The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1899-02-24
NATURAL GAS TRAGEDIES
FOUR LIVES LOST IN $4,000 ExPLO-
SION AT HARTFORD CITY.
Dwelling House Blown to Bits Mt An
d-ersOn-Jesse Barrett Found
Guilty of Mansiaughter.
Special to the indianapolis Journal.

Special to the indianapolis Journal.
HARTFORD CITY, Ind, Feb. 23.-The
terrific gas explosion, followed by the fire
which wiped out part of the business block
on the east side of the public square last
night, turned out worse than was known
when last nights report was sent to the
Journal. The lower floors were occupied by
the J. u. Dick harness store, Milf Powells
grocery, Frank Landis's saloon and Adolph
Wuchner's saloon. The second story was
occupied by about fifteen tenants, four Of
whom were found to have met death in the
explosion and eight injured. Following is
the list of dead:
LEWIS j. LEFFORGE, hotel runner.
MRS. L. j. LEFFORGE-
AME BOWAN, aged fifty. carpenter.
OSCAR LEWIS, aged nineteen, window
glass snapper.
The injured are:
caught in falling wall and badly cut.
MATTHEW COLLINS, bartender, burned
on face, hand and badly bruised.
NATE RINKER, glass worker, cut and
CHARLES BALLARD, bartender, face
burned, limbs bruised.
sprained.
Lewis J. Lefforge was an old soldier, who
acted as a runner for the City Hotel. He
lived will his wife in the second story of
the Dick block. He was a member of the
G.. A. r. and the knights of Pythias. The
bodies of Lefforge and wife were the first
recovered. James Bowan was a bachelor,
and so far as known he has no relatives.
Oscar Lewis worked at the Hartford City
window-giass factory. He was a son of
Mflard Lewis, of this city. The young man
had worked at the factory until midnight
and had only been in his room about an
hour and a half when the accident occurred.
No funeral arrangements have yet been
made for any of the dead. Business was
suspended to-day and all joined in the
search for the dead bodies.
Altogether there were about twenty per-
sons in the building when the explosion &C.
Cured and there were a number of narrow
escapes. The charred bodies of the victims
were not recovered until this forenoon. One
or two persons are yet unaccounted for. The
destroyed buildings adjoin the Ingram Ho-
tel, with over sixty guests, including the
Murray & Mack Comedy Company. Nearly
all were thrown violently from their berths
and a panic ensued. The hotel was damaged
considerably.
The explosion occurred in the rear of the
Powell saloon, the middle room in the Dick,
Mason & Whitman block. 1t is supposed that
escaping gas from a gas regulator filled the
room and a gas jet ignited it. The concus-
sion from the explosion shattered the glass
in the courthouse and in many of the BUSH
ness blocks around the square. The big dry
goods and clothing store of the e. 1. Win
tiers Company, on the south of the wreck,
was also badly damaged.
Following is the insurance: John N. Dick,
insured in the British America, 81, 500;
Springfield, $1,000; Manchester, $1,000; st.
Paul, 81 LOCO; Germania, $1,000. E. 1. Winters
Company, insured in the Hanover for 81, 900;
Merchants, $1,000; Germania, 81, 900; Royal,
$1,000; New York Underwriters, $1,000; Scot
fish Union, $1,000; Delaware, $1,000; North
American, $1,000; Westminster, $1,000; Nor
witch Union, $1,000. Lands saloon: Queen of
America, $1,000; Phoenix, $1,5OO; British
America, $1,000. Mason building, German
America, 81, 900. Whitman building, in the
Merchants, 1880. Hotel fixtures insured for
5000 in New York Underwriters The total
estimated loss is $35 600.