The Indiana State sentinel. [volume] (Indianapolis) 1868-1895, 1889-02-20
HARTFORD HOTEL HORROR
MYSTERIOUS AND FATAL EXPLOSION.
sixteen Bodies Have Been Recovered and
Several More Known to be in the Ruins
Many Miraculous Escapes From
Death-List Ofthe Killed.

hAkItORD, Conn.,, teb. lS.-Just before
dawn of this morning hotel, with its sleeping
people, was shattered by a force not yet ascer-
tanned, and, straightway, in the darkness and
ruin, men and women and children were being
crushed and MANNED and burned by flames. Ii
was at the hour when the twilight of the CON-
ing day had worn away the night bit and
while the city slept and slept that the still
buildings were shaken as by an earthquake
and the silent streets were startled by a sullen
booming as though of a monster explosion.
Upon the moment, persons in the section of
the city near the capitol and the Union depot
were further startled by the sound Of crashing
walls and falling timbers and the screams of
women and by mems hoarse shouts from the
vicinity of High and Allyn-sts., which had been
the site of the Park Central hotel, but which
had practically disappeared.
Those who hurried to the spot found upon
the site of the hotel huge pile of stone and
brick and splintered timbers from which
white clouds of steam rose up in the morning
twilight, streaked and blackeued by wreaths of
smoke that rapidly grew dark and blacker and
more dense. Then tongues of flames leaped
here and there from the ruin and grew holder
and more strong, until the ruins was a roaring
heap-a crate, where solid masonry held the
fuel in.
The first person rescued was George Gaines.
the colored porter. He was badly injured and
died soon after being taken out.
About o'clock Supt. Lawrence of the
street department appeared upon the scene
with a large gang of laborers and the search
was prosecuted with renewed activity. Helen
Leport of New Britain and Jennie Decker of
Unionville were soon rescued comparatively
uninjured. Jacob Turpin, a colored barber,
was also taken out early in the morning, while
Rachael Cramer jumped from window, break
ing her leg. At 9 o'clock Harris Stihe of
Philadelphia, a traveller for the Barnes safe and
lock company, was liberated by raising the
timbers which held him down. He was only
slightly injured. At 1890 the dead body of
Dwight II. Buell., single, ieweler of this city,
was recovered. The body was not manged,
death having been caused by sutiocation.
In the meantime the crowd of spectators had
increased TO such proportions as to greatly I'M
pede the work of the fremen and reScers.
Accordingly about 10 o'clock 1.-TWO elevens"
was sounded upon the fire bell calling out the
five companies of the First regiment Connect
cut national guard, stationed in the city. The
men responded with commendable alacrity,
and Gordon of guards soon surrounded the
vicinity OF the explosion, doing excellent serv-
ice throughout the day and night in keeping
the crowd within bounds. Passes from com
manding officers were required to get through
the lines and that portion OF the city decidedly
rem nded one of war times. Previous 10 the
calling out of the military the police force
had done good work, but their number was in
adequate to the emergency.
BY noon kilograms OF anxious inquiry were
pouring in from every part of the country, and
friends OF those supposed to be IN the ruins
were arriving by every train, together with an
immense. crowd OF curious people from the
surrounding towns.
The lower floor of the spacious wool ware
house of c. J. Judd & Root was made tenn
pOrary mOrgue. Here Coroner SDerry Med
zeal Examiner Fuller and Asst. Wright with
other local physicians, were in attendance, and
here the bodies were taken as fast as received
and opportunity was given for identification
by friends. Those not identified were taken in
charge by the city and then tenderly cared for
in a room of the city hall. The injured were
promptly sent to the hospital.
The recovery of bodies was slow, owing to
the immense accumulation of debris. but at
nearly regular intervals one or two bodies were
found during the afternoon. When claimed by
friends they were recovered in the order OF the
list given below: That of Mr.. Root was taken
in charge by his son, William Root of Boston.
bodies not yet claimed. AS a rule the cOrpses
bore but slight marks of fire. dying either from
sutiOcatiOn or bruising
The catastrophe was devoid Of the narrowing
reseues attending an uncontrolled contlagra-
ton. One terrible crash, smoke, flame, quick
rushing streams of water, and all was over. For
this reason the community does not feel an
overwhelming grief but 1t is hOrrOr-stricken;
the disaster simply overwhelms The magni-
tude of the calamity cannot be realized, and, IN
fact, lis extent Is not vet known. The register
of the hotel has not been found, and young
Perry, the night clerk, is buried in the
ruins, but from the best estimates
fI.,4. -, Il
| others it is probable that there
were not far from fifty people in the hotel
proper. OF these perhaps five may have
escaped uninjured amid the confusion in the
early morning hours, leaving fOrty-ive to be
accounted for. Ten are in the hospital and up
TO this hour III p. M sixteen dead bodies have
been taken from the ruins, leaving nineteen
still missing. But there may be several more
than this. Mr.. Andrew L. Whiting, actuary of
the Hartford Life and Annuity insurance COM
pany, and wife; the Rev. DR.. Lavalette Perrin.
agent of the Memorial Hall association, and
wife, and Edward Perry, the night clerk, are
known to be still in the ruins.
The cause of the disaster was undoubtedly
the explosion of the boilerin the basement. This
| boiler, OF sixteen-horse power was built by the
| Pilkins Co. OF this city in 1882. 1t was not
insured by the Hartford steam-boiler inspec-
ton and insurance company, but was inspected
| by an officer OF that company last August and
| then pronounced all right. No engineer was
! on duty at the time of the explosion. the Gus
! tom being for the night engineer 10 bank his
| fires at midnight and 90 to bed. He does not
! sleep in the hotel. This engineer, Alexander
! Thuer, was arrested this afternoon in
| dictment charging manslaughter, and is locked
up at the police station. 1t is cOnjectured that
| Gaines, the colOred porter may have started
the pumps, throwing cold water into the over
heated boiler. But this is only conjecture, and
| Gaines is dead.
The force of the explosion terrific. Peo-
| pie in all parts of the city were awakened by
| the shock. Huge stones were shattered and
| iron pipes bent and twisted. Windows in ad-
! joining buildings and across the street were de-
! molished and panes of glass two blocks away
were cracked. At the new railroad depot,
| block away, q huge pane of plate glass was
cracked. and many states were dislOdged from
the newly completed roof. Night employees in
| the railroad station and offices fled to the street
| in terror.
! 1t is believed that Mrs. Wesson of Spring
| field, the widow of Frank WessOn, who was
! killed at the White River Junction railroad &C
cident, was in the hotel, together with all her
/ family, five children and probably servant
or two. People from Springfield were in the
city to-day, anxious TO find her, knowing she
stayed in Hartford over Sunday, but her name
/ cannot be found on any hotel register, and it is
feared she was in the Park Central If so, her
| death and that of her family would raise the
aggregate loss of life probably seven additional.
A New York drummer, whose home is in
Portland, Ne, and who slept last night in the
I OF fan hot al - Of hrah nc cfTI