St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1886-11-13
NIO0DY's CHURCH BURNED.
A Noted Religious Edifice at Chicago
Destroyed by Fire.

destroyed Dy Fire.
CHICAGO Nov. 12.-At $3.50 this morn
ing fire was discovered in the basement of
the Chicago Avenue church. better known
as ''Moody's" church, at the corner of Chi
cagO and La Sale avenues. An alarm was
given, but before the engines could respond
the flames had burst through the first floor
into the lecture room. Here their fury was
checked for awhile, as was supposed, but,
concealed by the dense smoke. the fire had
crept up to the second floor and soon eaten
it's way into the auditorium on the second
floor, Fed here by the multitude OF
cushions and other inflammable matter the
flames spread with surprising rapidity and
redoubled herceness. and second alarm
was hastily turned in. The burning cushions
and other material gave forth almost i'm
penetrable volumes of dense black smoke,
which for time repulSed all efforts of the
firemen to enter the church. Stained glass
windows. which had begun to crack from
the heat. Were
DASHED IN WITH AXES,
and in few minutes half dozen streams
were playing on the fire, which clung with
obstinate persistence to the furniture and
other light combuStibles in the room. After
nearly three-quarters of an hour Of hard
work the flames were got under control,
and the fire confined to the church building.
The smoke was still too dense to permit an
investigation of the extent of the DANA
ges. but it is believed that the interior is en-
tirely Quilted. The stained glass windows
were almost entirely destroyed. The walls,
it is thought. are almost all of the structure
that can be preserved so as to be tit for
future use. The pastor Rev. MIR. GoSS,
estimated the loss at $50, 600, and said that
the church and furniture were covered by
insurance to that amount IncendiarlSm is
believed by some to be the cause of the fire.
1t is said that at 80 o'clock this morning
policeman saw some one in the interior Of
the building. D. B. Turner, the janitOr.
said that all the members of his family had
retired at that hour. Rev. Mr.. Goss could
not conceive of a motive any one might
have, but admitted that he could not under
stand the origin of the flames in the part of
the building where they were discovered,
unless
THE FIRE WAS SET.
He said there might have been an over
heated pipe from one of the seven furnaces
which are located in the building. The
church society was organized by Rev.
Dwight l.. Moody, the evangelist, in 1869,
anu OCCupicN d St&stil -UullOi1iS Ou SulCdSO
avenue. near Franklin street. until the
great fire in 1871. Immediately after that
time Mr.. Moody built the present church
structure. soliciting and receiving contribu-
tions from all parts of the globe until $780,
600 was raised. Mr.. Moody continued as
the pastor until he began his genera evan.
gelstic work. The present pastor of the
church is Rev. G. F. Goss. 1t has grown
from small beginning to be one Of the
largest churches, in point of membership.
in the city. The Sunday school rolls in
clude the names of over one thousand six
hundred children. A. FL. Revell, j. Ell.
Hitchcock. A. II. LowdeB, r. F. Atchison
and John Morrison are at present deacons.
The auditorium of the church is the largest
in Chicago, though perhaps the plainest in
design. Since the building was first
erected alterations and improvements have
been made to the extent of S25. 000 The
walls of the church are unnjured. and the
total loss will not exceed SIS, 600.