The great West. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1889-18??, 1889-12-06
BOSTON SCORCHED.
The Fiery Element Sweeps
Out About Eleven of BOS-
tons Trade Palaces.
Buildings that were Consid-
cred Fireproof Melt to
the Ground.

Boston, Specialize most disastrous fire
from which Boston hes suffered since 1872,
and one which in property loss more than
rivals the great confagration at Lynn on
Tuesday, broke out at about $50 a. III. to-
day in the six-story granite building owned
by Jordan, Marsh & Co. and oc-
cupied by Brown, Durrell & Co.,
dealers in dry goods, on Bedford
street. corner of Kingston. The great
fire of 1872 broke out at the corner OF
Kingston and Summer streets, and the
alarm of to-days fire was rung in from the
same box which did similar duty at us p.
M on the evening of Nov. 8, 1872. when the
fire fiend broke loose, and before being sub
dued consumed nearly 500, 900, 600 of prop
erty The first alarm rung in to-day was
Immediately followed by the first
general alarm in Boston since 1872.
To-day's confagration ragged for
six hours, burning over two acres of terri
tory covered by mag ,ificent structures, and
detailed loss now estimated at $40 900, 600.
The fire was discovered by letter carrier,
who noticed flames bursting from the top
of the Brown building over the elevator
shaft, in which it evidently
originated. This letter carrier no.
tilted the nearest police officer,
who sounded the first alarm. AS soon as
Chief Weber, of the protective department.
arrived it became apparent thai a long hard
fight with the fiery element was before the
department, and general alarm was sent
out, and this was soon followed by calls
upon all neighboring cities and towns for
assistance. The flames were soon pouring
from all the windows and the roof of the
RrOwp- Turrall huiI1iDp At S.1S
THEY HAD SPREAD
to the shoe and leather exchange building,
another large structure adjoining Brown,
Durrel1 & Co. on Bedford street. From both
buildings the flames swept in great masses
across Bedford street to the opposite corner,
thence across Kingston street, along Bed
ford to Chauncey street. where it was stopped
in the store Of Farley Harvey Il Co., the
upper stories of which were burned. Three
stores along Chauncey street toward Sum-
mer were burned On the south side of
Redford street the flames jumped across
Kingston street from the hot blaze from
Brown, Durrell & Co. to big sandstone
building owned by +. L. Ames and occu-
pied by Taylor Bros, and this was con-
sumed. The great granite building
known as Nevins block at the cor
ner of Chauncey street was the next vic
tim for the flames, and the entire block,
clear around Rowe place to.Kingston street,
was consumed. Crossing Chauncey street,
the fire soon had a good head of all the
stores which are enclosed in Exeter place, a
small street running from Harrison avenue
to Chauncey street. Here the fremen got
control At Rowe place the fire was partially
checked from going toward Essex street,
but quickly moved to the opposite side to
the immense Allen and Larrabee buildings
occupying the square between Bedford
street, Harrison avenue extension and Ex-
eter place, at which point their further prog
ress was checked. According to the most
reliable estimates the losses of those insur-
ance companies whose agents could be
found are as follows: