The Yellowstone journal., 1894-10-29
Sixteen Persons Burned to
Death or Smothered in a
Hotel at Seattle.
Charred and Biark-nes ,odie- Found by
tn. Firemen-Ten Men Three Woman,
Three Children.


West street hotel early this morning.
Thirteen bodies have been identified.
The financial lp-s is less than 10000.
The building belonged to J. u. Cole
man.
The West street house occupied the
upper floor Of a tvostory corrugated
iron building that covers a quarter OF a
block Of ground at Columbia and West
streets. one block from the Northern
Pacific depot. and near the business
center Of ths city. The building was a
mere shell Of wood, covered with iron.
There were several exits To the streets.
but ithey were narrow. The tire was
undoubtedly caused by the explosion Of
a lamp in the kitchen. The corrugated
iron shoathiug kept the flames hid until
nearly the whole interior was a furnace.
The thin partitions were Of resinous
pine. covered with cheese cloth, and
they burned furiously. II was not until
the flames were seen burning in the
windows by people in the street that an
alarm was turned in.
When the firemen arrived the fire did
not present an alarming aspect People
al windows were rescued with ladders
and boards, some escaping with hardly
any clothes. ID. Il. Glass. Edward Have
lin and &. +. johnson jumped to the
ground and were injured so badly that
. they were taken to the hospital. All
will recover The crowd in the street
then supposed all dodgers had escaped
The firemen played water through the
windows and were reinforced by the
fire boat. the building being only short
distance from the water front. Al "a
a. m. the gre was under control and the
iremen were able TO enter the shell Of
iron. At the stairs they found the body
81 man pinned to the floor by th,
ruins uf bed. The body was terribly
! burned.
Continuing their search. the firemen
discovered corpse after corpse. until a
/ four o'clock they had counted fifteen
| Subsequently another was found. Mos
Of the bodies were left where they la!
until daylight, IN the hope that the pro
prietor might identify them 10y locating
| their room on the register, for all tn,
bodies except two were. charred beyonC
, the possibility Of recognition
In one Of the Railways body, charred
4 rri o iath s,a
was found. 4 little farther on in the
passageway was another body, evidently
that Of woman, face upward and
hands outstretche as il fighting for her
life In another hall or passageway wal
another body. evidently that OF an aged
woman. Her body was fearfully con
iorted, her burned arms and hands were
| uplifted. and in one blackened hand a
handful Of hair, as il she in her agony
had clutched it in despair when the fire
came upon her.
The saddest sight of all was found in
an inside room OF the passageway which
led to West stret. There, calmly lying
| in charred and backened bed, was
evidently an entire family. The father
lay on one side, the wife next to him
and a little burned and blackened arm
flesh falling in shreds from it, small fin
fiers clutched, showed that little child
was among the victims. In an adjoining
room was a still more horrible sight. Ii
a corner OF small inside room tw,
charred and naked skeletons met theil
| gaze The flesh was burned from each
and the first, that Of man, with black
ened stumps Of arms, seemed to be fight
! ing the impending danger. Immediatel!
beyond him. bolt upright and clutchint
his waist, was the skeleton Of woman
Startled, they had arisen from thei
couch, smoke and flames had rushed il
upon them, and before they had realized
their awful danger, they we're overpow
cred and met the most horrible Of death
In that portion of the hotel where tn
flames did not destroy the wood work
the bodies Of two more we're found. On,
man was completely dressed. and tn
other was in his night clothes. The.
were suffocated by smoke. In some o
the ruined rooms at the end Of q mai
row hall, where one man was found deac
is white streak on the wall. untouchet
by fire, untarnished by smoke. kept thu
by Sthe upraised arm Of this victim
where that arm rested against the va
when in his last struggle he reached Up
ward for help in his awful agony.
In a corner Of room where the W
per parts Of the walls are burned ava
is an unb urned spot upon the floor, an