The times. (Owosso, Mich.) 1882-1897, 1889-03-01
On Sleeping Victims
A Hartford, Conn.,, Hotel Tum.
bles into Ruins.
A LIST OF THE DEAD AND WOUNDED

An Exploding Boiler Causes Frightful
Disaster-A Score of People Crusfosi.
Nangicd and burned to Death Cyclone
In Alabama CseSes Great I.oss Of Life
and Property.
HARTFORD, Conn, Feb. 19-The people of
this city were reused out of tier bc,ls mt s
o'clock yosC' morning by q rumble and
crash that produced one OF the most fright
ful disasters ever known here When the
half-awake crowd which murged in the direc-
ton Of the noise reached the scene IL was
one never to be forgotten. The Park Central
hotel, five-story building lay before them
mass of Lro.;en timbers, brick, twisted iron
and debris. The ruin was complete; hardly
one brick lay in its proper place upon
another. And imprisoned in this mass of
ruins were an unknown number of people,
many dead, others grievously hurt, while, as
1t turned out, still others had miraculously
escap serious injury.
"How did it Lappcn" was a question on
every ones tongue. Rumor flew around
that the builGin&and been long deemed UNI
safe and hadvinally fallen of its own
weight and that of its many occupants; for
it was favOrito stopping place for many
visitors to this citytand especially so for COM
mercial travellers Bat tho cause was not
structural weakness. The force that had
wrought this ruin was one great enough tc
have crushed the strongest building. Tho
16-horse power boiler In the basement hat.
exploded and brought the house down on its
slice ing inmates. The engineer goes away
at midnight. banking his fires. He has been
arrested on a charge OF manslaughter. His
name is Alexander I. Suer. 1t is conjec-
tured that Gaines, tho p rter. may have
started the pumps, and caused the explosion
by turning cold water into an overheated
boiler, ut AS he is dead, no light is likely to
be thr' wn on this subject The shock was
felt all over the city. Windows for a block
around were smashed.
When the explosion occurred the whole
five-story brick building collapsed into con-
fused pile of masonry and timbers, except a
part of the rear, where tier of rooms re-
m"ined standing. but with the partitions torn
away, so that the interiors of the rooms were
visible Some of these rooms afterward
crumbled down with their occupants upon
the Debris below. There were only q few
shrieks and means heard, then all was silent
The fire which beg, IN "a burst forth was soon
extinguished by the iiremen. The servants
out by ladders from the windows, the stair
case having been demolished by the fall of
the main bu lding. A few of the more ex-
ctable employees jumped to the ground, but
We're only slightly injured.
As soon as the first shock of fright and
horror had passed away measures to recover
the dead and relieve the injured We're taken.
The fire and police alarms brought willing
and experienced hands to the work. and
In err the militia was called on to keep back
the great crowd which pressed up around the
building and delayed the search for the UNI
fortunates. The lower floor of Judd g. Roots
wool warehouse was converted into n tenn
porary morgue, where the coroner, me ical
examiner, and SIS slant physicians cared for
the victims until the dead could be identified,
and the injured removed to hospitals The
city provided Baskets for the unclaimed
bodies. Most of the bodies bear compare
lively few III lrks O. burns Death seems in
most cases to have been due to sufrocation or
Commissions.
Wellington Ketchum was the landlord and
he. with his wac aud MS boy OF lo, VS.
caught in the ruins and held for hours before
they could be rescued. MI: Walter N. Gay,
of New York, brother of. tho librarian at the
Watkinson library, had a narrow escape
from n horrible death. Tho rcscuinG party
reached him at 1880. His body was held
down by timbers and lathn", but he was
conscious during the whole time, though
b ldly bruised. He left New York Sunday
night for Springfield, not intending to stop
at Hartford. The first intimation he had of
the accident was the tumbling of brick and
mortar and dull explosion. He did not lose
consciousness moment, he says,
from the time of the crash.
The water soon poured in upon him and he lay
partially immersed in it. Fortunately the
lathing formed a sort Of an arch over his +,
head, and with his free arm he was able TO
clear away some OF the debris which fell
about his head. His room was next to that !
occupied by Mr.. Ketchlim and his wife. and |
he heard the proprietor's voice in the ruins. |
Shortly before he was taken out Mr.. Ketchum |
was still alive Stimulated by this news from |
the ruins the men worked with renewed |
vigor, and a few moments after o'clock both |
Mr. Ketchum and his wife were taken out |
alive They were carried into DR.. Smiths |
office and everything done for them.
LATER.-Three more bodies had been re-
covered up to midnight. They are those of !
Max Galody, proprietor of The Hartford |
Herald his wife, and Mrs. Andrew +. Whit
ing. Mrs. Writings body is burned to
crisp.
Work went on Tuesday morning for SOW
eral hours without finding any bodies, but
about IL o'clock the news spread that two
had been found, and in half an hour they
were taken out and covered with blankets
and carried to the coroner in the Judd &
Root building One was identified by Mr..
s. A. Galpn, of New Haven, his nephew, as
the Rev. DIR. Lavaletto Perrin, Of Torring-
ton, of the Yale corporation, a widely
known Congregations minister. The other
is his wife. A third ody was brought out
and proved to be William Boyle, Of this city,
who had n room in the hotel
Tho following Is the full list of dead and
wounded to date: Dcad-George Gaines,
colored porter; Dwight II. Buell., jeweler,
Hartford; ]. George Engler, drug clerk,
Hartford; J. w. Hausman, Boston; J. c.
Hill, Buffalo; Louis H. Bronson, wife and
child, Hartford; George Kctchum, Hartford;
Edward Ketchum, Hartford; George w.
Root, Brockport, N. Y; unknown; A. F.
Tillotson, Cincinnati; unknown, supposed Ia
DO Mr.. Sterling, of Sterling Bros, Bridge
port; Nj. Gallody and wife, Hartford;
charred remains, presumed TO bo those of