St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1889-06-07
The Loss Will Aggregate
Fully Five Million
Dollars.
Mark H. Dunnell After the
Scalp Of the Albert Lea
Postmaster.
The Granite Falls Gold Boom
Dakota Sunday School
Association.
Special to the Globe.

TACOMA, W. T., June 6.-The busi-
ness portion of Seattle, the largest city
in the territory, is in ashes. Every
bank, hotel, place of amusement, all the
leading houses, all the newspaper
offices, railroad depots, mills, steamboat
wharves, coal bunker. freight ware
houses and telegraph offices are burned
down. The fire began near the cor
ner of Front and Pearl streets,
in the Seattle Candy factory build
ing, at 2:30 p. M, and before
midnight had consumed the whole
business section of the city northward
to Stetson & Posts mill, along Front
and Second streets to the water front,
involving a loss of over s5,0OO,OOO. The
city is literally wiped out, except
the residence portion on the high
ground. At $50 o'clock the flames
had reached the wharves and the
steamboats, and shipping were
compelled to haul out in the stream.
A stiff breeze was blowing from the
northwest when the fire began. and it
soon got the best of the fire department.
The water supply gave out within two
hours after the fire began, and then the
flames had clean sweep. Aid was
telegraphed for to Tacoma, and
train started with fire ap-
paratus at 4:35 p. M. reaching Seattle
in siXty-three minutes, distance of
forty-tWo miles. The ocean steamers
Mexico, for San Francisco, and the
Ancon, for Alaska, escaped destruction
by pulling out into the harbor. A great
deal Of property was saved only to be
burned up again, so quickly did the
flames spread.
ANOTHER ACCOUNT.
SEATTLE, w. T.. June6.-Fire broke
out at 2:30 p. m. to-day in PontiuS'
building on Front street, and by 4 80 p.
m, was raging over district of five OF
six blocks with tremendous fury. The
wind was from the north, and the direc-
ton of the fire was along the water on
Front street and from the water front
to the big brick block between Colum-
bia and San Francisco streets. The
indications were that the whole
business portion of the city
would be swept away, involving loss
of millions. The magnificent San Fran
cisco store and other stores in the row
were Oh fire, and the whole big block
seemed doomed. The local fremen were
helpless in the face of the calamity, and
telegraphed in all directions for aid.
At 4:30 p. m. the confagratiOn
was rushing through the heart of
the city. To add to the peril,
smart breeze began blowing OF. the
bay, tanning the flames, and about the
same time thousand feet of hose was
caught in the advancing blaze and de-
stroyed. The opera house block, the
block opposite, all the warehouses at
the foot of Columy street, and also the
great group of buildings in the rear of
the Post-lntelligencer newspaper office
were now burning. The people in the
Yester block, occupied by the
Western Union Telegraph company
and the Post Intelligencer were hur-
riedly moving out. At this writing the
Western Union had but one wire undis-
turbed over which this dispatch was
being sent. At 9 p. M, thirty-one
blocks had been burned in the very
heart of the city, and there is imminent
danger of the loss of about twenty
blocks more. The fire was not at all
under control, and had reached the
great coal bunkers. Should these be
destroyed, the flames were certain to be
communicated to large number
of wooden buildings, and the loss In
creased many fold.
A dispatch from Seattle dated 8
o'clock p. m. says that the fire had con-
sumed Yesler's large block, the Grand
opera house, the Occidental hotel and
was rapidly moving southwark toward
the large coal bunkers on the bay front.
The main business portion of the town
seems to be
UTTERLY WIPED OUT.
At that hour the fire was raging and
the wind more fierce than ever. At the
present time it is impossible to form
any estimate of the loss on the property