The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1886-10-25

brick block Of stores, sKnowlton's block of
three stores and the Peoples Trust Coz
building on Main street.
At the same time ON Broadway, the post
Office, Perkins block, Arcade Block and the
Stoyell residence were swept away.
simultaneously the old County Building
on Main street bit the dust Then fell five
brick stores, owned by Mrs. S. Phinney,
Mrs. Boardman and the late Mrs. S. S.
Belcher's estate.
The Exchange Hotel on Main street next
caught and was soon swept out of sight. The
house of Captain Daniel Pratt next sue
cumbed.
Up to this point the fire had been confined
to the west of Main street. Here it leaped
over to the east and up the steeple of the
Baptist church tongue of flame was seen,
creating new sense Of the completeness of
the disaster. A most heroic effort was made
to save this edifce. Fifty young ladies from
the Normal School extemyorized as Bucket
Brigade and did their best to save the church
edifice; but the fire again was victor. The
whole roof was soon in flames, and it was
necessary to look elsewhere.
While the Baptist church was burning the
residence of Farmington's tax collector, d.
Hoyt caught fire, also the livery stables of
A. ID. Horn, the Pennington bakery, the res
licences of l. V. Russell. j. w. Matthew were
burned.
The large house Of Mrs. McCleery was
next wiped out, occupied by several tenants.
1t was now about 2.s0 a. m. Saturday, and
the fire had spent itself on the north, but
was yet doing its worst ON the south.
BY fortunate location the Free Baptist
church was spared. This structure is located
on the rear of spacious lot and was thus
passed over by the flames. The stable'of the
Exchange Hotel at its side was also spared.
Next the fire attacked and swept away the
Congregational parsonage, occupied by Rev.
G. II. Pope.
While that house was burning, the fire
crossed Academy street, but kindly spared
the State Normal School building, opposite
the parsonage, as well as the finest house in
Farmington-the new residence Of Presi-
dent Wheeler of the Peoples Trust Com
pany.
But the conflagration had not yet DONE
The fire next seized upon the Methodist
church, one of the most elegant church edi-
fees in Maine, built few years ago at a
large cost and elegantly furnished.
This last onset seemed to complete public
discouragement. Yet everybody worked,
though consciously against fate. The fall of
the steeple, with tremendous crash, would
have been grand sight had it not been so
costly.
While the Methodist church was burning,
the fire showed its non-denominational
capacity by leaping across the street and at
lacking the Congregational church, which
was soon in ashes. This edifice was an old
but substantial brick structure, where Par
son Isaac Rogers, of fragrant memory, used
to labor. At the same time the residence of
the late Mrs. S. S. Belcher was burned, to-
gether with that of Mrs. Rosanna Knowlton,
mother of Editor Knowlton, of the Farming
ton Journal.
While these buildings were burning, the
welcome whistle from coming locomotive
Of the Maine Central railroad was heard,
bringing steam fire engine Androscoggin No.
3 from Lewiston. Never did beleagured gar
rison welcome recruits with deeper joy than
the Pennington people displayed when the
train bearing Lewiston's aid pulled up at
Pennington station. Every dispatch possi-
BILE was made to get the steamer to point
where she could easily play from the river,
but before this result was achieved, the
house of Campmeeting John Allen, which
he had recently extensively repaired, was
ablaze and could not be saved. In quick sue
cession the fine large residence of Daniel
Beede, also on Main street, fell; also the old
SWEET mansion, and the fine residence of
Hon. Francis G. Butler, Farmington's histo-
rian. Mrs. Johnson's house was also de-
stroyed.
At about $50 a. m. the Lewiston company
began playing ON Mrs. Jotham Graves's resi-
dence on the east side of Main street and
checked the fire on that side, although Mrs.
Graves's house was destroyed.
Across the street the Lewiston steamer
then fired away at Judge Chandler's resi-
dence. which already was well on fire, draw
ing water from the river through over a
thousand feet of hose. Judge Chandler's
residence was destroyed. But the steamer
was enabled to check the fire also in this
direction in the adjoining stable of Deacon
Abel Russell.
We now have the fire under entire control,
but while we have been telling this story the
fire has made great havoc down Pleasant
street, where it first began. Here three
more houses were destroyed, one owned by
Gathers Drummond, a second by the late
Mrs. Belcher and third by the Stoyell
heirs.
The small Morton plow factory was also
burned. From this fire Grange Hall, the
Grange stores, the depots of the Maine Cen
tral and Sandy River railroads and the
Bonney Blocks, facing the depot, were in
imminent peril and were only saved by per-
sistent efforts.
The roof Of Grange Hall and the depot
caught fire several times.