Iron County register. [volume] (Ironton, Iron County, Mo.) 1867-1965, 1896-02-06
a DESTRUCTIVE FIRE.

Over One Million Dollars Worth of Prop
erty Destroyed By Sabbath Days Com
fagation, tho Fiercest and MOST stun
born Fire that has Visited Philadelphia
In Many Years-Hasty Flight Of Hotel
Guests.
PHILADELPHIA, Feb. 3.-The fiercest,
most stubborn and most destructive
fire that has visited Philadelphia in
years originated at $3.50 yesterday morn
ing in the cellar of the Hazeltine'
building, 1416 and 141s Chestnut street,
and before it had been subdued the
Hazeltine building ard the American
Baptist Publication society's building,
at 1920 and 1422 Chestnut street, We're
destroyed; the dry goods store OF
Homer lie Boutellier g. Co.. 14l2 and.
1414 Chestnut steeet, was badly DAM
aged, and the rear of the Hotel Lafay-'
cite, which faces on Broad street, was
damaged to the extent of $4,000 Inc
approximate total loss by the lire is
81 .O75, 90, the greater part of which Is
covered by insurance.
The cause of the fire is not definitely
known When the fremen arrived
the Hazeltine building was already a.
mass OF flames. The building was sew
eral stories in height, with an ornate
front of brick and terra Gotta. 1t was
very substantially built. and at hrsts
the firemen thought that they could
confine the fire within the walls. The
flames, however, spr cad through the
building with great rapidity, and the.
fire was soon beyond the control OF
the department.
The rear stories of the Lafayette
hotel lowered high above the Hazel
tine building and the flames poured
over the wall toward 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 women poured ont j.
into Broad street. dragging with them
their trunks and baggage.
All night cabmen in the neighbor->
hood had been attracted to the scene,~
and they garnered 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 Attain
tans who came on here with the Lib
crty Bell.
The fire in the meanwhile had spread
from the Hazeltine building to the
four-story marble building of the Bap-
fist Publication society, and this, too,-
was soon mass of flames. Like the
Hazeltine building, it extends $50 feet.
back from Chestnut to Sa nsom street
The Lafayette hotel has only been
recently reopened, after having been
altered and refurnished at cost of
$500. GEO.
The fremen directed the most of
their attention towards saving this
building. 1t was on fire at least half
hundred times. but the department did
splendidly efficient work, and confined.
the flames to the rooms on the eighth
and ninth floors, facing the fire.
The partition wall of the Hazeltine-
building, towering three stories above
the dry goods store of Homer lie Bod
teller & Co., fell in upon the latter
place and crashed through skylight.
in the center of the store into the cell
lar. The fremen, however, poured a
great volume of water upon the smok-
ing mass of bricks and saved the store.
from destruction.
1t was not until the Hazeltine build
ing and Baptist building had been en-
tirely destroyed, and after five hours
hard work that the fire was subducd-.
Eight or nine firemen were injured
by falling bricks, but none of them
was dangerously hurt. Frank Hines,
of Pittsburgh, guest at the Lafay-
cite hotel, in descending the stairs,
tripped and fell breaking his arm
and several ribs. These were the only
ooc,o1fioc