The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1895-03-29
ST. AUGUSTINE FIRE SWEPT.
MANY DWELLINGS AND STORES co
Up IN SMOKE.


Hotels Have Narrow Escape.
Forty-Six Residences and stores
and Many other Buildings Burned.
Hundred Families Homeless.
The Total Loss About $2OO,OOO.
st. Augustine Fla, March 2S-Fire
broke out in the blacksmith shop occu-
pied by John Masters. in the old building
owned by R. ]. Nickler. on Charlotte
street, two doors north of Buntings fur
niture establishment. this afternoon al
12:45 O'Clock, caused by sparks from the
forge setting fire to the roof. 1t was
discovered by a boy working in Carcaba's
cigar factory on Hipolita street, who
gave the alarm. The fire department
and residents responded quickly, as the
neighborhood is a veritable tinder box, but
owing TO the inadequate water supply, the
fire, famed by a west wind, crept north
ward to the building occupied by Markle
& Hince, carpenters and painters, which
gave the flames the necessary material
for a coniagration. Several citizens, then
seeing the necessity for aid, advised the
mayor to wire to Jacksonville. This Mayor
Pinkham refused to do. saying the local
fire department could put out the fire.
The wind was to the sea, and with hard
work the fire was kept from burning west
into st. George street.
Meanwhile the flames licked UP the
2-story home of Mrs. j. NJ. Byrne and
its contents, and also the George Wash
ington, a vacant residence owned by the
Sisters of st. Joseph, on the corner Of
Hipolita and Charlotte streets, west side
The flames then crossed Hipolita street.
and the large frame s-story furniture
store and tenement building occupied by
Kuhn and owned by B. A. Masters, with
its contents, was consumed.
The flames leaped across Charlotte
street, through a vacant lot, caught the
Gibbs mansion, fronting the Bay and in
few minutes it, too. was a seething fur
mace. The efforts of DR.. Anderson and
others who were driven from the roof
were turned to removing furniture to the
| street. Their work was in vain, as the
flames consumed the furniture and leaped
seaward. so as to set fire to a sailboat
opposite.
At the same time the flames had
crossed Charlotte street to the store and
residence known as the old Geneva store
and reduced it to ashes.
Thence the fire jumped east to the rear
of the beautiful residence owned and
occupied by the Misses Gemoz and Bar
tola Genovar and family. and destroyed
it with the contents. which had been
placed for safety next to the sea wall
The flames began eating their way both
north and south. and destroyed the homes
of Messrs. Bosse and Munson, on the
east side of Charlotte street, the James
Renick property, ]. NJ Stewards two
dwellings and stores, George Persons
Photographic gallery and a neighboring
house on the south.
Thence along Bay street the flames
moved south, wiping out the two-story
dwelling owned and occupied by Capt
Daniel Allen and his family and board
ers, and destroyed all the household eff
fects.
To the north on Bay street the flames
spread from the Gibbs mansion and soon
destroyed the large double residence own
ed by Mrs. Randall and occupied by the
Coburn family, the old landmark the
Coquina house, owned by the ]. Andrea
estate the fine 2-story residence owned
and occupied by A. J. Burgess, the rapid
firing gun inventor, and the house next
on the south, owned and occupied by
p. V. Capo, completing the destruction
of every habitation from Baya lane TO
Cuna street, and stopping for the time
at the old blacksmith shop on the north
side of Cuna street.
The firemen, citizens and tourists. wom-
and a ha ri at
moving household effects to places Of
safety, back to st. George street, for the
fire had attacked a 2-story cigar factory
on Hipolita street, and soon the flames
destroyed the building and its contents
Mr.. Carcaba has already arranged for
new quarters, as he has tobacco in the
custom house.
Next the flames caught and consumed
the two-story building Occupied as a sa-
loon by Tony Ximaine on the west and
owned by T. A. Russell Here the west
ward course of the fire stopped, owing
to the broad yard between this building
and the Lorrillard villa and want Of ma
terial. The main efforts of the fire
men were directed to Bunting's large
warehouse, next north of the seat Of the
fire. The flames were seemingly intent
on reaching the piles of stacked dry lum-
Der to the rear and northward to Geno-
var & Co.'S cigar factory, a large two
opera house, which meant, had the fire
not been checked, the destruction of the
opera house. the Argyle, the Magnolia.
the Florida house, and, in fact, the whole
length of st. George street. The flames
were checked here by a force under the
direction of J. A. Mcclure and they un-
doubtedly saved this extensive and valua-
BILE area.
Heth Garfield with a force early took
charge Of and aided in preventing the
spread Of the flames into the second
warehouse and store of the Bunting plant.
before McGuires force got to work Mean
while Chief Ballard had a stream in
front Of Bunting's and checked the flames
within Munson's second house, occupied
by Monserrat & Young and Whitley. the
printer.
This being considered the seat Of the
confiagration little attention was given
to the Bay front and the flames leaned
from Aliens house to the Bay by a two
story house occupied by Mrs. Julia A
Baglett. who lost everything with the
house. The flames crossed Baya lane and
consumed the old ice house. a large frame
structure and several small buildinrg
owned by Vernancio Sanchez. This was
the southern limit of the fire, and was
within one house OF connecting this dis
aster with the northern limit Of the great
FIRE which eight years ago destroyed The