The morning call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1878-1895, 1893-07-13

down the structure, ana the progress made
during the past few days, including last
Sunday, rather warrants his expectation
that the Trinity Church of asst fond ass o.
Citations Will be level with the street on
Saturday night. TIE work of demo ition
has been going on ever since July ]. and
MIR. Whittier agreement is to have the
building all down and the property turned
over to the Parrot estate within fifty days.
For twenty seven years Trinity Church
was a fixture of San Francisco. And
what memories its destruction awakeDs !!
There, in times past. worshiped Generals
o. 0. Howard, John NJ. Scotield. Allen.
Thomas. and Henry w. Halleck. There in
the Stanford mortuary chapel King kala-
kaua's body lay In state, and with solemn
diree and mournful requiem the remains
of Senator John +. Miller and Governor
Washington Bartlett were borne away.
under the arching doorwavs. to the final
resting place Of man. Mrs. John +. Miller
was also buried from there, and so was
Mrs. Hewes. the sister of Mrs. Leland
Stanford. 1t was there, too, that the
funeral services were held over the re-
mains of the first white woman born in
San Francisco. That was Mrs. Sampson
Tams (nee Miss Larkin). daughter of
Thomas 0. Larkin. The wife of the Mexi-
can Minister, Senior Romero. was there
looked upon for the last time.
The three-ton bell which invited the
parishioners to the Sunday service for
so long was rung for the last time when.
at 3 o'clock on the afternoon of last Srn-
day, just as It was about two feet from the
ground, Contractor Whittier gave it three
parting taps. The pinnacle of The tower
fell at exactly u IA p. NJ. on the Fourth of
July. The bell, like some OF the stained
windows, will be transferred to the new
church at Bush and Cough streets.
Thirty-six of the choicest windows will be
for h,pt In thr,,o
chancel windows, one of which was
donated by Mrs. William Alvord another
by DR.. Maxwell, in memory of his
daughter, Ella Middleton Maxwell, and
the last prolongng the memory of Benja-
min Harrison Randolph. who had much
to do with experimenting the construc-
ton of the old church. will have their
glass kept for the new church.
THE condition of the building was
found much stronger and better than was
expected" said Mr.. Whittier to THE CALL
reporter yesterday. THE roof was sup
ported by five main trusses with spans of
sixty-seven feet. These trusses were sup
ported by timbers twelve by sixteen feet
through and thirty feet in length. With
the exception of the ornamental trusses of
the ceiling, which were of redwood, the
material of which the building was mainly
composed was Oregon pine. Beneath the
auditorium is solid foundation of brick,
the walls being from sixteen to thirty feet
thick. Some of the floor is already taken
up. The planks are one and half inches
thick. The work Is progressing very salts
factorly."
Still, as the old temple is gradually be-
coming ruins there is not so much hustle
about it as would attract any Of the nu-
merous curious sight-seekers, and but for
an occasional order being given, followed
by the frequent reports OF the falling tim
bers the teamsters are rapidly hauling
away. nobody would suppose that any,
thing out OF the usual run Of events was
going on.
But the reckless winds now sweep
through the skeleton structure, catching
up the binding dust and mingling it with
a thousand "reminiscences. Pass on, thou
historic monument, out of common fact
into illumined memory!