Democratic messenger., 1892-07-09
POCOMOKE BURNED s!
The business Portion Swept by
IL Fire Almost as Disastrous
aS Before.
LOSS S2OO.OOO.
The Origin Cnknown.-Thc Loss
will Fall Many Busi-
ness Men Ruined.

of our thriving sister town Pocomoke
City, is once more in ashes. Just such
another catastrophe has befallcn her as
WAS her misfortune on the 22d day oil
November 1888. when the entire business
portion was guited by fire. The damage
at that time aggregating $250,O00. Very
nearly the same territory was DESTROYED
on Wednesday morning of this week al
known and the exact spot where il started
is only surmised. The most definite
knowledge being that it started some
where near or in the rear of Mr.. James +.
Bonnewelrs storehouse on Market street
and when the discovery was made several
houses were on fire at once aud soon the
flames were beyond the control Of the
dazed populace. Store after store was
licked up by the devourer. The fire de.
partment fought the fire nobly and at last
succeeded in stopping its course down
Market street, saving the office OF The
Peninsula Ledger, the Grand Central Ho.
tel. Ford's Hotel and one or two other
buildings on Market street. In the other
direction ii was stopped at the bank.
which was burned out, but the walls are
in good condition and the contents OF the
vault were unin jured Men with buckets
nObly aided the work of the fire depart
ment, while others turned their whole
attention to saving whatever they could
of their burning goods. Men dashed
here and there rum ing narrow risks of
their lives, but they we re ihoughtless for
themselves, aud carried away by the ex-
citement, danger was courted by them.
Fortunately no one was crushed by the
falling of the heavy walls. The block on
winch was situated the postoilice and the
one on which Parker's Hotel stood were
swept away The houses were all new
and well built and were not well insured.
The merchants saved scarcely any Of
their immense stock of goods. but the
W hites and negroes stole
everything they could &c, their hands
upon which they could get away with
Messrs w :. Dickinson Il Sons mann
moth dry goods store on the east side of
Market street and G. c. Lloyds drug
store adj joining were on fire several times
and the large plate glass windows were
demol shed. The window
frames in the second story were burned
out and IL required heroic eff to save
he building. As many of the goods AS /
was possible 10 get ont were carried to
the vacant lot in the rear OF the store
where they were heapei mp in piles and
guarded, but many Of them were carried
off
The merchants cf Pocomokc are wear
ing long faces and several of them are H.
nancially ruined. They saved nothing
and their insurance was not nearly sufli
cient 10 cover losses On Wednesday the
city was ihronged with visitors from
Snow Hill, Princess Anne, stockton, Cir
detree and the neighb oring towns Of
Virginia, who viewed the charred tim
bers. topplng walls and chimneys and
piles of brick and mortar marking the
SPOT which on Tuesday was scene of
business activity. The scene is a marked
cont rast To that of Monday at the celebra-
tion OF the Fourth. when music and pa
trioiic spe ecl-making was the ord r of
the day.
INCIDENTS or THE FIRE.
4 MIR latum, harness maker, who was
rooming over the Postofiice, near where
the fire started, had all means of escape
by the first and second floors cut of and
he was taken from the third story win
dow He had been trying TO save "a tin
box containing 5000 which was in trunk
hut The flames and smoke drove him back
and he was glad To save his life. II is
said that George Twilley was one of his
rescuers while his own house was being
burned. Mrs. Dryden.a poor widow lady,
whose house adjained the creamery, lost
had been unable TO get insurance on her
little home, owing to its proximity 10 the
creamery, and consequently she and her
two children are now homeless and in
great distress.
Messrs. Veasey Il Bevans. whose store
was one of the first io burn, lost about
$4,000 in goods. 4 policy in one of w.
I. Dickerson's companies for $1,000, ex
pired at noon the day after the fire. One
day later and they would have had $1,000
less coming TO them.
This is the fourth time tha, DR. ID. J. q.
Truiit has been burned out
Although the inside of the Bank was
completely guited by fire the vanlt re-
manned intact with lis contents and
promptly at nine o'clock the following
morning the officers announced that they
were ready for business in the frame
house adjoining the bank.
W :. Dickinson Il Sons handsome
store wa. saved almost solely by throw
ing water upon II from hose attached 10
"a force pump in the alleyway adjoining
The Eagle Roller Mills were saved
principally by the foresight Of the pro-
prietor, who since he enlarged his mills
has kept barrels filled with water ON every
floor.
The saving of the handsome residence
of Mr.. Frank Wilson was almost mir
acle.
Going out Market street the fire stop
ped within five feet OF where il did IN
1883. II is now called Providence Point
The United States mail bags and mail
matter were all saved from the post office
without injury. The mayor of the city,
|. 7. Costen, will call meeting of the
city council at once 10 consider the ad-
visibility of passing an ordinance pro-
hibiting the building of anything but
hrick et trueturea i'm the hurned diat rict