Idaho County free press. [volume] (Grangeville, Idaho Territory) 1886-current, 1893-09-01
A Big BLAZE AT CHICAGO
The Windy City Experiences Another
Disastrous CoB1aSralion.
The LOSS NEARLY HALF 4 MILLION
Fully Four Thousand Men, Women and
Children Destitute and Their LII
tie Homes 10 Ashes.

CHICAGO, Aug. pa fire which in
extent of territory covered, is the largest
known in this city for many years,
began in that portion known az South
Chicago about o'clock last evening
and before il was got under control
had destroyed over 200 buildings,
mostly frame residence structures Oc-
cupied by workingmen, and rendered
many hundreds OF people homeless
The fire started in three story build
ing on the corner of Nineteenth and
Superior streets, occupied as residence
by William GILES. 1t was caused by
his daughter, who accidentally upset a
lamp while heating curling iron. From
there it rapidly spread and grew in vol
ume, famed by gale from the west,
and the flames ate their way over block
after block of small frame residences,
until reaching the LAKE.
Within two hours after the fire
started it had consumed at least five
blocks of the great industrial section OF
the city. The reside nts Of thst portion
of the city were in a panic condition
second only to the one which charac-
terized the great fire. The streets were
blockaded with wagons containing the
effects Of frightened people, and men,
women and children fed in all direc-
tons. Before the few engines in the
district could make the slightest i'm.
preston upon the flames, they bounded
eastward between Nineteenth and
Ninety-tiret streets in the direction Of the
lake. House after house went down
and soon the First Methodist and Ger
man Lutheran church had succumbed.
Hardly had these structures zone than
| t,A tc ha IA in q
dozen places further east, the brands
being carried long distances by the fur
iOus wind.
The burned territory is just north OF
tho business center of South Chicago,
and was given almost exclusively to
residences. Fire sprang from the ruins
of the GILES house to the cottage adjoin-
ing on West street and brands were
carried to the building at the corner oil
Buffalo avenue and West. The blaze
spread north and south on Buffalo
avenue, while the original fire ragged
along Ninety-fist street and Superior
avenue south was becoming a perfect
tornado of flames.
Before the dozens Of engines had made
much Roadway the immense docks of thu
Sunday Greek Coal Company were burn
ing. More than 100000 tons of Goa
were stored in these immense bins
From this time on the force OF firemeI
increased and the flames were gradual,
brought under control. By O'Clock tn,
work Of nearly forty engines, besides thu
fireboat, had told, and the coal in tn
Sunday Greek coal docks and Beck
lumber yards were the only places wher
the fire was still uppermost, and in
short time it was practically under con
troll there.
The number of people homeless j
variously estimated at from 1000 to 5000
but it is thought this figure is little ex
aggerated. Despite the rapidity will
which the flames spread and the confu
sion which prevailed no lives were los
as far as known, and only few peopl
were injured, and those not fatally.
CHICAGO, Aug. 25.-The police est
mate the loss by fire at South Chicag
last night ct $500, 200, half of which fall
on the owners, aud the other half on tn
Sunday Greek Coal Co. One hundre
and thirty residences and two churche
we're burned. Other estimates place til