Richmond dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1884-1903, 1889-04-20
FIERCEST FLAMES
THAT NEW YORK HAS HAD IN A GEN
ERATiON.
workmen Forced to Jump from Window
Millions Of Dollars Worth Of Pro-
psrty Destroyed.
fnr ,slarr.nh 70 tho ni.pnlch.l


North river clear to-day from Iifty-uinth
street 70 what w0uld be Slxty-ditb street II
the street ran 10 the river there. IL Destroyed
more ihnn million and bali OF property
belonging 10 the New York Central railroad
and al least half million dOars' worth OF
stores OF lard. -four, and the like belonging
TO other persons, notably y. *. Fairbanks,
tho great Chicago lard INGREDIENT, destroyed
/ Two big elevators. a and 4, OF the Wander
bit system, big brick building stretching
from Fifty.ninth street 10 Sixteth streetand
occupied jointly by the Fairbsnk lard re-
iinerV and ROssiter stores, sud wiped out
the dock property Of the New York central
system from FIftv-Dinth to past Sgxty.hiih
street Al least one man was killed IN his
headlong fight from the FIRE az the first out
I break. number were injured jumping
from windows OF the burning building. but
In the wild terror OF the tremendous conill-
| grafton no account vas kept Of them. The
/ police have he record Of the following casu-
aliies Henry Benning, workman IN Fair
! banks refinery, killed by jumping from the
third-story window; John Johnson, work
man IN Fairbanks, severely injured on the
back by jumping from a window; Charles
Brown, severe iniurie. about the head from
same source; william J. Noble. tirensn OF
I engine No. ,, prOstrated by heat while a.
work At foot Of Fiity.ninth street; Edward
/ ii. Tobin, fireman, likewise Frustrated by
/ heat.
Rumors were flying around all the evening
| that number OF w0rknen had been caught
and burned in the Fairbanks refinery. but
/ II was impossible 10 ascertain the truth OF
/ them.
At least quarter Of a million people
! turned out to watch the brilliant sight from
| beyond the police lines on Twelfth avenue.
| All west streets were blocked and the Gle.
waited trains carried crowds up snd down
/ town TO swell the crowds. The police re-
serves were called out 10 preserve order.
! Every fire-engnc above Fourteeuth street
! was called out in the work Of eXiinguishing
| the flames, but the fremen worked against
/ tremendous odds, partly owing to the nature
| Of the ground, and their efforts were wasted.
They made absolutely no impression.
MYSTERY.
The fire broke out in the southeast corner
/ OF Fsirbanks'J refinery. where wOrbmen
were busy at the time putting IN new lard
/ cooling apDqratus-how no one knows and
| probably no one ever will know. Soaked in
/ grease rs tie old building was, it was ailame
/ IN al instant. From the ground floor the
| fire swept upwards TO the roof with The
| speed Of race-horse. The men az work in
every story dropped their tools sud ran tor
/ life. The stlir~hole was glowing chin
neY OF fire. The windows were the only
| way out. Men flung themselves out by
! scores headlonC, and behind them burst out
/ the ismes. How many were there no one
could tell Those who came ont were picked
! up and carried away by their friends, shud-
| dering TO think that some might have been
| left. Crying wives and mothers crowded
/ the police lines, shouting for their husbands
| and sons or begging FOR news Of them.
fi.oN bao ia
in throngs for those they sought. The fire
swept on through Fairbanbs's refinery TO the
/ old establishment Of W. }. Wilcox &C.,,
upon the waterfront between pifty-Binth
snd sixticth streets. occupying half Of the
building 200X2O0 feet that flied out the
block. The refinery was on the south half
and Rossiter'S stores for general merchandise
on the north side.
II STOOD Ike ROCK.
A strong brick wall divided the building
in the middle. Upon this brick wall the
1rcmen hung their hopes for half an hour Of
desperate efforts. The flames best agaInst 70 |
and heated 1t red hot; the other brick wall |
and roof fell IN upon 1t, but 1t stood ike
rock. Anything hut such fire Il would |
have resisted. but the flames fed by the /
molten lard burned ficrcely AID leaped high. |
They leaDed above and around It and reached |
across siXueth, and tue Slip over there |
stood the first and biggest OF the enormous /
grain elevators Of the New \ Ork Central |
railroad. II was l. CvatOl &. Il stood pre- |
senting rs gable-eud 10 tie flames that were
blown toward il. Once thai caught fire there !
would be 20 saving Elevator g, Eve hundred |
feet further up the river. aud no telling |
where the fire would stop, fOr beyond were |
ireight-sheds innumerable. Between the /
elevators on The waterfront and Twelfth |
avenue were twCnV-seyen railroad tracks, /
which no fre-engine COLD cross, aud /
next the Union stock>yards. hall |
mile OF broad pens, equally impossible. |
Even II Way could have been made through |
the enclosures and tracks, tie line Of de- |
narration between the two was q stone wall |
with sudden descent OF five feet ghe tracks |
were that much lower than the yard. There |
was no way for o frt-engIue 10 reach the |
elevators except along SiNiieth street, past the |
burning building. and that WAS almost i'm.
possible then and was soon 10 be blocked !
entirely.
Chief Shay saw it, and led his men to fight |
for very life b save the elevators. lie Knew
that even if they did get the tir- engines into
the Tslroad.grOunds they would be- OF little |
use, for there was only six water-pipes there
and that was a. good rs none at all.
FiRE.BoATs ORDERED.
He telePrSphed for the fire bosts, for the
Charity COMMISSIONER two boats, and for
the police. BOAT Patrol. The Patrol was laid
up out oi repair, but the Others responded.
They came down with four or five tugs be-
longing 10 the railroad company, and put
their pumps at work 10 throw water on the
threatened buildings. Soon every hose WIS
playing from some window or root. The
pumping in the enginc-h0uSe were
working for all they were worth, and a CONF
pany OF firemen directed the operations. 10
was all in vain. The tremendous heat
from the fire across the street dried and
warped the woodwork OF the big frame
building. IL shrivclled up like Wilhered
leaves, sistes fell from its sides in red-hot
rain, thin blue smoke arose from its roof and
sides, then tnT wreath OF something
squirted from osc Of the dormer windows.
A dul, red light showed behind n. 4 shout
went Op "There she goes" anu then came
a burst from half a dozen windows at once
aud the building wSs on IRE. ROssIter's
stores still stood dark and with closed iron
shutters, but the waller thrown by The fire.
men szzled and boiled when it tOUched the
burning beat within. The northwest corner
Of the wall swaYec for n moment, then 1t fell
with a laundering crash.
The falling walls released hundreds Of
tons Of stones that rolled out in the blazing
heap and filed SiXneih street, effectively
blocking II. Two engines had run the
blockade Of the awful heat and got In on the
railroad tracks. None could now follow.
For that matter that would have been use-
less.
ELEVATOR on FIRE.
The elevator was on fire and nothing could
save IL. The huge building OF 200 feet long
and over 125 feet high was ablale from end
10 end aud from ground to top OF ia tall
mansard roof. IL was Il grand but awful
sight. The refinery and Rossrier stores still
burned iercely and wickedly. The heat
was so fierce even at a distance OF
200 feet that il was thought pToy.
dent to clear the stocS-yards alto
getber. The same pIecautiOn was
taken with the sheep house, a long three
story building that presented its gable end
10 the burning refuery. II would not have
stood for hall an hour had net the wind
blown from it. Thus II was saved. AT the
first intimation OF danger 10 the elevator
..It, 1T . !