Wheeling register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1878-1935, 1900-05-07

NEW 4ORk, May time nre tnaL
started at the river end of the Mallory
line steamship pier at the foot of
this morning, completely destroyed the
pier and its valuable contents. The
police place the loss at $1,000,000. Sew
eral barges which were moored near
the river were also destroyed, and
many rescues of their captains and of
the families on board were made. Only
one life was lost. The nine-months-
old daughter of Captain Charles Loch
of the barge Sherwood, was drowned:
The Mallory line pier was 200 feet
long and so feet wide. The pier shed
was filled with valuable freight of a
miscellaneous character but mostly
cotton On the north side of the pier
were moored number of coal and cot
ton barges, while on the south side
was the steamer San Marcos and a
number of barges.
No sooner had the work of fighting
the flames begun than the firemen and
ing the lives on the barges which were
lying within the line of danger. Nearest
to the pier was the barge Stephen B.
Elkins. Her captain, Frank Fox, and
his wife and three-months-old daugh-
ter were on board sleeping. A skid
was quickly run from the pier to the
coal barge, the occupants of the boat
were awakened and were hurried from
their hunks to a place of safety before
the flames had reached them.
On board the barge Sherwood were
Charles Loeb, the captain, SO years
old, his wife, Lena, 80 years old, and
their daughter Rosie, nine months old.
The Loeb family was awakened by the
flames. Their barge was already on
fire at the time they were aroused
from sleep The father took the nine
months-old baby in his arms and with
his wife, jumped into the water. Capt.
Timothy Boylan, formerly in COM
mand of the barge New Brunswick,
whose home is at Rondout, N. Y,
plunged in to save the woman, who
had become exhausted Her husband,
who still held the baby in his arms,
saw that his wife was on the point of
going down. 1t became a question as
to which he should save, his wife or
babe. He therefore let the baby go
in the hope that she would be picked
up by some one else and went to the
assistance of his wife. He managed
to hold her head above water until
Boylan reached them. All three were
landed by life lines. The half
drowned captain and his wife were re-
moved to the Hudson street hospital,
where later they recovered.
On the coal barge S. H. Hand, which
lay alongside the other burning
barges, were Captain Joseph Plumb, his
wife and two children. All were res
cued by the police, but Patrolman
jeremiah Cronin was badly burned
while taking one of the children
ashore. All hands on board the
lighter Arno got ashore safely. Mich
ael Sheldon, of that boat, was COM
PEELED to jump into the river. from
which he was rescued.
Three large vessels were lying so
near the burning pier that their safety
was endangered. The steamer San
Marcos and the steamer Nouces, which
were towed out into midstream, and
the bark St. James, the rigging of
which was burned before she could be
towed out of harms way.
The scene on the water was an eX-
citing one, for the river was filled with
river craft engaged in towing the
various vessels and barges to safety
from their dangerous positions. Four
coal barges; others loaded with corn
meal and some loaded with coal. caught
fire and were destroyed Some of
them were also sunk to prevent the
further spread of the flames.
A number of buildings on South
street were scorched and several were
emptied of their tenants, who feared
that the buildings would be burned
Henry Mallory said regarding the
fire:
Il have no idea how the fire started,
and can form no definite idea of the
loss. The entire pier is destroyed, to-
gether with the Office and other build
ings on the bulkhead. My brother
Charles sailed for Europe on the leu
tonic ten days ago, and he will remain
abroad two months, Notwithstanding
this catastrophe. | cannot tell what
our immediate plans will be nor when
we shall begin to rebuild. Our books
and our docks were destroyed, and
cannot say anything about the insur-
ance at present. The only positive in
formation that can give at present is
that fortunately at the time of the fire
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