The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1898-05-12
ARMOUR'S BIG FIRE.
Wheat and Lumber Destroyed
at ChicagO-0Yer a Million
Dollars Lost.

Chicago. Nav 12-Grain elevator
ID belonging to the Chicago, Burl1ng-
ton & Quincy elevator was destroyed
by fire this afternoon. Loss on build
ing and contents will aggregate about
81 200 600. The elevator contained l.
115,0OO bushels of grain valued at $780,
900. the property of P. D. Armour. The
grain was fully insured.
At 1:30 p. m, the fire got beyond
control and spread rapidly into the
1um district
The elevator stood at Lumber and
Brown streets on the west bank of the
Chicago river near the Twenty-Second
lumber district. 1t was used as a grain
warehouse by P. D. Armour and had a
capacity of 100000 bushels. The cup
ola of the elevator fell in within an
hour after the flames were discovered
and after that the fire department rap
idly lost control. Under the influence
of a strong wind the flames began to
spread in every direction and seized on
the huge piles of lumber in half dozen
lumber yards within a few squares of
the elevator.
The Lord &, Bushnell Lumber COM
pany was the first concern whose prop
erty was set fire from the elevator. The
lumber yard of D. s. Tate & Co, was
next destroyed and 40 freight cars on
their sidetracks were consumed with
the contents of finished lumber.
The yard of Arthur Gourley & Co.,
caught fire, but quick work on the part
OF the nrelnen neaOeQ OH the names IN
this direction. Francis Beidler & Cos
yards, adjoining the Gourley property
caught next and before the fire depart
ment steamers on the river could reach
the Beidler plant, it was entirely de-
stroyed.
The fire was a most exciting one.
Railroad employees with a bravery ap-
preaching reckleSsness, took switch en-
gines in on the sidetracks leading be-
tween the blazing lumber piles and
coupling to standing freight cars, drag
ged them blazing from the heart of the
cOnfa grafton. The flaming trains, as
soon as they were outside of the lumber
yards were deluged by fire engines sta
toned for that purpose. This work
was prosecuted by the railroad men
until the heat from the lumber piles
caused the rails to curl, pulling the
spikes from the ties and rendering the
tracks useless.
The gravest apprehensions as the fire
spread were entertained for the great
gas tanks, of the Peoples Gas Light &
Coke company. The fremen realized
that these were about as dangerous as
powder magazines, and that a single
spark might cause an explosion, fright
full in its consequences. A strong pa
troll OF hremen with two engines and
quantity of other apparatus was de-
tailed for duty in the vicinity of the
gas reservoirs. At 1:45 D. m, the fire
was still burning in the lumber yards,
but the losses were confined to the
yards named, and the fire department
officials believed they had the flames
under control. There was an explosion
of grain dust in the elevator D, belong
ing to the Chicago, Burlington & Quin-
cy railway, which wrecked the interior
before the flames had made much pro-
gress. The grain handlers at work in
the elevator were compelled to slide
down the chutes, used for loading grain
into the cars and all of them escaped
uninjured.
Elevator D, which was used by P. D.
Armour as a store house, contained l.
$4,000 bushels of grain, as follows:
100000 bushels of wheat; 625, 900 bushels
of corn; 100000 bushels of oats: $50 900
bushels of flax; 40, 900 bushels of rye
Armour's loss on the grain will foot
up $3.50, 900 fully covered by insurance
The elevator was valued at $2S5, 900 and
was also fully insured
At p. m, although the fire was said
to be practically under control, four
acres of lumber piles were still burn
ing.
Dennis Swenie, the veteran chief of
the ire department was seriously in
1ured, his face was severely burned his
beard being completely singed off
William MathersOn of the elevator
and his fireman, Dennis OConnor, are
missing.