Press and daily Dakotaian. (Yankton, Dakota Territory [S.D.]) 1880-1889, 1889-04-22
da,s Tre,a aaa 1akotaiaa
THD FIERCE FLAMES.
New York Experiences the Most De-
~struetiye Fire in Years.
SEVEN BLOCKS LAID WASTE
Tho Fire Department Utterly Unable to
Cope with the Great Conhagration-
The Losses Placed at Over Three
Mnlions-The Casualties.
BLOCKS LAID WASTE

New York, April 20.-The most de-
structiye fire that has visited this city
or years completely swept the east
bank of the North river from Fifty
ninth street to Sixty-fifth street. 1t de-
stroyed more than $4,000 00 worth of
Central Railroad company, and at least
$500, 600 worth belonging to N. X. Fair
banks of Chicago, the Rossiter stores.
and others.
The fire started on the ground floor of
the Fairbanks Lard refinery, formerly
belonging to the w. ]. Wilcox Lard
company, a building 300 feet square.
stretching from Fifty-ninth street to
Sixtieth street, and facing the North
river. 1t seems to have originated at a
spot where some orkmen were putting
in a new ard-ccoling apparatus, but the
exact cause cannot be learned. The
building was old and soaked with
grease, and the flames quickly envel-
oped the whole structure. The 1850 en-
ployes. found escape by the stairway
cut off, and most of them had to jump
from windows. Many were injured
- ~ Ahie. oa' is.s. Lno eAS,
menu was 80 great anu ehe ponce a SO
10 40 IL was Impossible TO secure
the names OF all the injured. The UNI
fortunate men were hurried away to
hospitals as rapidly as ambnlances
could be procured. The police kept
back a crowd of women, many OF whom
had relatives in the b1iidjnp
The building, which contained also
the Rossiter stores. was soon beyond
saving, The blaze wasa most imposing
spectacle. and attracted the attention of
people in Jersey City and all along the
Jersey. shore, Ard OF thousands OF pas
sengers on ferry boats crossing the river
for miles mp and down.
The six-story structure was soon de-
stroyed. Meanwhile the efforts of the
firemen to save the two elevators oppo-
site the factory, belonging to theN New
York Central Railroad COMPANY, had
been fruitless, and the great structures
We're o ablaze. All the fire engines
be ween Fourteenth street and Harlem
were OH the spot, hut the elevators were
SO situated as to be difiicnlt OF access by
he hremen. Twentyvseyen sunken
tracks OF the New York Centrairailroad
and q line OF stock yard enclosures IN
teryened between the burning factory
and the elevators, and the only way to
reach the buildings was along Sixtieth
street, where the heat was too great for
b hreinen to1iye IN it. A company
OF the eme however. got past and
into the railroad yards, but there was
only q six-inch water pipe there, and
with the engines SO far away they could
do little effective work, fhe fire boats
working from the river, aided by a
nnmbe OF tugs OF the New York
Central, We're able to do more, but
mo- to save the buildings. The employees
In the elevators kept the hose In the
building playing as long as they could
remain, but ut a they "a to bandon
their posts.
elevate "A was the nrst to go n
its flames communicated to elevator
sBD The sheds OF the stock yards next
led M flames n the conf1agration
spread rapidly northward.
When the walls OF the factory fell. an
immense quantity goods that
had been packed in the Rossiter stores
fell outward into sixtieth street, block
ing the thoroughfare and preventing
the fireinen from doing further work
a fire in this city before at which the
work OF the tire department counted for
SO little II was impossible to make
headWay against such odds. The
streams throwns both from land n
river, seemed ridiculous. The elevators
had a capacity OF over a hundred thou
san bushels apiece, but they were al
most empty. Elevator contained
5 oats, and elevator .B' barley. making
q total value of contents no over
Sloe,oon "a buildings cost respec-
lively $I50,GU0 and $BOO,0e0 when built
thirteen years ago, d large part OF the
cost being. for. h foundations, which
are probably no totally rnined.
The New York Central railroad COM
pany also owned h factory building j N
winch h lire originated. They leased
1t to Fairbanks. 1t was worth about
SlOO, 600. The losses on contents are
not accurately Known. but Fairbanks
loss IS estimated al 500, aoOand Rossiter'
q Co.'S customers, comprising 9 large
number of merchants, at S250,00 The
owners of the goods are probably
insured. and Rossiter q Co. themselves
lost but little.
After the fire had swept along
the shores to Sixty-sixth street it
stopped for further material to feed
upon. The lire lasted from about y
o'clock until Y, and was witnessed by
q vast throng. The police estimated
That the crowd contained over 2G0, 0 y
people. Ihe sight was a magnificent
one, N there was nothing Tor blocks
around to obstruct the view. After
ali over the city, and miles away from
Mr.. Charles NJ. Pearsall, who was
SnDGrlntepulnp the work of NllttJnp in