly to the gulf. The island at
that point is nineteen blocks, one mile and
quarter wide. The business part of the city
begins at Twentieth street and runs west ten
squares The burned district includes the
wealthiest and most fashionable portion of
the city One hundred elegantly furnished
mansions are in ruins Many of these resi-
dences had beautiful gardens attached to
them, and the moneyed loss does not repre-
sent over half their value. The scene dur
ing the progress of the fire was frightful;
so fillel with misery and terror, that
whoever witnessed 1t must bear its vivid
impress for a lifetime. The wind rose to
a screaming gale and swept through the burn
ing belt in swirls, carrying millions of live
cnders high up in the air and raining them
down mile distant over the wooden city
and its panic-stricken inhabitants. Inc en-
tire east end OF the city contains hardly a
dozen brick dwellings All is wood-Texas
pine-and it burns with indescribable fury.
Five minutes after house had caught it
would be wrapped in flame.
Tie alleys and streets for ten squares on
either side of the burning belt were filled
with the blanched faces of women, children
mi w hol pl IylO roull Il la no N.
ing in such Il gale but crouch down for shelter
from the piercing nUrther and watch the
flames lick up the fruits of lifetimes.
Although the victims number many of the
wealthiest residents of the city, whose indi
vldual wealth runs up near the million and
half million. yet the great maiority of those
burned out lose the better portions of their
fortunes
The hotels were filed with homeless people
and a citizens committee at once went t.
work apportioning frmiies to rooms anc
promises vacated for their use Every vehi
Gle in the city was at work carrying thu
strewn furniture, bedding and pictures to Sc
cure places.
Some score of sick people were hurriedl,
removed during the conilagration, and many
women were reported Frustrated by the ter
} libie excitement
Following close on the heels of the recent
great strike, which inflicted a moneye1 los
on the business mon OF Galveston of full,
r SlUD,Ol', tnlS CaldlnlJy Is lue climax 10 lu
, woes and sore affections of this city. Wit
the exception, however, of half a dozen gro
Ccrirs and the iron and car repairing fOun
dry, where the fire started, no places Of bus
ness were destroyed
The total area of burnt district is 100 acres
and forty blocks were swept clean of every
hing combuStible. More than 400 house
burned, and it was estimated by the relic
committee that about 900 families were un
housed the great majority of whom, especial
the poor Ones lost everything.
\ meeting of the Cotton Exchange the sam
afternoon was largely attended by cuisines
men, who set about providing relief for til
homeless aud suffering. a general relief con
mittee of twenty-seven citizens was organizes
with Colonel W. l. Moody, president of IL
Cotton Exchange. as chairman.
} france committee of five, with Colonel Wi
liam H. Sinclair as chairman, was also al
pointed. Beside these committees ther
} were sub committees for the various SCI
tions OF the burned district. The city counc
voted $1,000 for tho relief Of the sufferers
Jaw Gould sent $1,000 from New York b
telegraph, and Captain James b. Eads Sl,OC
from st. Louis. Altogether durinS tue eve
ming after the fire s3S, UOJ was donated I'll
best informed citizens estimate the total p
cuniary loss at 5000 600, while many pu
their estimate as high as $3,1OJloo
Galveston is the chief city of TeNasi in pom
; of population and commerce, AMI IS situate
at the northeast extremity of Galvesto
! island, at the mouth of the bay Of the san
name. Tho city is laid out with WIG
streets, bordered by many fuwer-Ga
deus. The public buildings inclu'
the custom-house, posto.Iico, United state
court house, city and county prisons, cit
hall, opera house, theatres AMI about hitee
hotels and many churches. Oleander par
contains eighty acres and city park twenty
five acres There are SIX public squares, a
esplanade two miles long, and three publ
gardens. Nine miles o, street railway wei
in operation in 1854. The island
Galveston is about twenty-eight miles Ions
and from IL TO II miles wide 1t Is II
tersected by small bayous, diverserhed Il
/ several fresh water ponds and bordere
, through its whole length by "A smooth har
beach The harbor is tho best in the STAT
Its chief business is shipping cotton bee
and hides and cattle, The shipments amt
ally amount to more than SiO,OoO,OOO IL
population in 1850 was 22,2iS, 1000 OF whoI
were negroes --EDITOR
NEAR Fayetteville Ark, two men kile
, fifty large hawks in few hours. One OF th
men says they were as numerous as pigeon