The Wilmington daily Republican. (Wilmington, Del.) 1890-1902, 1897-05-21
HODOKENS BIG BLAZE.
Whole Block Destroyed in the Pop
ulous New Jersey City.
THE LOSS AMOUNTS TO s75o,ooo.

The Fire Spread So Rapidly That the
Hoboken Firemen Were Unable to
Combat 1t, and Help Was Sent From
NeIghboring Cities.
Hoboken, N. j., May 21.-Twice last
night fire visited Hoboken, and the loss
is heavy. One whole block was re-
duced to ashes, 140 families were rem
dered homeless and big factory was
destroyed. The Hoboken fire depart
ment was totally unable to cope with
the flames, and help was summoned
from every portion of Hudson county.
Later In the night, when the big dry
docks at Seventeenth street caught
fire, the only hope of saving them was
from tugs called to the scene by the
flames.
The first fire broke out at $3.50 in the
big factory building in the block
bounded by Thirteenth and Twelfth
streets and Washington and Hudson
streets. From the factory the flames
leaped to the apartment houses on the
block, and they were swept away,
The factory in which the fire was
first discovered was 400 feet long by
30 feet deep. 1t extended the full length
of the block. On the other three sides
of the block were apartment houses.
The factory was six story building.
The apartment houses were five stories,
double, with brown stone fronts and
brick sidewalks. The factory was oc-
cupied by Strauss & Co. Or. II. Macy
& Coz. cut glass and similar lines:
G. Dali lat p,.ti a
mirrors, and Benton g. Heath, wall
paper manufacturers. There were IA
of the double flats. Each one Of the
flat buildings were valued at $4,000.
The factory building, with its contents,
is estimated to have been worth over
quarter Of a million.
The fire was at first discovered in
the airshaft of the factory building
No cause for the fire Is known, but it
is supposed that somebody dropped a
lighted cigar or cigarette in the toilet
rooms, and this smouldered in the
woodwork until it broke into a blaze.
So rapid was the spread of the flames
that when the first fire apparatus ar
rived the flames had been drawn up
through the airshaft and had broken
into the factory at every floor, and
were rapidly travelling toward both
ends. Another alarm brought every
piece of fire apparatus in Hoboken. A
very few minutes made it plain that
the fire must travel to the apartment
houses Then call for help was sent
to the other places in Hudson county.
The entire department of Union Hill,
West Hoboken and Weehawken re-
sponded to the call for help, as well as
three engines from Jersey City.
Despite this big aggregation of fire
engines the flames spread with terrific
fury. The occupants of the apartment
houses saved but little of their house
hold effects. A policeman carried out
two children from one of the houses
after they had been forgotten in the
flight of the other occupants. A dying
woman was rescued from one of the
buildings after the fire had reached the
bed clothing, but she was not harmed.
The glare of the flames lit up a scene
of great excitement The people for
blocks abound were almost panic
stricken, and the police had great diff
Guilty in keeping the frenzied tenants
from rushing back into the flames for
ValuableS lett behind.
The factory building was separated
from the fats by an alleyway less than
80 feet wide in places, and 1t was across |
this gulf that the fire leaped to at
tack the houses. The flremen first on /
the scene tried to fight the flames |
there, but the heat and smoke soon l
drove them out. Then all their efforts i
were directed toward saving the ad- 4
joining blocks.
Mayor Pagan, of Hoboken, reached |
the scene early and started the work |
Of supplying the destitute with shelter
and clothing, and at a late hour tho
many families were made as COM
Portable as families can who have lost
everything in the world.
The buildings destroyed belonged to
he Hoboken Land and Improvement
They were erected by John
:. Crevier. and through them he sus-
aimed financial loss which caused him,
lbout two years ago, to blow his brains
,ut.
About 1880, while the big fire was
1t Its worst, fire broke out in the big
lrydocks of Tietgen & Lang, at the
DOT of Seventeenth street. The docks
we're seriously damaged and six canal
,oats were totally destroyed.
The burning of the factory will throw
'ut of employment about $50 hands
lirectly, and many more who were |
dependent In minor ways upon it for
employment.
The property loss Is estimated by |
thief Engineer Applegate, of the Ho-
'oken fire department, to be s75O.0O0,