The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1897-05-01
AN EXPLOSION AND FIRE
WAsHINGTON-sTREET PHOTOGRAPH
GALLERY a RAGING FURNACE.
New York store and other Buildings
Threatened-The Various Losses
viii Exceed $4,000.

A terrific explosion in the photograph gall
lery and art store of ]. II. Clark, at 81 East
Washington street, occurred at 1925 o'clock
last evening. It was followed by a fire
which completely destroyed the contents of
the store and damaged the building and
other tenants somewhat. Mr.. Clark and
Miss Lulu Petticord, an employee in the
store, locked up the place and had been
gone but a few mute when the explosion
occurred. Miss Petticord had ak as
far as Illinois street when the alarm
was sounded. She is positive that the ex-
plosion was not from natural gas. The
gas in the furnace, the only means of heat
ing the rooms. was turned off. She did not
know of any hemica that could have ex-
ploded with force enough to cause the dam
age done.
The explosion had every appearance of
having been caused by natural gas. The
first supposition was that the room had be-
come completely filed with gas and that
it had finally reached a gas jet which set
it off. This theory was borne out by the
force shown. The heavy plate-glass win
dows in the front of the room were blown
to atoms and scattered over the sidewalk
and thrown into the roadway. In the rear
the windows were also blown out, the glass
falling clear across Pearl street. The win
dows on the upper floors were also demol-
ished. The fact that the explosion was
equally powerful at both ends of the long
storeroom made it look like a gas explo-
sion. A chemical explosion would have
been more local unless it were of great
enough force to have compressed all the
air in the room and then it would have
showng great effect upon the building at the
point where it occurred. The chemicals
We're kept in the laboratory and at this
point no signs of the explosion as destruc-
tive as those manifest at the ends of the
room were found. The mystery was not
solved by either the firemen or those con-
nected with the store. If it had been gas,
the presence of it would certainly have
been detected by Mr.. Clark and Miss Petti-
cord, who were in the room five minutes
before the explosion occurred.
THE FLYING GLASS.
]. P. Hornaday and another man were
passing the store just about the time of
the explosion. Mr.. Hornaday had passed
from the east, going toward the Western
Union Telegraph office. He turned about
after the explosion and saw the man whom
he had just passed running east on Wash
ington street to turn in an alarm from Box
%, dL the COInGT OI dllQ ASH
ington streets. He does not think any one
was directly in front of the windows when
they were shattered. A policeman who was
at the corner of Pennsylvania street is posi-
tive that a woman was directly in front of
the place when the explosion occurred. He
says he ran forward to assist her, but she
boarded a street car and he did not follow.
Two men were walking on the south side of
Pearl street and were struck by flying
pieces Of glass from the rear windows.
Neither was seriously hurt.
When the first fire apparatus reached the
front of the building the room resembled a
raging furnace. 1t was stocked with very
inf1ammable materials and the walls were
hung with pictures and draperies. 1t
seemed that instantly everything in the
room was ablaze. One line of hose was
quickly put into play by the men from
HeduqudIlerS anu II was almost sullclenL 10
control the fire. The material afire was of
a light nature, easily ignited and as easily
extinguished. But the fire, apparently, had
started all through the room simultaneous
ly and had also extended through the sky
light to the roof and reached the windows
of the upper floors. The front part of the
building, back to a distance of about sixty
feet, is four stories high, while all the rear
is but a single story, extending to Pearl
street. Immediately back of the four-story
part is 4 skylight. The glass in this was
shattered and the flames leaped through to
the woodwork of the higher part of the
building. 1t made a fierce-looking fire and
could be seen all over the city. Washing
ton street was crowded with people in a
short time.
WORK OF AUTOMATIC SPRINKLERS.
The report was current that the New
York store was on fire and this attracted
many people. The fire did get alarmingly
near this building, and but for the auto
matte sprinklers might have reached it.
There are a number of openings in the
high wall on the east side at any of which
the fire might have got a start. But the
heat started the sprinklers, and from that
I~~- - y -.
the side of the building was kept drenched.
The sprinklers of the south side and on
the annex on Pearl street also worked
admirably, exciting much comment from
people who noticed them at work.
Outside of the scorching of the windows
IN the rear of the third and fourth floors
over the skylight of the art store, the fire
was confined to the single storeroom and
the law Office of Durham Sc Erganbright on
the second floor over the skylight. The
stock of the photograph and art store is a
of the stock at about $4,000, which is fully
covered by insurance; The New York store
partment. In the same building, in the
room just east at No. SO, is the store Of the
Boyd, Besten 81 Langen Company, dealers
in cloakS, furS and ladies dresses. The
room is arranged like that occupied by
Clark. The fire did not reach the room,
but there was a considerable loss from wa.
and allowed the water from the fire hose to
pour down. into the room. There was also
6 SOOo Otdl VI water - COIuc through from
the rooms above. The stock was not in
Jured, as 1t was all protected by wall cases.
The carpet is wet and the plastering proba-
bly, loosened.
PEOPLE WHO SUFFERED.
On the west side of the art store, occu-
plying a different building, is the tailoring
establishment OF p. Granting & Son. There
was practically no damage there, though a
little water reached the floor. The law firm
of Durham g. Erganbright, occupying
rooms Nos. 3 and 4 on the second floor. suf-
fered the loss of nearly all its office furni-
ture and most of a library. One large tier
of shelves was scorched just enough to burn
the backs of the covers off the books. This
firm had no insurance. A. w. Anderson.
q dentist, occupied the rooms on the second
floor over the cloak store. Water got into
his rooms, but did little damage. John M.
Ba1ly, a lawyer occupying the front rooms
over the art store, was not damaged.
On the third floor Samuel G. Brubaker. an
architect, and B. f. Nyseander, a lawyer.
had rooms. The rear windows were shat
damage. a number of young men mad
sleeping rooms on the fourth floor. They
lost nothing. TIL rear windows were
scOrched.
The damaged building is owned by rwo
different people. Samuel DalzelI owns the
west haIf, which is damaged most. Charles
Becker owns the east half. Both are fully
insured through the John Wocher agency.
The loss to the west half of the building
viii amount to nearly $4,000. A few hum
dred dollars will cover Mr.. Becker's loss.