The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1893-10-19
FREE FIREWORKS FOR ALL.
ooBcEOus AND COSTLY BLAZE Nv
UtsT FoRTY-SECoND STREET

c,r,seii'- and Nevius q Hayiiand's Wall.
,,,,r Factories Burned. with Hair n
po,.n Tenement IIouses-Streets damned
=. Thousands watching the Maxniacen,
..,,,e,e-The 1.-TWO Mines" Alarm,
,r..,I,-D,m,rcM More than 81 SOC, 900
nh. m,pnetism OF daring sky. against
LIN half the tall buildings OF tho town
w.,e slhouetted drew multitude to the
..ighborhood OF Forty-second street and
Tsnth avenue last night One OF the most
ni,,uresaue and costly fires In recent years
snn.umed n third OF the block bounded by
vast Forty-nrst and Forty second streets and
Tsnth and Eleventh avenues
n started in the engine room OF the wall
,.osr factory OF william Campbell & Co.. al
mo.t in the heart Of the block. covering four
numbers on West Forty-second street and
ri,. on West Forty first street. Tho factory
-. massive brick aud stone structure. eight
.,or,as high, with n clock tower three stories
.hovs the roof facing West Forty second
.,r,et The building was T-shaped. Its
,rontaes on West Forty-se street was 100
te,t and on West Forty-frst street 225 feet.
The clock tower was the most conspicuous
M OF architecture In the neighborhood. and
hundreds OF dwellers In Forty second street
regulated their timapieces by the big Camp
hail clock, whose hands indicated ten minutes
mat when a policeman found the ground
floor OF the factory ablaze.
There we're nve men In the building. includ-
Ing the Waterman. james Sexton. who was
on An upper floor On his way down he found
the stalrways impossible because OF barriers
Of fame and smoke and ran to second story
window Policeman Cash and other blueboats
oftho West Forty-seventh street station raised
Ar. ok.h,
Tho other men who reached the ground
floor found themselves imprisoned behind a
lockel Iron gate at the main entrance to the
factory The lock was smashed from the out
side and they were liberated.
The IRE reared through the building as II It
wore blast furnace. In an instant every one
of the many wndows was squirting flame.
Tho roof was burned through In jiffy. and
$40 the clock tower was mighty torch.
lighting tho North River for miles, That was
not the time by the clock In the tower. Its
hands stopped at 800. when the fire began to
redlen the mechanism.
There has never been greater jam at q free
METROPOLITAN show. For two hours the fire
engines trucks. and hose carriages clattered.
angling their gongs. through tho uptown
streets past the doors of theatres and cafes and
concert halls.
Throngs poured forth from the pay shows
10 see the free one There were men about
town In cabs. fashionable folk in carriages.
aud a vast army Of plebeians afoot. all bound
for tho big fire.
They surged through dozen cross streets.
uncertain Of the location OF the blaze. which
seemed to cover dozen blocks. SO widespread
was the reflection in the sky. and came rush
INK down and UP four or five longitudinal
thoroughfares
One. two. three. four. five alarms were sent
d. out. and tho police reserves Of four precincts
were summoned to keep the spectators In Or
der and out OF danger. The two mines" were
finally rung. which called engines from an
other district There were twenty engines in
oil called to the scene.
1t was impossible TO save the wall paper fac
tory. and the efforts OF the fremen were d.
rectet to preventing the whole block from 60
Ing. To the eastward OF the factory on West
Forty.second street were five brown stone
fronted dwellings, each occupied by four fam
ilieA
They were once the residences OF well-to-do
men. They were numbered from 5O4 to $40.
The Forty-second street part Of the factory
was numbered from 512 to $40. On tho south
west corner OF Forty-second street and Tenth
avenue was the four-story brick wall paper
factory OF Nevius 4 Haviland.
The dwellers in the brown-stone fronted
houses were driven out by the police Just after
the fire started. They had to leave all their
furniture and clothing.
The fire swept through the houses from the
rear. and reduced them to blazing shells with
10 half an hour. The factory of Nevius &
Havland. filled with wall paper. also caught.
and added TO the umnation.
There was a Jam in Forty-second street
Inc up-ooking throng extended from curb
10 curb. almost to Broadway When
Nevius Haviland's factory began sending
It's fiery messengers into the clouds.
The heat from the blaze burned the paint from
inc doors and shutters o! the tenements across
fortY second street opposite the FIRE. and
cracked hundreds Of window panes.
hS;4O o'clock the beams and rafters In the
mll Campbell factory were burned away. and
me clock tower began to reel.
II Tell toward Forty-second street. and sew
sIa' tons OF It's glowing bricks plunged clear
tcfoss the street, smashing In the show win
COWS OF grocery store.
The upper half Of the front walls fell with
inc tower Nobody was on the pavements.
anu the heat was so fierce that not even the
fire.
Inc crash OF the walls was accompanied by
aeharre Of the reserves on the massed spec
'a'ofs In Forty.second street west OF Tenth
avenue.
me crowd was prodded and showed to the
vast side Of Tenth avenue. Tho electric light
, .'es we're torn down by the falling walls, and
"sI made 1t lively for the firemen for while.
iney spat electric sparks. curling and ca
,'ng IKE serpents. until Inspector Bennett
~ y, ,no Board OF Electrical Control and gang
men extracted their fangs
aver destroying all the buildings to the
eastward OF the Campbell factory. and vainly
LING 10 leap Tenth avenue. the fire worked
mo westward and burned tho four.story
''vsu'SIone houses at 522 and 524.
terin, rear n,I o. o25 Was destroyed and tho In
rhpt az On ruined by water
tsnrmant e men worked calamity and saved the
4 Jjannh,s3n Tenth avenue, between Nevius |
Tn tn n,ha factory and Forty first street.
Lslifa teneIhcnt west Of the rear OF tho Camp |
strovs TORY IN West Forty frst street was de- |
nent y, Johannes had n saloon in tho base |
doz-c - 'nr tenement, and had Just got In a |
the ~ ste. "s,te7 OF li1uors They contributed to
eaugbt leaned across Forty hrst street and |
Geo. .he hye-story furniture factory OF |
hs A. Scharky 4 Sons. at sos. destroy