The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1894-08-03
Another Fire Breaks Ont in the Ill
Fated District and the Total
Loss Reaches S2,O0O,OOO.
MET DEATH IN THE FLAMES
Firemen at Chicago, Detroit and
Philadelphia Killed.
Loss of Life During the Day Numbers
Eight, While the Injured Amounts
to a Score or More.

was tonight visited by a second fire. which
for a time threatened TO rival in
destructiveness that OF last night
Before it was subdued it had wiped
out the yards OF the following concerns:
John Spry Lumber Company, A ]. Nc
Bean, cedar posts; p. Farrell. cedar posts.
In addition to the lumber yards the wooden
bridge over the Chicago river at Ashland
avenue was totally destroyed. The fire to-
night was between two loading slips for
vessels. 1t is directly east of where the fire
was checked last night. The fire department.
had been gradually withdrawn during the
day, and this evening but one engine COM
pany and two fire boats were playing on
the smoking ashes of the yards burned over
last night At about o'clock lively blaze.
supposed to have originated from some en-
bers, sprang up in the north end of the
Spry lumber yards. A heavy northwest
wind was blowing and in twenty minutes
the Spry yards a roaring furnace.
For a time the danger was very great,
and it was feared that the large lumber
yards of the Beidler company. Cooper COM
pany and of John Sheriff would be de-
stroyed, and if the fire had once obtained
full sweep in them there was no telling
where it could be checked. The flames
leaped almost across the river, which is
fully two hundred feet wide at this point
and set fire to the Ashland-avenue bridge,
which fell into the water fifteen minutes
after IL began to blaze. Just before IL
caught fire engine company No. % came
laundering across Ii to work on the fire.
A sheet of flame wrapped itself around the
engine, slightly scorching several men and
badly burning Peter F'lemming. the driver.
Fleming clung to his seat, however. and
urged his horses through the flames. both
of them being severely singed. Fleming is
in the hospital, but will recover.
In the slips adjoining the fire were sew
eral vessels, all of which had narrow es-
capes. All of them got off without injury
with the exception OF the propeller Albert
Soper, which caught fire, bat because Of
the prompt action Of her crew in getting
her into the river and eXtinguishing the
flames was not severely OIrned. At 10
O'Clock the fire department had the flames
SO under control that there Tds no danger
of it spreading to other lumber yards The
losses are estimated as fOi!oGs:
John Spry Lumler Company, $500; L.
j. Mclean, $1,000; p. Farrell, $500; total,
100000. All are protected by insurance.
large eight-story building at No. 15s
West Van Buren street was cleaned out
were blazing. The building was occupied
by number of small concerns, the largest
OF which were the Cnica6o Decorative sup
ply Company, which lost 10000, and the
Chicago Cash Buyers Company, dealers in
baby carriages and bicycles, which lost S25,
coo. The total loss to the building and its
occupants will foot up $4,000. Inc large
brewery of Fortune Brothers. close to the
burning building, was saved with slight
damage.
Lieutenant Cunningham, of hook-and-lad-
%,
by falling wall, and Captain Sullivan, OF
engine company No. 81 seriously wounded
The sixty acres over which the fire swept
last night were still smoldering to-day.
All over the district between Blue Island
avenue and the river and Robey street ana
Ashland avenue the yards are COW
cred with smoking piles of lumber.
and streams of water were thrown over
the ruins all day. The total loss was es-
timated to-day at close to s., 600, 900 and the
burned property was largely insured. T1f
total number of men thrown out of emf
ployment by the fire is 900. and the de-
struction was so complete that ii Will be
weeks before most of them can be given
work by the firms which suffered. The
list of casualties, so far as known, is as
follows. The dead:
LIEUT.. JOHN MGINN. of the freboat
Geyser burned died at County Hospital.
WILLIAM WOOLENFELL, No. 63 Union
avenue, struck by cap blown from engine
No. 35, knocked into river and drowned;
UNKNOWN MAN, knocked into river
UNKNoWN BOY, seventeen years old.
burned to death.
EDwXRD BURNS. pipeman. burned;
CAPTAIN BYRNE. engine company No;
Is, struck in eye by stream or water VIII
i0es CAPTAIN PT in FARcAL. of fireboat Yosemi-
tie. overcome by smoke; viii bsSSN recover iurrsa
about face, body and arms.
PETER PHELAN, pipeman. overcome
oy yIIEfjT nSaT anp DAN MURPHY, hook and lad
der company, knocked insensibie by nyins
oricf r. FLAHERrY. fireman. hit by swing
ing hose, knocked into fire and badly
burned: will recover.
OTTO RICHTER, fell from lumber pile.
two ribs broken ard injured internaliyi
may die.
Revised list of losses and insurance fol-
lows:
Martin Lumber Company. $4,000, insured
for SO per cent; Siemans & Kalskie Com
Lowe Lowe & Co. $4,000, Insurance to cover;
sured;; ]. 3. McAdams cedar dan Post Com
pphait' Company, $4,000. covered by insur-
ance; w. c. b. Palmer, 5000, covered by
insurance; Shoemaker & Higbee, N5:Wo.
no0: II. F. Conway & Co., $4,000. fully in
sured: Surrell & Locke, $1,000; Barnum *
Richardson. $500, Hines LumDer Company
Si s00. Columbia Grain Elevator Company,
q 800: loss TO railroads and docks, $ll0OO0;
Insured Total loss, s., ,9l0.60O
One Fireman Killed end Six Hurt.
DETROIT, Mich, Aug. 2-One fireman
was killed and six were injured this after
noon i'm a fire which destroyed the planing
mill and lumber yards OF T. c. Richards a.
Co. and Hunton, Myles & Weeks. At
O'Clock two squads OF pipemen were play
ing streams at the southwest corner OF the
mill when a portion Of the wall gave way
and a haIf-dozen fremen were caught by
the falling brick. with the following re-
suits:
F,ITGENF MCCARTHY. single, pipeman
No. Is company, killed outright; body
frightfuly mangled.
HENRY TRAPP, pipeman No. 9. body
crushed head cut. burned.
GEORGE w. LYONS. pipeman, No. s. hip
broken, body bruised u -
LIEUT.. LOUIS r. TATE, NO o. oack
injured, leg crushed.
THOMAS SCHIEBLE. pipeman No. 49,
leg broken and burned
CHARLES BOEBERITZ, pipeman No.
19 body bruised.
The property loss will aggregate close
10 10000. The plants are located at