The Washburn leader. [volume] (Washburn, McLean County, N.D.) 1890-1986, 1900-05-12
BIG LOSS BY FIRE
ONE MILLION DOLLARS. WORTH OF
PROPERTY DESTROYED.
The Big Mallory Line Pier Mt New
York, With Its Valuable Contents,
Destroyed Several Barees'
Moored Near the Pier, Also De-
stroyed-Only One Life Was Lost
Heroic Work Of Firemen I'm Res
cufnr OCCUPANTS of Barges and
Vessels - Close Call for Several
Steamers.

New York, May S.-A fire that start
ed at the river office of, the Mallory
line steamship pier at the foot OF
Maiden Lane and East river early yes
terday morning completely destroyed
the pier and it's valuable contents.
Police place the loss at $1,OOo,0OO:
Several barges which were moored
near the pier were also destroyed ana
many rescues Of their captains. and
their families on: board were made.
Only one life was lost. The nine
months.o old daughter of Capt. Cochs, 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 a number of coal n
cotton 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 citizens turned
their attention to saving the lives OF
those on the barges which were lying
within the line of danger: Nearest to
the pier was the barge Stephen b.
Elkins.. Here. Capt. Frank Fox and
his wife. his three-year-old daughter
and a baby were on board and Sleep
ing. A skid. was quickly III from
the pier to the coal barge, the occu-
pants of the boat were awakened and,
were hurried from their hunks to a
place Of safety before the. flames had
reached them. On the barge Sher-
wood were Capt. Cochs, his wife and
,nine-morths-o old daughter. The Cochs
family was awakened by the flames.
Their barge $50
Was Already ON Fire
at the time that they were aroused
from sleep. The father took the child
in his arms. and, with his wife,
jumped into the water. Capt. Tim
othy Boyland, formerly in command 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 to him
as to which he should save. his wife
or baby. He therefore let the baby
20, in the hope that she would he
picked III 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 then landed by life lines. The
half-drowned captain and his wife
were removed to the Hudson street
hospital where later they recovered.
On the Goa! barge S. H. Hand, which
lay alongside the other burned barges,
were the 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. Michael Shell
don. Of that boat. was compelled to
jump into the river but was rescued.
Three large vessels were lying near the
blazing pier and their safety endan-
gered. They we're the steamers San
Marcos and. Nheces which were lowed
out into midstream. and the bark
James. the rigging of which was
burned before she could be towed out
of harms way.