Wheeling Sunday register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1882-1934, 1899-12-31
NEARLY A MILLION
DOLLARS WORTH OF PROPERTY
DESTROYED ~ FRI IN CHI
CAG0, YESTERDAY.
Nine Firemen Were Injured, Two of
Them Se~riousIy-The Flames
Spread With Great Rapidity-List
of the Losses.

CHICAGO, December 30.-Fire at an
early hour to-day completely Quilted the
buildings extending from No. 216 to
No. 222 Monroe street, badly damaged
the building at Nos. 2l2-214 Monroe
street, caused a loss a~ggregating $780,
900 and resulted in the injury of nine
firemen, two of them seriously.
The injured are Captain Robert
OConnor, serious; James Wolley, seri-
Gus; William Padden, Michael O'Hara,
Captain John Evans, Captain William
Carry, Captain Thomas O'Connor, Luke
Hayes and Lieut.. Oswald.
The fire is supposed to have original
ed on the second floor in the work room
of Wolley & Co., wholesale woolens, at
Nos. 220 and 222 Monroe street, and
famed by a fierce northwest wind,
spread SO rapidly that when the first
fire companies arrived on the scene the
whole south end of the building was a
mass of flames. A second and then a
third alarm was sent in, but in spite of
the tons of water thrown into the burn
ing buildings by thirty-eight engines
and two fire tugs, the wind and the
bitter cold so hindered the firemen that
for a time the entire wholesale district
was in danger. The flames quickly
communicated to the building at Nos.
216 and 21S Monroe street, gradually
spreading east to Nos. PIP and PA Mon
roe, where its progress was finally
checked. Immense brands were car
ried as far as Twelfth street and the
6Fqp1nn unra lGnf httGu yftnnrrfuhf n
small fires on the roofs of surrounding
buildings. The principal losses are as
follows:
: Building at Nos. 220 and 222 Monroe
street, loss 1925, 600.
Edwards, Stanwood & Co, successors
to Phelps, Dodge & Palmer, boots and
shoes, third and sixth floors, loss $780,
600.
Woolley & Co., first and second floors,
wooden goods, loss $685. 600.
Schwartz & Kline. shirts. fourth
floor, loss $4,000.
John Harper, cloak manufacturer,
fifth floor, loss $1,000.
Building at Nos. ZIG and 21S Monroe
street, occupied by j. w. Butler Paper
Co, loss $25, 900.
J.. w. Butler Paper Co, damage on
stock, $3.50 900, fully insured.
Henry o. Shepard Company, printers.
occupying building al Nos. 212 and 214
Monroe street, loss 500, 600.
The building at 217 Fifth avenue was
damaged to the extent OF $4,000.
Besides these there were several
minor losses caused by smoke and wa
ter.
Figures on the insurance are pot as
yet obtainable, but it is probable that
most Of the losses are well covered.
The escape from death Of Captains
O'Connor, Evans and Carry, and Fire
men Padden, OHara and three others,
was little short of miraculous. All o.
the men were working on the roof OF
the building at Nos. ZIG and us Monroe
street, and as the fire crept closed to
the west side Of the structure the men
were gradually driven toward the mid
die of the roof. Suddenly the east wall
OF the building adjoining fell with a
terrific crash. An immense mass Of
brick and timbers crushed mo the roof
where Captain O'Connor and his men
were at work. The roof tlre away
from the sides and fell with a crash TO
the floor beneath. carrying Pipemen
O'Hara and Padden down IN the debris,
leaving the others on the frail broken
edge of the roof high ABOVE me flames.
Captain O'Connor, Lieut.. Callahan and
Pipemen Fountain and HoTgan finally
succeeded In rescuing the two unfortu-
nate pipemen and crawling along The
shaking walls made their way 10 a fire
escape and safely to the ground. After
the fire had been raging about an hour
and a half, the walls began falling and
several fremen were more or less in
jured, James Woolley 50 seriously taai
he was taken TO the hospital
When the fire was its height II looked
as though the buildings as far as the
alley In the middle Of the block between
Franklin street and Fifth avenue would
all be destroyed. The firemen concen-
4rated their efforts there and aided b.
a fire wall held the flames in check un-
til the walls fell. The fire was one d
the worst the fire department has had
to contend with in years. The ecld
was intense, the thermometer being sew
eral degrees below zero and several
men were severely frost bitten.
The Lawfon Fund.