Crawford avalanche. (Grayling, Mich.) 1879-19??, 1892-11-03
Miniature Chlcago Fire.

Miniature Chicago Fire.
The lower portion of the East Side o
Milwaukee went up in a whirlwind o
flame Friday night. The burned por
tion comprises the wholesale district
the Northwestern Railway yards, ant
gas works. It is also thickly inhabited
by Italians, Poles, Germans and Irish
most of whom are poor and have los
everything. The loss will be between
$4,000, 900 and So. 900, 900.
The fire started shortly before
o'clock in the Wholesale liquor house o
A. Blade & Son. The wind at the tim'
was blowing fully sixty miles an hour
AS the fire broke through the roof th'
hurricane caught up the brands, and
whirling them across the block, funi
them full on the seven-story building o
Bubb & Kipp on the corner OF Broadwa,
and Buffalo streets. Before the engines
on third alarm could arrive and come
into action the Kipp building was I
mass Of flames.
This was the beginning of the end
The sparks were caught up by the gall
and whirled hither and yon, while th'
firemen, fighting bravely in the molteI
shower. found their efforts powerless tC
stay the progress of the flames. A gen
eral alarm was turned in, bringing thu
entire fighting force Of the city int
action, but it was unable to stay thu
steady march OF the flames which nov
were rioting blocks away.
From this on it was steady conquer
ing march. The big streams of water
looked like squirtguns playing agains
the roaring sea of flame. From Bubb
Kipp's the fire had eaten backward Il
East Water street, but there it was helC
by hard fighting, with the fire com
panies enveloped IN smoke and flames
undistin0uishable except as the winC
whirled the curtain apart at times for I
second.
People Driven from Their Homes.
Baked here, the flames threw them
selves with renewed vigor on the terri
tory to the eastward and leeward
There no engines stayed their progress
and they rioted down across Broadway
stopped for a moment in the block be
tween that street and Milwaukee street
then jumped over that and continued
their unimpeded career toward The
lake, half mile away, carrying
destruction, ruin, and despair Il
poor families who were in thei
path. These people hurriedly left thei
homes, carrying with them what the,
could, and where this was impossible
by the sudden onset of the hurricane o
fire fled swiftly, not stopping 10 lool
ffeSesasp. eeaph-MRRSe -MRR1Seed IN m with the small woodeI
bulldogs. which were the dwelling
places OF these unforiunates, were huge
Wholesale houses. The fire king made
no invidious distinctions. The bil
trade warehouses went with the hum
bier home. The only difference wa
that he stayed longer with the former.
The territory burned out Is in th
shape of a slightly obtuse triangle witt
the apex at Blade & Co.'s, on the river
the upper side Detroit street, the lowe
Menominee street to Milwaukee AM
then to the Milwaukee River, and tn
base Lake Michigan. Roughly it is
space two-thirds of mile long on tn
base line.
At 7:3O O'Clock Friday night Fire Chic
Swenie, of Chicago, received message
from Chief James Foley, of Milwaukee
asking for immediate assistance. Ex
actly at $50, less than two hours afte
the call for help was received, the tra'I
left the north end of the Northwestern
yards, with G.. NJ. HaTshaw, a trust
driver, at the throttle The train con
sisted only OF four fiat cars containing
the fire apparatus and caboose, ant
looked more like a circus train thar
anything else. The caboose was fille'
with fremen, reporters, and fre-insur
anee adjusters 1t was run as q special
and was glvcn a through right of wa!
from Chicago to Milwaukee.
Assistance also came from Kenosha
Racine and other towns near by. In the
meantime in Milwaukee the scenes o
! Chcago's big fire were reQt ated. Hun
dreds OF poor householders carried IL
their arms, in carts or wagons whateve
they had been able to seize and saw
before they were obliged to fly from
| their burning homes. They did not fee
safe until they put the Milwaukee Rive
between them and the destroying enc
my. The few engines which could b.
brought into action we're unable to pre-
vent the wild riot. Every street look
| ing south was molten hell. The efforts
of that portion of the department to tn,
west and north of the fire hal been di
rected toward holding 1t from any retro
grade march, and in this the men were
successful.
Fully 10000 people were made home
| less, and leading insurance men sa!
| that about half the loss is covered b.
insurance. They estimate the tota
| loss at $5, ,775, 900.
The losses are as follows:
Bubb S Kipp furniture ................ 10000
j. T.. Patton a. Co., oils and paints. 100
| p. Kissinger wholesale liquors. ........ $500
Milwaukee Mirror Works. ................ 5000
b. Leidersdorf tobacco. cco................. $4,000
Guyler Lithograph Company. 10000
| Roundy, Beckham & Co., wholesale
| produce. s............
| III. Scheftel q Co., wholesale grocers. 10000
| J. Wellmure 4 Co., Wholesale grocers... 10000
| Milwaukee Chair Company ............. 26o,OO
and cars srs...................e'.....''... 10000
Milwaukee, Lake Shore and Western
freight houses. Observation-Disclosures. 5000
McI,anden Hotel el......................... $500
p. fluger e. Co., confectionery. ......... 25,OO
Sauer a. Co., glove manufactures. ....... 1000
Fifty smaller business houses s......... 10000
Five hundred dwellings and cottages -. 10000
+. p. Dohmen & Co., drugs. 1900
Weiser d. Vilter machinery. ............. 10000
Toepfer a. Sons, machinery .............. 1000