Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1892-06-23
FIRE AT THE BEACH.
Atlantic City Pleasure Resorts Go Up
in Clouds of Smoke.
GIGANTIC PIN WHEELS OF FLAME
Furnish Bright Illumination for the Mid
summer Visitors.
PYRoTECHSICs ON THE OCEAN SHORE

ESPECIAL TELEGRAM TO THE prsPATcH.1
ATLANTIC CITY, N. j.. June 22.-Fire
broke out at s:15 tonight in the real
of Mervin's bathing establishment, near the
corner of Kentucky avenue and the board
walk. The city owes its delivery tonight
from total destruction to slow breeze and
the daring and arduous work of we'll
drilled fire department. The total loss will
be hard matter to estimate, because the
loss of the seasons business to about 20 es-
tablishments would have to be taken into
consideration in the grand total.
The buildings which were entirely con-
sumed number IL and Senator John Gard
ner places the immediate loss at $50, 900.
The firms burned out include L. R. Ad-
ans. Chester county bath house; Takamwia,
Japanese curio establishment; Zeuber's At
lantic Bazaar; Campi's fruit store; Myers
shooting gallery; Houng, McSheag & Frat
inger's Academy of Music; the Linwood
baths; EaLigthey's establishment; Carr's
bath houses; Mervin's No. Q bath houses;
Dehaven bath houses; Glaciers photograph
gallery. The large Japanese bazaar of 10
James Wing Lee & Co. was damaged, but
nearly all the goods were removed to
a spot near the beach.
The only death resulting from the fire
was that of VIM. Poplar, of Philadelphia.
Poplar started to run to the fire from his
place of business several blocks below and
at the corner of Kentucky avenue he fell
dead on the boardwalk of paralysis.
Fiery PinwheeIs of Pleasures Playthings.
When the fire broke out it looked like
harmless affair and hundreds of persons
who were paradng the boardwalk rushed
through the bath house entrance to within
20 feet of the spot The supply of water was
not all that the fire department could have
desired for the inadequate streams directed
on the flames seemed at first to urge them
on to increased vigor. When the flames
gained enough headway to enable them to
lift forked tongues above the adjoining low
buildings, the slow land breezes began to
send burning brands whir]ing up the beach,
creating the greatest alarm.
The fire consumed the bath houses in the
rear of the giant observation wheel and then
advanced in warlike manner to the popu-
and gilded chariots on the big wheel were
ablaze and the naval swing began to revolve
rapidly. resembling a gigantic pinwheeL
From here the flames spread to the inn
mense Japanese bazaar of Tokamura, and in
a short time the place was gutted. At this
point the fremen saw that at least one
block of the wooden buildings were doomed
and mastery campaign was settled upon
to rescue the adjacent property.
Tho Hard Battle of the Firemen.
A Gordon was statioued at the Kentucky
avenue end of the fire and half a dozen
streams were directed to keep the fire from
spreading to the south. No power on
earth could keep it from eating its way
northward, and although the plucky fire.
men fought every inch Of the way
the flames were not checked until
Griffith's scenic railway and figure
eight were threatened, as the
flames swept along to the north. The board
walk and all the pavilions were destroyed
and had it not been for this fact the fremen
could have checked the confagration before
1t reached the fine new Academy of Music
belonging to Young, McShea and Fra1inger.
When this roomy structure was reached q
line of hose was brought to the front, but 1t
was too late to be of much service. The
flames moved steadily on until the narrowing
of the row of structures gave the fremen
an opportunity to attack from the other
side. Then the end was near, and after a
plHcky fight of four hours the firemen gained
the upper hand. On the beach the scene
was one of mixed grandeur and ludicrous,
ness, and 10000 people were massed along
the strand, sometimes ankle deep in surf
and the breakers caught many mapping.