Chicago eagle. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1889-19??, 1889-12-07
FIERCE FIRE IN BOSTON.
FIVE MILLION DOLLARS IN PROP
ERTY SWEPT AWAY.

Boston telegram
The most disastrous fire from which
Boston has suffered since 1872, and one
which in property loss almost rivals
the great confagration at Lynn,
broke out about $40 o'clock Thurs
day morning in the six-story gran
lite building owned by Jordan, Ma,sh
& Co. and occupied by Brown, Durrel &
Co., dealers in dry goods, on Bedford
street, corner of Kingston The first alarm
was Immediately followed by ne first
general alarm in Boston since 1s72 Thurs
days confagration ragged for 81 hours,
turned over two acres of territory covered
by magnificent structures and entailed a
loss now estimated at s., 900 900.
So far as known no fatalities occurred,
but several persons were seriously in ur-
ed Among them are
MICHAEL ATKINSON. policeman, head
crushed by falling granite.
J0HN HALEY, hoseman, lacerated by plate
glass
THOMAS T. QU1GLEY, inhaled flames,
burned
DISTRICT ENGINEER BARTLETT, right shout
der dislOcatcd.
EDWARD TRoHAN fireman, hand nearly cut
off.
J. DACY, fireman, leg crushed
FiREMAN RUSSELL Of engine 3 leg broken.
The burned district begins at Columbia
street on the east and extends two blocks
westward along B ord street to Chaun-
cey street on the west. On the south side
of Eedford street the fire consumed the
entire block bounded by Bedford, Kings
ton, Essex and Columbia streets; westward
oc 81, h. IL ID
ford, Kingston and Chaunccy streets, and
Rowe place, and westward of this the
buildings on Chauncey street from Bedford
to Exeter place. il also badly damaged
the building on the southeast corner of
Bedford and Columbia streets. On the
north side of Bedford it consumed the
buildings on both the northeast and north
west corners of Bedford and Kingston
streets and damaged the block at the cor
ner of Bedford and Chauncey streets.
The territory founded by Kingston,
Bedford. and Chauncey streets was the
principal theater of destruction. Here
the conAa grafton leveled everything.
Within an hour after the first alarm
sounded the whole structure Of frown,
Durrell & Cos building collapsed with a
tremendous crash. The flames was dart
| ing from doors and windows and the
interior of the block was a glowing fur
mace Dry goods and other combustible
materials with which the floors were
packed burned to white heat. Granite
crumbled, and iron Orders melted away
like ice. The streams from the engines
were dissipated in vapor before
they touched the fire. Suddenly the cry
arose "The walls are falling Back
Bac1!' The crowd surged back for their
very lives, startled by the shout. Fire
men dropped their nozzles ind ran to save
the apparatus Great gaps opened in the
walls, and bricks from cornices dropped
into the street with an umnous crash.
There was a confused and deafening roar
and a dense cloud of smoke and dust
mounted heavenward When it cleared
away the luxurious palace of trade had
vanished, only fantastic heap of brick,
shattered stone twisted iron beams, and
broken columns marking the site.
Two engines which had been stationed
at Chauncey and Bedford streets still
stood upright amid the wreck, but ruined
hey repair. The boiler of No. % had
burst as a monstrous stone fell directly
upon it, Aattening it out like mass of
tin The machinery was broken and
bent and the wheels and woodwork we're
burned entirely away. The ladder truck
was charred and splintered into a thous-
and fragments and the water tower was
smashed into an indistinguishabIe wreck
Viewed from this point OF vantage the
scene was one Of thrilling grandeur Di-
rectly opposite the towering Ames block,
occupied by Taylor Bros, was ablaze from
roof to basement. From this building the
fire was steadily eating its way through to
Chauncey street despite the thousands of
gallons of water thrown upon it.
The immense stone and iron block oc-
cupied by Samuel Williams and Brigham
a Co, on the corner of Chauncev street
and Rowe Court marked the farthest pro-
gress of the fire in that direction. AL
though apparently fire proof it was en-
tirely Quilted. On the corner of Chauncey
and Bedford streets the large block occu-
pied by Smith, Hogg & Gardner and 9TH
ers was in almost rs had plight, and the
buildings between these two were utterly
destroyed The leaping flames succeeded
in crossing Chauncey street to the upper
} stories of the huge Allen block, largely oc-
, cupied by Farley Harvey q Co., and
/ those adjacent as far as Essex place.
1t was hard to direct streams of water
- effectively, and for a time 1t seemed as
though Warren street might yet be
reached. The firemen here made a grand
rally. Many lines of hose were carried
through tho stores on Harrison avenue
the extension OF whose rears was opposite
the rears Of those already burning, and
tho foe was strongly fought Other hose
was taken up stairs and used underneath
. and from windows across ON Bedford street.
Still other streams were directed upon the
flames and finally the further progress Of
. the fire was stad
- Here is the re ord OF the fires ravage:
f Fifteen fine brick, granite, and sandstone
t blocks were destroyed beyond repair,
o while half dozen structures were left
J. with their top stories gone. From -,
T. 500, 600 to -. o00 900 worth of merchan
!. disc was burned to nshes The assessed
valuation Of the buildings destroyed i.
about Sig6, GOO.
The insurance companies, so far com
piled by the insurance agents make a tota
= of -, Cos, 325. The fire, coming as il DOS
on top OK the great blaze at Lynn. is ,
crushing blow 20 many OF the smaller u
4, surauco companies, and 10 is not az all un
n likely that 10 viii cause the suspension o
v many of them
Z There are about goo firm. burned ou
p and luu agents Of New York aud Westeri
r... I.s... hon fE.If hood ..t..rf.r. ft..r