The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1898-11-24
300 GUESTS IN THE HOTEL
AND MANY NARROWLY ESCAPED
FROM THE WOODEN FIRE TRAP.
Several Thrilling Rescues--HerOic
Work by Messenger Boys, Police
men and Fire Fighters.


SAN FRANCISCO, Nov 23.-The Baldwin
Hotel. for almost thirty years one of the
principal landmarks of San Francisco, is no
more. A fire which broke out in the east
end of the building shortly after 8 o'clock
this morning, supposedly in the property
room of the Baldwin Theater, destroyed the
immense structure. causing death and in
jury and entailing a financial loss of nearly
million and half dollars, besides destroy
ing property that no amount of money or
science can replace.
The list of dead. injured and missing, so
far as known, follows:
Dead
CAPT. ]. L. WHITE, San Francisco cap
italist.
LEWIS MYERS, Skaguay, Alaska. mer-
chant.
injured
F. p. NOON, st. Louis, NO.. left ankle
sprained, hands and neck bruised.
GEORGE HUBER San Francisco, cut
about body.
MISS BRIDGET MITCHELL, San Fran
cisco. badly bruised.
FIRE MARSHAL TOwE, San Francisco.
cut about head.
GEORGE CARROLL, cut and bruised
about hands and arms.
Missing
J. NJ. LEIGHTHEAD. San Francisco,
purser of the steamer City of Sydney
TATE PRYOR, racing sheet writer.
f. r. ANDREWS, cashier of cafe.
JOE SUMMERFIELD, Chicago, book
maker.
- sILER, advertising agent Of the st.
Louis Westliche Post.
FRED WEBSTER.
TWO CIIAMBERNIAIDS.
JOHN CARTER, race track Judge
The financial losses are very far reaching
almost every branch of commercial trade
being directly affected. The ground floor
was divided into a number of large stores
and few of their occupants saved anything
worth mentioning, the majority reporting
total losses. Two of the most handsome
cafes in the city were gutted and their
stocks destroyed
TWO TdEATERS SUFFER.
The Baldwin Theater, the fashionable
amusement placo of this city, was DESTROYED
with the rest of the building, and the Sc
cret Service" company, headed by william
Gillette, now playing an engagement at the
theater. lost all its paraphernalia and ac-
coutrements Many of the members of the
company lost most of their belongings, and
trunks containing the official papers of the
company were destroyed.
The flames were confined to the Baldwin
structure, but much adjoining property was
seriously damaged by water and smoke.
The Columbia Theater building. on Powell
street, on the west side of the Baldwin
suffered considerably and the basement of
the Columbia Theater, another fashionab bic
playhouse, was gutted and much valuable
theatrical apparatus destroyed. The Gay
Coney Island Company will lose consider
able, and DIR. Freeman, manager of the com.
pany, who was guest at the Baldwin lost
trunk containing valuable papers and
$500 in cash.
There were upwards of three hundred
guests in the hotel when the fire was dis
covered and the scenes which followed beg
gar description The watchmen. bell boys
ana otner motel employees worked nobIy in
arousing sleeping residents 1t is believed
that every person i'm the building was an
prised of the danger within ten minutes
after the fire broke out but rumors are rife
that many of those in the east wing. where
the flames were discovered. were cut off
from escape and lost. How true these ru-
mors are will not be definitely known for
several days yet, as many parts of the
building have collapsed. burying many who
may have been left in the building under
the debris
BRAVE MESSENGER BOYS.
force of messenger boys employed in an
all-night Office adjoining the hotel did ex-
cellent work in connection with the warn
ing of guests and several brave rescues are
credited TO the boys of the messenger serv-
ice. In conjunction with the employees of
the hotel, the police and fremen they went
through the building awakening guests and
aiding them to dress and rendering other
highly praised by the guests and the fire.
men and police are spoken of In immeasur-
ably complimentary terms Half an hour
after the first alarm was sounded 112 police
men were on the scene Many OF the
guests - the hotel are Eastern turfmen.
many of whom Inst all their effects The
hostelry was favorite stopping place for
sporting people. the location being an adj
mirabe one and convenient to all sporting
resorts and places of amusement
what the loss of life will be cannot he
stated at this writing. but so far only two
deaths have been reported. Captain ]. l..
White, who occupied a room on the fourth
floor. was killed while trying to es
cape by means Of rope which
dangled from the fifth floor almost
to the street below. The rope had
previously done good service, being the
means by which five persons escaped from
the burning building. The story of the rome
Is a thrilling one. For eight years Kate
Richardson has been an empIoye OF the
hotel, occupying a room on the fifth floor.
Five years ago Miss Richardson. as a pre-
cautionary measure for just such an emer-
gency, procured lengthy rope. long enough
20 reach from her room 10 the street. When
the alarm was given Miss Richardson, with