The evening tribune. (Pawtucket, R.I.) 189?-190?, 1896-12-26
A MILLION lost.
EARLY Christmas Morning
Fire in New York City.
The Polytechnic and Several Other
Buildings Destroyed.
Hospital Patients Carried to Nearby Hotel on
Stretchers-Ma Families Homeless.

New York Dec. 26.-Yesterday morn
ing q most disastrous fire broke out in
the seven-story building at 211 to 219
Il Ihirty-third street, which was owned
and occupied principally by Il. f. Kali
denburg, a pipe manufactures. Other
tenants Of the building were Adolph
pinner, snuff manufactures, and the
Sohmer piano factory. The flames
spread rapidly and a general alarm was
turned in, which brought out the police
reserve as well as the fire department
The flames extended To adjoining
apartments houses on the west side of
the burnt building, and to another on the
east side. The New York polyclinic
hospital on East Thirty-fourth street
backs almost against where the fire
broke out. and this caught fire, and the
60 or more patients were carried out of
the building to the Delaware hotel at
Thirty fourth street and Third avenue.
They were taken down on stretchers and
beds by policemen. Thirteen of the
patients were little babies. The poly
clinic was ruined by fire aNd water.
The flames had started near an ele-
yator shaft on the second floor of 21l.
They shot up through 1t like a sirocco
The building is an old one, and the
woodwork was as try as tinder and
furnished excellent fuel for the fire.
The excitement among the people in
the neighborhood was intense. Men.
women and children, who had arisen
early to see what Santa Claus had
brought them. hurried out of the houses
near the burning building.
IT was when all the police reserves had
arrived that the rear of the polytechnic
caught fire. and ii was then seen that
the patients had to be removed and this
work was directed by Captain Martens.
All of the stretchers that could be found
were brought into play and when these
We're exhaused the patents were taken
down the stairs in the beds in which they
were lying. One after the other they
were taken down the stairs and out into
the street, and carried to the Delaware
House, on the corner.
Miss Ryan. a nurse. took charge or the
babies. There were Is Of the tots in
| the baby ward. They were all wrappd
up in warm blankets, and one at a time
| they were carried out of the building
to the convenient hotel. After the last
| OF the unfortunate inmates of the hos .
pital had been removed, the firemen
| began to pour water into the building
until IL was literally flooded.
pour water into the building until it was
| literally flooded.
John Gill. an attendant in the hospital,
was overcome by the effects of the smoke
while he was assisting in the removing
Of the patients.
AS a result of the fire 1000 men are
thrown out of employment 200 people
are homeless and several are suffering
from injuries. Bystanders described IL
as almost like battle scene.
Women and children were screaming.
and their cries could be heard for blocks
around, but an impenetrable pail of
dense. pungent smoke, broken only by
flights of lurid flame, was overhead.
1t looked at one time as though the
entire block surrounded by Third
avenue, Thirty-third street. Second
avenue and Thirty-fourth street had
roof OF flame and smoke.
Policeman Thomas j. Crohan fell down
stairs while saving woman and sus-
tained severe injuries to his hip.
The loss to the big building will amount
to 100000 partly insured.
The piano warehouse, which was oc-
cupied by Sebastian Sohmer is total
loss. Nothing but part of the wall
remains, and the cellar was filled with
new machinery for the manufacture OF
pianos.
The loss to Sohmer i'm stock and ma
chinery will reach 100000, with the
proba bility that when account of the
stock which was i'm II is taken will reach
$1,000 more.
The building was assessed at 500. 00O
but was valued at nearly twice that
amount.
1t was said that the Kaldenbers build
ing and its occupants were we'll insured.
and that the other damaged buildings
were also insured. The loss which will
be most felt will be by the unfortunate
persons whose effects were ruined by
water i'm the adjoining apartment houses.
There were 20 families. who occupied
the building at 2O7 and 2O9 and 10 fam
lilies, who occupied 221 All the personal
effects i'm these houses were ruined by
smoke. fire and water. and many of the
families. IL was said had no insurance
on their property.
The loss to the New York polyclnic,
IL was estimated. is about S75. 600
The total loss IL variously estimat ted
ut from $500, 900 To $3.50, ,000