The Scranton tribune. [volume] (Scranton, Pa.) 1891-1910, 1896-02-03
.PHlADELPn|A'S BIC FIRE
A Million Dollars Worth of Property
in Ashes.
HOTEL GUESTS IN DANGER
The Patrons Of tho Lafayette Flee in
Scant Attire -Scycral Firemcn In.
jured BY Falling Bricks = Esti.
mate OF Losses nnd Insurance.


most stubborn and most destructive
fire that has visited Philadelphia in
years broke out at 500 this morning in
the cellar Of the Hazletine building,
14l6 and 141S Chestnut street, and be-
fore ii had been subdued the Hazletne
building and the American Baptist
Publication society's building at 142O
and l422 Chestnut street. We're de-
stroyed. and the dry goods store of
Homer LIE Boutiller and company, 14l2
and 14l4 Chestnut street was badly
damaged and the rear of the Hotel
Lafayette. which faces on Broad street.
was damaged to the extent of $4,000
The approximate total loss by the fire
Is $l.OI5,O 900. the greater part of which
is covered by insurance. The cause of
the fire Is not definitely known.
When the firemen arrived the Hazle-
tine building was already a mass of
fiames in the interior. The building
was seven stories in height with an
ornate front of brick and terra Gotta.
IL was very substantially built and at
first the firemen thought that they
could confine the fire within it's walls.
The flames, however, spread through
the building with great fury and the
fire was soon beyond the control of the
department on the ground. Several
alarms brought out nearly every fire
company in the city to the scene. The
flames leaped up high into the air and
burst out in the rear of the building on
SAMSON street and threatened the
handsome club house of the Union
League club with destruction,
Lafayette Hotel Threatened.
Fortunately the wind blew the flames
and sparks in another direction. The
rear stories of the Lafayette hotel tow
cred high above the Hazeltine building
and the flames poured over the wall
towards the hotel. BY this time most
of the guests in the hotel had been
awakened. and. as the building seemed
in imminent danger. they were warned
to leave. Scantily clothed men and wo-
men poured out into Broad street. drag
ging with them their trunks and bags.
All the night cabmen in the neighbor
hood had been attracted to the scene.
and they gathered a harvest of dollars
in conveying the guests to other hotels.
Police patrol wagons were also pressed
into service for this duty. and among
those who availed themselves of this
sort of vehicle was Mayor Porter
King. of Atlanta, and the other Allan
tanS who came on here with the liberty
bell. They took possession of one pa
troll wagon and their satchels and grips
filled another, and they passed the re-
mainde- of the night in the Continental
hotel.
The fire in the meanwhile had spread
from the Hazletine building to the four
story marble building of the Baptist
Publication society, and this too. was
soon q mass of flames. Like the Ha-
zletine building, II extends go feet back
from Chestnut street to SAMSON street
The firemen directed most OF their at
tention toward saving this building.
1t was on fire at least a half hundred
times. but the department did splendid
ly efficient work and confined the
flames to the eighth and ninth ftoors
facing the fire. The party wall of the
Hazletine building. towering three
stories above the dry goods store Of
Homer lie Boutiller and company fell
in on the latter place and crashed
through the sky light in the centre Of
the store into the cellar. The firemen,
however, poured great volume of
water upon the smoking mass Of bricks
and saved the store from destruction.
1t was not until the Hazletine building
and Baptist building had been entirely
destroyed and after Ave hours hard
work that the fire was entirely sub
dued.
liazcitinc's Loss.
The Hazletine building was owned
by Charles F. Hazletine. an art dealer
The ground floors were occupied by
the Stetson Piano company and the
second floor by Mr.. Hazletine as an art
gallery. The rest of the building was
taken up with studios and Offices. Only
the front wall of the building remains
standing. The loss on the building is
probably $250.O00. and Mr.. Hazletine
claims that his stock of pictures was
worth $15O.OOO. The building was fully
insured and there was a partial insur-
ance on the pictures. j. Il. Woodford.
manager of the Stetson company. could
not estimate his loss but 1t Is probably
about $4,000: fully insured. The loss
to the tenants of the building will prob
ably foot up $4,000 more. The loss to
the American Baptist Publication So
ciety is $3.50. 900 on stock and machinery
and $l50,OO0 on the building. On the
stock there Is an insurance of $2O0.OOO
and the building sl15 1000 In the cellar
of the Baptist Publication society i'm
vaults is 5000 worth of plates of
and it is not known
whether these have been destroyed
The most serious loss to the publication
society is the destruction of the valu-
able library of the Brptist Historical
society and several hundred historical
papers Of the denomna nation that can
not be replaced. The tenants Of the
societys building lose
about $25.0O0. Homer. lie Boutillier &
Co.'S loss is $4,000. covered by insur-
ance. The loss on the Lafayette is
$3.50 by fire and water This loss Is
by insurance. The hotel is
owned by the Moro Philips estate and is
leased by II. G. Smith. well known
western hotel man. The hotel was re-
opened this evening for guests.
Several Firemcn Injured.
Eight or nine flremen We're injured
ny falling bricks. but none of them were
hurt. Frank Hines. of
Pittsburg. u guest at the Lafayette
hotel. i'm descending the stairs. tripped
and fell and broke his arms and sew
eral ribs. These were the only casu-
alties.