The Dickinson press., 1889-11-30
MILLIONS DESTROYED.
A Mile Square in the Heart of
Lynn, Mass, Devastated
by Fire,
The Burned District Compris-
ing the Finest Buildings
in the City.
The Flames Stop Only Upon Reaching
the Ocean-Loss Estimated at
Ten Millions.

.s's w. >SS
of shoes, has hcen visited by the greatest
fire in its history, and with but two OK
ccptions the most disastrous which has
ever visited New England. The excep-
tons are the great Boston fire of 1872,
which destroyed between eighty and
ninety millions of dollars worth of prop
erty, and the Portland fire of 1866, which
caused a loss of between ten aud twelve
millions. The fire started at 11:15 a.. m.,
ragged over eight hours, devastated a
| square mile of the business section of the
| cEy, and caused a loss estimated at Sl0,-
600, 900. In fact, the greater part of
| Ward 4 is wiped out as regards the inn
portant shoe manufacturing blocks and
prominent places of business. The fire
| started in Mowers wooden building on
Almont street over the boiler, and spread
with such rapidity that the excellent fire
department of the city was power
less to cope with it. This large
wooden building was 500 doomed,
and the flames leaped across u
narrow passageway and communicated
with the six-story brick block known as
Mowers block. When these WI build
ings got well under way it was evident a
terrible contlagration would result. AL
most simultaneously the four-story
wooden shoe factory of Bennett & Bar
nard on Central venue and the four
story wooden building on Almont street
caught fire and when under way a hurri
cane of flame was in progress which
| blanched the cheeks of all who We're
looking on. For eight hours the
FLAMES HAD FULL SWAY,
| the efforts of tiremen and citizens SEEM
ingly being of no avail. The burned
territory is bounded by the following
named streets: Almont; Central avenue
at its junction with Willow street; Union
street from its junction with Broad to
the Boyden block On both sides; Mt.
Vernon street entire; Central square en-
tire: Beach street on both sides as far
down as Lees lumber yard; Washington
street from Munro through to Union;
Railroad avenues; all of Exchange street;
Broad street from the engine house on
both sides up as far as the corner of EX-
change; Spring street entire, besides
dwelling houses too numeroust to mention
on Suffolk, Amity, Sycamore and Beach
streets.
Aid arrived from Boston, Salem, Mar
blehead, and other surrounding towns,
but the united efforts seemed to have
little effect on the hurricane of flame.
Scenes familiar in the great Boston and
Chicago fires were
REPEATED IN ALL THEIR HORRORS
mothers fleeing with babes in their arms,
express wagons loading at business and
dwelling houses and transferring goods
to places of safety, in many cases a sec
ond removal being necessary, and the
The excitement increased and became a
panic as it became realized that a con-
Migration threatening the entire business
quarter was in progress. After the fire
had been burning two hours everybody
agreed that it would not stop until it
had reached the ocean and this proved
to be the case.
FOUR DAILY NEWSPAPERS
are burned out-the Item, Bee, Press,
and News-three afternoon and one
morning. Three national banks-the
Central, Security and First National-to-
gether with the Lynn institution for saw
ings. located in the First National block,
are all wiped out. Twelve of the finest
shoe blocks in the city are in ruins and
about twenty-five stores. AT this writ
ing it is impossible to say how many
dwellings are burned. The houses DIES
troyed were mostly those occupied by
poor people in the vicinity of Beach
street and the wharves.
The First Methodist and First Univers-
alist churches and several s~choolhouscs
have been thrown open to accommodate
burned out families. Mayor ewhall has
called q special meeting Of aldermen to
take action and choose relief commit
tees.
Dynamite and powder We're used ut
frequent intervals to blow up wooden
buildings, but with little effect. The
fire virtually burned itself out, and at
1880 p. m. was considered under control.
Both companies of the Massachusetts,
militia located at Lynn We're called out
and put on patrol duty. Several Of the
shoe manufacturers burned out have
country factories and will transfer their
business there for the present.
A hopeful feeling prevails and there is
no question but that the public spirited
citizens and shoe manufacturers will
soon rally from the terrible catastrophe.
The Western Union opened a temper
airy Office late in the afternoon ut the
Eastern railroads Market street depot,
and the Postal company opened one at