Los Angeles herald., 1890-10-08
TERRIBLE HAVOC.
The Dupont Powder Works
Blown Up.
No Less Than Seven Distinct
Explosions.
The Conclusion Felt More Than
Thirty Miles Away.
Huge Buildings Torn to Atoms and Many
People Killed and Injured-Fear-
full Destruction.
Associated Press Dispatches.

@ASSOCldCeQ fr0SS D1SpatCneS.I
WILMINGTON, Del, Oct. 7.-Several
startling explosions in quick succession
'(some counted five, others seven) at 3 80
p. M, announced to Wilmington a dis
aster at the Dupont powder works on
the Brandywine. A rush was made to
the telephones, but nothing could be
learned beyond vague reports Of damage.
An Associated Press representative
hastened to the scene, and has wired
that the whole section OF the works
known as the upper yard" is a
complete wreck, and at least
six lives have been lost. One
of the magazines went off first, and the
rolling and drying mills near by were
set off by the concussion, followed in
rapid succession. There were at least
seven distinct successive explosions.
Every dwelling in the neighborhood is
or less damaged. Telephone messages
from West Chester state that the ex-
plosions were distinctly heard in that
section
The Worst Not Learned.
in the following dispatch which shows
that the worst has not yet been learned
"Powder mills exploded. Ten killed
and twenty wounded Rockland is a
complete wreck, none of it's houses are
left standing"
Rockland is village on the Brandy
wine fully mile above the scene of the
explosion. 1t comprises a large paper
mill, owned by the Jessup q Moore COM
pany, and about fifty dwellings in which
chiefly reside mill employees. Its pop
ulation is about 200. Evidence of the
destruction at that distance, leads to the
belief here that the number of killed and
wounded has not yet been fully ascer-
tanned.
Scene of the Disaster.
The Dupont Powder Mills extend
along the. Brandywine chiefly on the
left bank, and close to the water, for
about two miles. They are divided into
the "Upper," "Hagley" and slower"
yards The former is three miles, and
the latter five miles from Wilmington
The report of damage done at Rockland
proves incorrect as to the locality, the
name of Rockland being enormously
used for the buildings clustered around
what is known locally as the "Upper
yard" There are some fifty houses in
habited by employees of the powder
mill, clustered, and these are all
wrecked. The damage to property can
not be thoroughly estimated tonight.
The force OF the concussion even broke
windows in some parts of Wilmington,
four or FIVE miles away.
Terrible Destruction.
When the Associated Press repre-
sentative arrived at the scene, he found
women and children, the wives and sons
and daughters of the men employed in
the powder mandatory, madly rushing
here and there, seeking information
about the safety of their loved ones.
The yard in which the mills stood was
Uttered with the debris of fallen
buildings, and at some places, where
buildings had been, the only trace left
was the empty cellars and a few founda-
ton stones. The little village of Du-
points Banks, immediately outside the
powder yard, presented most pitable
appearance. A hundred dwellings were
either demolished or badly damaged.
Buildings were unroofed, and the fronts
of houses blown out and wrecked. In
side the dwellings devastation was COM
plete. Rooms on the ground floor were
strewn with broken crockery, crushed
stoves, remnants of tables. etc.
The Killed and Injured.
Following is partial list of the killed:
Martin Dolan, James Dolan, William
McGarvey, John Martygon, William
Dennison, John Dietz, Thomas Hurlike,
John Hurlike, Patrick Dougherty, John
Newall, William Green, and woman
named Rose Dougherty. Several others
are missing.
The more seriously injured, so far as
learned. are Daniel Harkins, William
Logan, Annie and Maria Dolan, James
Mrs. William S. Mcdowell, her two
year-old daughter, Lydia Anderson, An
drew Godfrey, Frank Hollis, John Nc
Caffrey, Charles Godfrey, Thos. F.
Dougherty. Several of the injured will
die.
A Complete Wreck.
The Office of the Dupont company is
complete wreck and six mills are in
ruins. Several members of the Dupont
firm were injured by falling walls and
broken glass, but none of them serious
ly. The dead were all employees OF the
company, and were in and about the
mills that exploded. Several workmen
are missing, and are believed to have
been blown into fragments.
The Fatal Spark.
The first explosion occurred in one of
the packing mills where workman
named Gran, was receiving can of
hexagonal powder to be shipped for the
use OF the United States government.
In some way spark was communi-
Gated to the can, and it blew up. In
stantly the packing mill exploded, and
the other mills in the upper yards,
seven or eight in number, followed at
intervals of less than one second. All
these except one, were rolling mills,
in which the ingredients OF gunpowder
are pulverized by vertical rollers of
stone, turning slowly around centre
post.
\ A Matter of Life and Death.
Immediately after the explosion
the large building known as the ire
fnery", located near the center of the
village, took fire. 1t was matter of
life and death to the whole population
that the fire should be extinguished be-
fore it communicated with the powder
the building contained. The Dupont