Savannah morning news. [volume] (Savannah) 1868-1887, 1886-08-30
HAWKINS MILL BURNED.
a QUARTER OF a MILLION FEET
OF LUMBER DESTROYS ED.


men.
Fire broke out at II go O'clock last night
an the planning aud saw mill OF ". .
Hawkins, on Wheaton street, near the
Savannah, Florida and Western railway
depot. John Harris, night Waterman IN
Dale, Dixon IL Co.'s yards, was the hrst
Que to give the alarm.
Dale. Dixon & Co.'s yard adjoin
Hawkins yard on the west. Harris
made considerable noise before he sue
ceeded in getting some one to turn in an
alarm. Box %, at the Savannah, Florida
and Western freight sheds, was first
pulled. Just as it finished striking the
first round. hox I6 was pulled and there
was some cDnlusion, as the bells seemed
20 strike :, which is at the corner OF Bay
and DraYt0n streets.
REACHING THE FIRE.
Engines No. and 3, which had the
shortest runs, were the first to reach the
fire. Hawkins mill was then all ablaze
and beyond saving. Luckily there was
little wind, but as it was the flames
spread with great rapdity.
Mr.. Hawkins had in his yard 200, 900
feet OF lumber and Dale, Dixon a. Co. had
100000 feet in their yard. The sparks
drOm Hawkins mill tell in showers among
the lumber piles and ignited the
blight iD1ammable wood in hun
dreds OF places. In few minutes
1t was clear that big hre WAS
1neyitable. and Chief Fernandez soon had
all of the fire department out and playing
on the blazing plies. The lumber in MIR.
Hawkins ward was mostly scattered
about in small piles, although there were
"a few large ones.
THE FIRE SPREADING.
In fifteen minutes after the fire was
first discovered the shed in HAWKING
Ward caught. 1t was u building 200 feet
Dong by so eet wide. Under it was piled
1000 feet OF planned lumber, and at one
end were the stables. William AleXan-
der, young sJorekeeper on the Thunder
bolt road, ran over TO the stables and took
out the eight mules that were kept there.
"A fine new carriage belonging
ITO Mr.. Hawkins, ana his wagons were
also under the shed. The building and
lumber burned tiercely and the blaze
there could not be controlled. The two
humber yards were separated by nigh
CLOSE board fence, which caught from the
shed.
DALE, DIXON & cos YARD.
From the fence and the burning piles in
Hawkins yard the fire spread over into
the yard of Messrs. Dale, Dixon & Co.
The lumber In the latter yard was in large
kpes. with wide spaces between. The
manner of piling rendered the fire in that
yard more easily fought than in the yard
on the other side Of the fence. Bv II
O'Clock 200 900 feet OF lumber were burn
bng, about 100000 feet in each
yard. Immense volumes OF smoke arose
md hung like a pail over the fire, for
there was only the slightest wind blow
sng. The clouds of dense smoke seemed
20 reflect the ascending heat back to the
ground, and the fremen suffered in
aensely,
OVERCOME BY THE HEAT.
Patrick O'Neii, "A young fireman, was
overcome by the heat while PLAYING a
stream ia Hawkins yard He was car
fied off and soon recovered.
At l2:45 the fire seemed at it's height
Mr.. Hawkins office and the lumber on
The south side Of the yard were out of
danger, but everything else was blazing.
HIS mill and shed had fallen in and were
total losses. la Dale, Dixon Il Co.'s
yard 100000 feet II undressed lumber
were burpiHg, aud there was danger that
the mill would catch from the sparks.
Mr.. Dixon had all of his employees,
bearly tiItV, working with buckets. AS
last as blaze was put out In one place
another broke out somewhere else.
THE FIRE UNDER CONTROL.
The tremen played on the big blazing
piles, but constant watching was neces-
Eary 10 save the properly in the remote
1arts of the yard. At / o'clock the fire
was considered under control, although 1t
was then bGrning with great fury. The
lumber thai w2s burning in the TWO yards
covered an acre, but the flames IN Haw-
1ius' yard was being gradually sub
nued. Three large piles in Dale,
Dixon & Co.'s yard were burning, and it
was only by the hardest work that the
fire was kept away from the mill, which
is 10 the middle OF the yard.
Al O'Clock the IRE was still burning,
but the danger was all over.
Mr.. Dale is in California and Mr.. Haw-
kins is out in the country.
THE PROPERTY UNINSURED.
MIR. Dixon stated that his firm was I'M
Insured, and Mr.. Aimar, superintendent
Tor Mr.. Hawkins, said that he did not
blink Mr.. Hawkins carried any Insur-
Rnce. Mr.. Hawkins mill cannot be
replaced for less than 10000, although it
was probably not worth more than
1900. The engine was tifty-horse
power. The shed cost 800. Mr..
Aimar estimated that $1,000 feet Of
rough lumber and $4,000 feet of dressed
lumber were burned, making the loss on
Humber about $1,000, and Nj. Hawkins
loss $4,000 in round numbers. Mr.. q. G.
Hawkins, who was working on the frame
Tor the new jail, lost $40 worth OF tools,
Dale, Dixon Il Co.'s loss was esti-
mated at 100000 feet OF rough
lumber worth $1,000. The loss in the two
cards will be between $4,000 and $1I 900.
ORIGIN OF THE FIRE.
No one could satisfactorily account for
the origin OF the fire. The general i'm
preston was that 1t was started by
an incendiary. Some thought that a
lantern exploded in MIR. Hawkins mill.
MIR. Aimar said that no thought the
blaze probably started from a spark from
the watchman's pipe. lie had not seen
the Waterman, who is named Low. at
pollock this morning, but he bad heard
that Low was seen asleep in the mill after
the fre broke out. A colored mill hand
said that he thought he saw the watch
man on the ground during the fire.
THE wATcHMAN's STORY.
Norris, the Waterman for Dale, Dixon
a. Co., stated TINT the last person he saw
IN the adjoining yard was Mr.. Aimar.
who left at . O'Clock. Mr.. Aimar snid
that he did not suspect any one ~ having
fred the mill, as he had not discharged a
white employe and but few
colored ones in long time.
Within few hundred feet Of The lum.
Der yard are the stables OF the Twicken-
ham dairy. The proprietor had all OF his
COWS loosed and driven out before the fire