The Scranton tribune. [volume] (Scranton, Pa.) 1891-1910, 1895-07-04
CONFEDERATION At Lynn
Mas Started BY Firccracker In
Union Street.
SYCAMORE HOTEL BURNED
Several ExplOsions-Tw Men Meet an
Awful Dcath-lIurd Work for tho
FEcmcn-The Loss About So.
900, Insurance 81 10000.

Lynn, Mass, July 3.--As the result
OF iirecracker among the fireworks In
the hardware store of l.. A. May. Nos.
oSS to 2S9 Union street. here. this fore
noon, the Sycamore Hotel block was
completely gutted by fire. and adjoin-
ling buildings were badly damaged by
water, entailing a loss of about $3.50, 900
The fire started at Ills and burned SO
raridly that second and third alarms
We're Immediately run in, as the block is
situated In the heart of the retail busi-
ness section of the city.
IL spread to n. jenkins confectionery
store and W. c. Gilman's liquor store
from the hardware establishment and
then burned up through the hotel to
the roof of the building. The flames
also threatened to engulf the building
occupied by Goldsmith & Moore. carpet
and furniture dealers. at Nos. 273 to
21j Union street, and other adjoining
buildings and they were drenched with
water. During the fire several eXplo-
sicns In the hardware store deferred the
tlrenen somewhat in their work, but 70
on was injured. and the flames were
finally controlled soon after noon. Fire
spread through the hotel SO rapidly
that the occupants of the house We're
given short time to get out, and sew
eral narrowly escaped death.
Aged Guest Rescued.
Fireman David Upton rescued sgd
ney Greenwood. an aged guest. from the
Sycamore hotel. and domestic, whose
name could not be ascertained, was
found unconscious on the top floor of
the hotel and carried out just before
the roof fell in. few moments before
noon. on the way to the fire the police
ambulance collided with steamer No. .
and was wrecked. The engine was not
injured and no one was hurt
The Sycamore hotel was only recently
remodeled and occupied the three upper
stories of the block while the ground
floor was devoted to stores. The in
surance is about 100000.
Among the losers in the Sycamore
building are: L. A. May. house fur
nishings, loss $4,000. insurance. s25, 900:
S. N jenkins, confectioner. loss IS, 500,
insurance $1,000; w. C. Gilman, liquors,
loss $4,000. Insurance $4,000; Thomas
Dogue, proprietor of the Sycamore
hotel, loss to contents. $4,000. insurance
$1,000; W. Brown. barber, loss $500,
partly insured. The damage to the
building is estimated at almost So, 900.
Goldsmith & Moore's loss Is about ST.
500. partly insured.
Two Men Arc Killed.
The employees Of the May company
were engulfed SO quickly in smoke and
flames that they had great difficulty in
making their exit. All but two were
successful. James II. Winslow and
Harry F. Hicks. 63 and 81 years old re-
spectively, who were working on the
third floor back when the explosion oc-
Cured and did not have time to es-
cape. The body of Hicks was found in
the ruins this afternoon, burned to a
crisp. his identification being made pos
sible only by a fragment Of a neck
scarf. Winslow's body has not been re-
covered.
The cause of the fire Is not as yet
known, although the fire marshals are
investigating the statement made by
one person that he saw a boy light a
bunch Of firecrackers with a slow
match. intending to throw them into
the gutter, but by accident dropped
them into the bunch of fireworks. The
total loss Is in the vicinity of $lO0, 900;
insurance partial.