New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1889-02-05
FLAMES IN A FINE HOUSE.
A HANDSOME UPTOWN HOME RUINED.
THE DWELLING OF HENRY G. NEvINs' NO.
EAST FIFTY.THIRD ST., A COMPLETE WRECK.

THE DWELLING OF HENRY @. EEVINS, No.
EAST FIFTY.THIRD.sT., A COMPLETE WRECK.
The handsome house No. East Fifty -thlrd-st'
owned and occupied by Henry G. Nevlns' tne
Church-st dry-goods merchant was damaged badly
bv a fire Yesterday Mr. Nevins left the house ~
II a. m TO 90 to his place of business Not many
minutes later Annie Fletcher. one OF the chamoer-
maids, opened the door of a pantry on the thiru
door and saw the flames. The pantry opened also
into q dumbwaiter shaft which went up from thc
basement to the fourth story. Flames had started
from furnace in the basement and had gone up
through the shaft to the top Of the house. Annie
Fletcher hastily shut the pantry door and ran
down stairs to give an alarm.
Mrs Nevins had been i'll several weeks and had
been confined to the house most Of the time, al
though she was able to take short drives on
pleasant afternoons. She was in her room. on the
second floor, when the alarm was given. Hastily
putting on some wraps she went down stairs with
the assistance of Annie Fletcher and the nurse.
Katie Logue and walked across the
street to the house of Frederick L.
Olcott, where she was made as comfortable
as possible Charles O'Brien. the coachman.
ran out of the house to call the fremen. y. H.
Canning, coachman out of employment, who
was in the house looking for work. seized Jane
DAVIS tne COOK, anu UrdRBeu ucr ouo ih'o "i'
street Frederick Smith, the butler, and the
other servants carried out some costly articles
of bric-a-brac.
Tho fremen found the flames burning the scr
| wants rooms in the top of the house, and also
| rooms on the third floor. A second alarm was
| rung, and the engines pumped several tons OF
water into the house. 10 required an hours work
| TO extngulsh the flames. The roof was destroyed,
| and the third and fourth stories were complete
wreck. Firemen were obliged to break portions
| of the ceilings and carved woodwork of partitions
in the lower stories to put out the last shoulder
| ing remnants of the fire.
The wreck was so complete that the house
wns uninhabitable, and Mr.. Nevins decided to
| live for q time at the Buckingham Hotel lie
said he and his wife had made the house hobby,
| and had spent a fortune in building IT, Inc
interior work kept a number of hrstclass
artists busy for several years Each room was
modelled after some room in French palace OF
| the sixteenth century. The walls and ceilings
were rich in hardwood carvings and fresco WORK
| and every time q fireman swung an axe at a
| PARTITION Yesterday he destroyed property worm
| hundreds of dollars The water damaged some 81
| the costly frescoes, and soaked the nchly uphoE
| stored furniture. -, .
| Mr.. Nevins said yesterday that 1t might cost
| repairs TO the house alone he thought, would
cost $50, 900, and the damage to furniture and
| ornaments NAV exceed 81 200. The INSURANCE
| was about 500, ,O0O II the broker employed by Mr
Nevins had not allowed any of the polcles, 10
| ianse Mr.. NeyIns said he never expected that
| the fremen would permit the house to be burned
nm and he had not had the house insured for It's
| full value