Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1889-07-29

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residence, into which locomotive crashed,
killing instantly Mr.. and Mrs. Hoffman
and seven children. A pile OF bricks marks
the spot. Standing at the corner of Market
and Vine streets, and looking due north to-
ward the Cambria Iron Company's Offices, q
wide stretch OF ground covered with debris
fills the distance.
FRINGE OF RUINED BUILDINGS
lines the north bank of Stony creek, extend
ing westward to the Cambria clubhouse, ut
the foot of Main street. In all this expanse
| of territory nothing shows the result of con-
tractors work but the cleared-off streets.
| But there were q great many ruined build
ings which were torn down and burnt.
Anumberof buildings were destroyed by fire
at the lower end of Vine street. In the
| center of this large area two large fires were
burning, fed by debris. 1t should be re-
membered in passing that at the corner of
Main and Franklin streets a Philadelphia
| fire engine stands. with steam up, ready to
answer any alarm Of fire.
Traversing Vine street to Main huge piles
of rubbish lie on either side. Three corners
of the intersection of Main and Vine streets
are graced by commission store buildings,
the rear Of one Of which is devoted to
| THE CITY CALABoosE.
Another of the stores contains Judge Cum
| minis Office, which, on scheduled pay days
of the commission, is besleged by a crowd
that blockades Main street. Near the Gala
boose was noticed the blackened and half
consumed trunk of a large tree with a huge
chunk of sandstone imbedded in its roots,
| showing the wonders of nature very effectu-
ally. Upon some debris-covered ground
nearby was seen primitive habitation oc-
| cupied by number of Italians. The ele-
| ments had deposited huge section of TIN
roof in this spot and the Italians, with char
| acteristic regard for the main chance, had
propped up one side of the tin roof, thus
fashioning rude house. Under this shell
ter was grouped as motley collection of
articles saved from the wreck as could be
imagined.
MUCH THE WORSE FOR WEAR.
At the lower end of Main street stands
group of brick dwellings, among which is
the handsome Cambria Club building. with
a great fssure in its northern side. No re-
pairs have been as yet attempted. and the
| clump of buildings looks very much the
worse for wear. The Red Gross commits
sary, wide, long structure, is situated at
the foot of Locust street, upon Warner
| street, the thorougbfare which passes the
western side of the Cambria Clubhouse.
| On Locust street, which parallels Main
street, half square. from Warner street, is
| the new Red Cross Hotel.
No buildings of any Importance are to be
| seen between Warner street, which ends in
the bridge across the Conemaugh at the
| Pennsylvania depot, and the intersection of
the two rivers, a distance of fully 800 yards.
It is wide expanse of ruin, through which
the scores of wagons in use by private parties
and contractors thread their tortuous course
to and from the dump.
AN ENTIRE BOROUGH GONE.
On the railroad side of the Conemaugh
was once populous borough. Millvale by
name. The Conemaugh takes a sudden turn
from the depot, and flows in a southwesterly
direction to its junction with Stony creek,
leaving a strip of territory which, of vary
ing width, ends at Stone bridge. This sec
tion was swept as clean as a whistle by the
flood, obliterating every trace Of Millvale
borough except the borough schoolhouse,
now the official morgue, which stands like
q grim sentinel. "marker" for a once
coffins can be seen through the apertures
that once gave a view of prattling children
at their studies.
In the whole of Millvale borough are Just
seven small new buildings, not counting the
meager shanties which do duty as restau-
rants just below the depot. The railroad
people have
CLOSED UP THE GREAT GAP
made by the angry flood in the embankment
leading to the stone bridge. The masonry
approach that was carried away has also
been replaced. The bridge over which
thousands of tons of debris was hurled, and
which acted as a backwater, causing terrible
destruction along the banks of Stony creek.
is now in good order. No pen has ever
pictured the seething. flood which dashed
over the bridge, sweeping thousands to
death, and it were idle to attempt at this
day description of that terrible scene.
A hasty glance toward the end of the
Cambria Iron Works shows that the space
in which steel billets were tossed around
like so many eggshells is in much the same
condition as during the first days succeed
ing the food. Some of the tracks have
been uncovered, however, and piles of
FRESHLY MELTED IRON AND STEEL
contrast strangely with rusty iron which
peeps from the uneven surface of the
ground. --.
All is activity at the Cambria Works,
and the smoke from the huge stacks drifts
lazily across the sky, like bow of promise
torthe ruined wageworker.
On the northern side of the Pennsylvania |
tracks all looks promising and presages |
brighter days for industrial Johnstown. On |
the southern side all is disbursement, and |
predicates weary days of gigantic exertion |
before domestic Johnstown becomes itself |
again.
If two months and hundreds of thousands |
of dollars have barely made a superficial |
showing in the ruined city, how much time
and money must be given to thoroughly |
rehabilitate the most unfortunate city in
modern history? 1t must, indeed, be a
noble, wonderful people who can look this
gigantic problem squarely in the face and
take up once more the burdens of life in the
midst of fdiscouragements, finding no parallel
upon the face of the civilized earth.
WALES.