Pullman herald. [volume] (Pullman, W.T. [Wash.]) 1888-1989, 1895-08-10
A Once FIouushing Town Nearly
Destroyed.
MANY PEOPLE LEFT HOMELESS
once Started the Destroying Element
Leaped From Roof TO Roof,
Leaving Only Ashes.


business portion Of Sprague is in ashes,
hundreds are homeless tonight, and the
losses viii aggregate a million and
quarter.
The town is almost destitute OF 1000,
and Mayor Sanderson has sent mes
sages TO the leading cities appealing
for aid. The people are appalled, by
their frightfuI losses, and it will be sew
eral days before they will know Wheth-
er 10 try to rebuild the city or not
At noon today the fire alarm was
sounded for a blaze in Bryants chop
and feed mill, corner OF Railroad ave-
nue. and j street. The department re-
sponded promptly. but the blaze was
quickly famed into a roaring furnace,
and the fire boys were driven back from
the scene almost as soon as they ar
rived. With ightning-Iike rapidity the
flames leaped from one building TO an
other and inside Of five minutes 1t was
seen that the entire town was threat
ened. AS the flames reached the cor
ner Of street they IOrked, one Dranch
going north Of the railroad track ana
consuming in its way the Northern IA
cific grain warehouse, the National no
tel and the entire row Of wooden build
ings to the corner OF 3 street. Here 1t
turned off to the Pacific hotel and the
row Of wooden buildings in the rear OF
it From there it jumped to the OLD
Headquarters building and Porak 5
brewery, totally destroying it and his
residence.
SOUTHERN FORKS WORK.
Meanwhile, the southern fork, with
equal rapidity, consumed the buildings
on Railroad avenue, First and Second
streets, including the Commercial no
tel, the Herbring opera house, the city
hall, r. Newman < Co.'S and the Ma
sonic hail.
From here the flames leaped to the
buildings west Of the car shops, and IN
another minute they burst forth into
flames. 1t was impossible to 90 any
thing to save the railroad buildings, as
the water pipes had burst in this part
of the city. Rive minutes later ter
rife explosion occurred, as the oil tanks
burst, and the timbers and flames rose
high in the air.
The fire was checked on the west side
by the brick buildings of the First Ma
tional bank and Jensen, King q Co,
the occupants of these buildings plac-
ing wet blankets over the windows and
DYNAMITE USED.
Mayor Sanderson at this time arrived
from Medical Lake and ordered the
building of Ben Ettelson, on the corner
of c and First streets, blown up with
dynamite. This was done and the en-
tire row of business houses on c street
between First and Second was saved.
The flames here took a sOutheasterly
direction and destroyed the drug store
of W. 2. Putnam, the Masonic hail. the
county Jail, the old opera house, the
residences of r. r. Jones ana E. II.
Stanton. The flames were checked here
by blowing up with dynamite the old
opera house, and the row of trees in
front of II. w. Bonne's residence We're
deIuged with water to such an extent
that the fire was checked in a westerly
direction.
The fire swept east as far as the stock
yards, completely celebrating in it's
course every residence and business
house in that portion of the city.
Fully 500 acres of land was burned
over, every building thereon being COM
pIetely wiped out.
SCENES INDESCRIBABL
The scenes at the fire were indescrib-
able. Families rushed hither and thith-
er with household goods and wearing
apparel, seeking some safe place to de-
post them. A few minutes later the
safe place had become a dangerous one,
and they would grasp what they could
and leave the rest to be destroyed by
the devouring flames. Fully one-fifth
OF the 5000 inhabitants of the city lost