, 1885-02-13


raving maniacs were burned to death in
the insane department of Blackley' aims
house on the west side Of the Schuylkill
river tonight, in the conaagration
which needed nothing to make it the
most horrible disaster of the kind ever
known in the history of the city.
The fire originated in the wing of the
old building of the insane department Of
Blackley's which fronts towards the
Schulykill river, and directly east of the
main building Of the a~lmshouse. This
wing is las feet front and sixty feet deep,
connected on the south with the main
building of the old structure of the in
sane department, which was south 400.
feet TO a similar wing to the one in which
the disaster occurred. ON tins north
building where the fire broke out, there
were sixty separate cells, for violent pa
tents, twenty on each floor. In addition
to this there was a large room on each
three floors, in which cots for twelve men
were placed, all Of which were occupied
when the fire broke out. On the second
floor, opposite the central cell of a row Of
separate cells on the north side of the
corridor, which runs from the east to the
west was a drying room heated by steam,
this room, which was about ten feet
square. was directly alongside the middle
stairway leading to the foors above and
below. Here the flames originated, but
from what cause is not now known. At
the time there were insane patients in
each Of the twenty cells. On these three
floors, ten in a large room on the first
floor and twelve in each Of the large
rooms on the second and third floors.
From all accounts to be obtained, it ap-
pears pretty certain that the first alarm
was given by an insane patient on the
first floor of the main building. This
man. Joseph Nadine, occupied a room
adjoining the stairway and drying room
with about twenty other quiet patients.
About ten minutes to s o'clock he saw
smoke issuing from above the door which
opened into the wing in which the cells
were situated. He rah to a big iron
grated door. fronting on the main corridor
Of the building. and cried out Fra
This fearful sound reached the ears Of
.Joseph Shredder. IN attendant on the
rround floor who was in his nom direct
" opposite the one from which Nadine
had given the alarm.
Mrs. Umpstead. who has general
charge at night said that il was about 8
O'Clock when the alarm reached her. She
was in her Office about 200 feet from the
driving room. and at once hurried to the
scene. She saws that AN attempt was
made to put out the flames with buckets
Of water. and at first it was supposed the
flames were only burning from the
ground floor near the stairway. but in al
mostan instant it was discovered that the
real point from which the danger came
was the second Aoor at the ton. and
above the driving room. She then hast
ened to get all the p%atieuts from the main
binding extending back iron the east
wing
Attendant Shredder takes mn the
thread Of the story At this point. and thus
relates some Of the horrors Of the dread,
ful night. II don't know who sounded
the alarm. As DON as | heard Nadine
crv | rushed to the foot of the stairway.
and after a short attempt to check The
FIRE | at once set to work to get out the
patients. First | unlocked the doc, Of
the room in which Nadine and his com
panious were. They ran out at once
By this time the flames were gatherin,
in fury. and dense volumes o
smoke were ascending into the uppeI
stories. l succeeded in unlocking tn,
doors of all the cells on the first floor, and
although with difficulty in some cases,
succeeded in getting the inmates u