The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1890-05-14
CRUSHED BY A WALL.
Fatal Fire in a Silk Mill at
Catasauqua, Penn.
An Explosion Kills Number of
Volunteer F'iremen,

At6 o'clock ir the morning fire was dis
covered in the large new building at Catasau-
QUA, Penu., owned and occupied by the Uni
corn Silk Manufacturing Company, of New
York, with Offices at SO and 81 Greene street.
An alarm was quickly sounded, bnt owing 70
the hour, the fire companies which are COM
posed of volunteers, mainly worAmen EN-
ploYed in the different furnaces, factories
and mills wera under the impression that
the whistles were as usual, calling them TO
their days work. and did not respond until
the fire had beei burning about twenty MN
uteS.
Upon their arrival at the scsne OF The con-
hagration considerable dlfncuty was eA'
Derieacei in SECURING wafer ior tae lire on-
aines as the mill was built ~ . hlu4 G"a---
looking the LehiSh Cne! and Navigation
Company's u.nal and the Lehigh River, halt
a mile from the town. They ran their engines
down a hill on the other side to the canal,
and soon had two streams Of water on the
building, which was by this time mass OF
flames.
The mill employed $50 hands, mostly fe-
males. They were to have commenced work
at $50. While they were assembling short
ly before that hour fire was discovered ir
the dyeing-room. The place was without
sufficient fire protection, and the
flames spread rapidly. The EN-.
ployes rushed panic stricken from the mill
and all rot out safely. When it was seen
that the mill was doomed the firemen and
Others devoted themselves toward saving
goods, while another force got ON top Oh
one story addition and on the roof.
Suddenly there was terrific noise amid
the flames. and it was at once known that
; steam.pipe had exploded. TIE report caused
&the great crowd to retreat but they had only
zone few steps when section of the sonth
h of the mill nearly forty feet long and
b5ut four feet wide fell with crash and
landed on the roof of the new addition, thirty
feet below. The fall of the wall Is
supposed to have been caused by the concus'
sion of the explosion. A moment later the
air was filled with smoke and steam and
cry of borror arose when it was discovered
that thirty men had been buried in the ruins.
The work of digging them out was at once
commenced, and after hours OF hard work
the bodies were all taken ost.
The killed were as follows:
ULYSSES Everett, aged twenty. Scalp cut,
both hands and arms burned and internally
injured. Died at st. Luke's Hospital shortly
after being taken there.
Charles A. Frick, founder, aged twenty
five wears, and having wife and three chill
dren, burned and crushed. Died three hours
after being recovered.
John Good, member of Phoenix Fire Com
pany, head crushed, aged twenty-five years,
has wife and child.
John Lottejeanni, boss dyer, aged forty,
has wife and child. Instantly killed under
falling walls.
Three other men were fatally wounded
and about thirty were badly injured.
The fire is supposed to have been caused by
spontaneous combustion in one of the pack
ing rooms. At II o'clock the flames were
under control The loss on building is $50
900, on machinery $50, 900, and on stock S25,-
GOO. The loss is partially covered by i'll
surance.
Catasauqua is centre of large mining in
terests. A few years ago the authorities cast
about for some industry that would afford
employment for the lsrge female popu-
latfon of the place. 10 Paterson they
opened negotiations with the proprietors
Of the present Unicorn Silk Manu-
featuring Company, which ended in the Cat
asauaua improvement Company building
mill for the silk company, the latter to pay
the interest on the investment and to buy the
building at stipulated price if it should at
any time wish to.