Huntsville gazette., 1891-07-04
THE FLAMES FEASTED.


! House In st. Louis Together with the
flnest Stock of Wet and Dry Groceries
IN the City-Several Small Establish
ments Adjoining and Abutting Crushed
by Failing Walls and Partially Consumed
The Loss Fully Quarter of a Million,
| but Well Insured. 4t-AA
ST. Louis, June SO. .-Maddened by
right, screaming, cursing and groan-
-ng, the guests at the Ivy house, at No.
/ ii North sixth street, rushed from their
rooms and climbed down the fire escape
in their night clothes at o'clock this
morning.
Smoke was pouring from the win
dows of Nicholson's grocery house,
next door. Engines and hose carts
1ere rafting up the street, glass was
cracking in the windows of the La
clede hotel across the street. and the
guests of that hostelry were leaving
their rooms in terror and, displaying
more fear than modesty, were rushing
about the halls in scant attire seeking
place of safety. ''T
Flames darted out of every window
in Nicolson's establishment, and for
time it looked as if everything in sight
| WOlllU DC consumed.
The fire was discovered in the third
story of Nicholson's place few minutes
before o'clock, and when the firemen
arrived at the scene the flames had shot
down the well hole in the center of the
building and were curling around the
stock on the second and first floors.
The blaze spread with amazing rapidity
and tha hr1na ct,- ~ fbrnxx-r,
into the building seemed to have no
effect
Part of the contents of the building
was of combustible nature, and made
such good food for the flames that it was
not long before they had attacked and
weakened the walls themselves.
About 4:15 the north wall began to
totter, and suddenly the west end of it
fell, crashing into G. Boekelbrnck's
cigar-store and Ticknor's tailor shop, at
Is and II North Sixth. These were one
story buildings, and were completely
demolished by the heavy mass of brick
which crushed their roofs as if they had
been made of paper. The blazing
embers started blaze in these places
also, and the flames slowly crept
around the corner to the little stores on
Chestnut street.
BY this time the Nicholson building
was nothing more than blazing shell.
Back at the corner OF the alley lowered
| huge chimney which seemed to have
been comnletely separated from the
rest of the block by the flames Fire
men. policemen and spectators were
rushing to and fro in its very shadow.
Suddenly there came a cry of warming,
and the people rushed frantically across
the street. The big chimney began to
lean over and slowly and majestically
it fell to the ground, crushing the office
of the Heinrich Coal Co. at 610 Chest
nut. Bricks and debris flew into the
street. and had not the people there re-
ceived warning a number would doubt
| less have lost their lives.
The fall of the chimney caused the
flames to spread along Chestnut and f.
| Ocll1er's shoe store and H. l.. Ermatin-
| gers hat store and L. Eckerle's tailor
shop were in ruins.
| just at this time some one declared
| that two men had been asleep in Book
elbrinck's cigar store when the fire
broke out and that they had been
crushed under the wall when it fell.
The fremen forced their way through
the binding smoke and were cropping
around amid the debris, when Bockel-
brinck's clerk called them back saying
he was the only person who slept in the
building and that he had been aroused
and made his escape at the first alarm.
The heaviest loser in the fire was
Divid Nicholson, whose stock of fancy
groceries, both imported and domestic,
dry and wet, valued at $4,000, was
over two-thirds destroyed. The in
surance is S172,000. The building,
owned by the Nicholson estate, was
damaged to the extent of $4,000. The
other losers were Charles Humes & Co.,
hardware, stock damaged by water,
Sc, ZOO; c. Bockelbrinck, cigar dealer,
$4,000; L. Oelker, boots and shoes,
| $1,000; III. L. Ermatinger, halter, 81, 900;
L. Eclxerle, tailor, $500; S. Ticknor,
! tailor, $500; Heinrich Coal Co., S400 All
the losses were partially covered by in
surance. The Ivy house, in which the
panic occurred was scarcely damaged
at all The cause of the fire is not