The evening herald. [volume] (Shenandoah, Pa.) 1891-1966, 1894-05-16
THOUSANDS HOMELESS.
Monster OonAagration in a Boston
Tenement District,
TWENTY ACRES BURNED OVER.
a Hundred Houses Destroyed, Five Hun
drsd Families, Representing Three
Thousand People, Forced from Their
Homes and over aI, 900, 600 Lose.

Thousand People, Forced from Their
Homes and over ~. 900, 900 Lose.
Boston, May l6.-By the torch Of an In.
cendiary over IA million dollars worth Of
property is In ashes. over 500 families Of
the medium and poorer classes, consisting
of over 1900 people, are homeless, and
many Of them who had time to save . por-
tion Of their household furniture slept last
night In the open air. Women with babies
iu their arms and little children huddled
close together, had only the sky tor q roof
aud the mattresses saved from the burn
ing tenements for a bed. After o'clock.
the time for the workshops and business
places to close, many pathetic scenes we're
witnessed. fathers returning TO find their
homes burned 10 the ground. and no trace
Of their wives and little ones. Children
who had been at work as cash boys and
girls in the big dry goods and other stores
barred out from the streets where they re
sided, and could End no trace Of their pa
rents.
The fire covered space OF twenty
acres, and as far as eau be learned six per
sons have been injured, and none fatally.
The fire started ia the Boston league ball
park ia a pile OF lumber which was lying
under the right field bleachers, directly
back OF first base. Iu moment 1t had
leaped up to the seats, and famed by
brisk breeze. swept towards the grand
stand So rapidly did the flames spread
that before the occupants Of tho grand
stand realized 1t the fire was upon them
and they were forced to fee.
The left field bleachers were next ig.
nited Meanwhile the sparks had fallen
upon the houses on Berlin street, and the
! flames surged on towards fremont street,
reaching out TO the right and left until
the entire square between the ball grounds
and fremont street and extending north
from Walpole street to Burke street was
q mass of burning buildings The Sher
win kindergarten school house. brick
structure checked the progress Of the fire
for only a moment. and that too, was
| quickly numbered among the structures
| consumed The buildings on the south
side Of Walpole street were soon burned
The flames shot down towards Coventry
street. on that side Of fremont street near
est the ball grounds. They swept on in this
direction for three squares as far as Burke
street, devouring the homes Of the men
and women who were working with fran.
tic energy to get out their household
goods, and even before they could remove
those to a safe place the walls burned and
crumbled down.
At o'clock the entire block along the
west side of fremont street from Walpole
| to Burke was a brilliant mass OF flames,
which swept across to the opposite side
and soon engulfed the buildings for four
| blocks. BY this time the residents Of the
tenements tor nearly half mile around
had become alarmed and were moving all
| their property into the streets and seek
ing for places Of safety So rapidly did
the fire eat its way, however, that those
in the blocks adjoining fremont street
| did not have time to save their household
effects and barely escaped with their
| lives. The streets were filed with fright
ened woman and children, poor people
who were trying TO save part Of their
small property and hurryinR firemen and
policemen. Furniture of all kinds lit
| tered the sidewalks, and the firemen were
greatly hampered by the distractions
BY 8 O'Clock the conhagration had
crossed fremont to Cabot street.
Shortly after 8 o'clock several steamer.
arrived from Lynn, Salem, Beverly, Brook
line and Lawrence, and every effort was
made TO stop the fire at Cabot street. But
it could not be checked, and not until Il
had burned from Cabot street half way
through TO Warwick street and north t
Burke street was the limit of the burned
district on the southeast side of the bal
grounds reached.
While the firemen were fighting on thi
side the fire was Speeding from Walpol
toward Milford place. on the southwes
side of the ball grounds, and In half al
hour all the buildings in this block wer
in ruins The fire burned on until I
reached Ruggles street at one point ant
consumed the houses on both sides o
Chapel street, and laid low the structure
on Sudbury street At Ruggles street, ol
the west, and Cabot street on the south
east, the fire was practically stopped, an
at 730 the fire was under control and Il
? no danger Of spreading further II Is es
? timated that about a hundred building
have been burned and about 800 familie
rendered homeless Prominent insursnc
meu place the loss al over million dol
lars and the insurance AZ about two
thiTds OF the loss
Chant wins tbs RsntuckV Derby