The Billings gazette. [volume] (Billings, Mont.) 1896-1919, 1901-06-18
SAVED ONLY
THEIR LIVES
GUESTS ONLY ESCAPE FROM
BURNING HOTEL.
FEW ARE SLIGHTLY HURT
Mineral Springs House at West
Baden Completely De-
stroyed by Fire.

stroyed by Fire.
West Baden, Ind, June IA The
Mineral Springs hotel burned early
today. Nobody was hurt. The loss
amounts to $500,00O insurance, $1O0,
900. Two hundred and twenty-five
guests were at the hotel. Most OF
them lost their effects.
OF the 268 persons who were in
the hotel fire here this morning it is
o believed that everyone escaped.
Mr.. Sinclair, proprietor, has been all
day checking off names, but the &C.
curacy of his work is handicapped
by the fact that all records and pa
pers, including the register, were lost.
One hundred and fifty-two of the
guests left today for their homes in
various parts Of the country, most OF
them going to Louisville, Indianapolis
and Chicago.
The loss on the hotel building is es-
timated at $25O,00O with insurance
aggregating $4,000. In addition to
this loss the loss in diamonds, jewelry
and clothing belonging to the guests
will, it is estimated, reach $50, 900.
Mr.. Sinclair is yet unable to say
what his plans for the future will be,
further than that the hotel will be
rebuilt as o o as possible.
Sixty persons left here this morn
ing for Chicago. There were a few
Of them who secured all their prop
erty from the burning building, as
they fed but many on the train were
dressed in odd pieces of clothing
picked up from many sources.
The conflagration had it's origin in
the kitchen, which was located on the
ground floor, Immediately under the
sleeping rooms, which the help occu-
pied.
The flames were discovered by the
night Waterman, who attempted to ex-
tinguish them with hand grenades,
but finding his efforts %unL.vailing, he
rushed to the office and notified the
night clerk and together they ran
through the halls yelling fire and
kicking at the doors. To add to the
excitement it was reported that the
night clerk had been burned and ter
ror stricken guests CROPPED around
in their rooms for wearing apparel
and other personal property.
Out of the 268 guests who had e
istered at the hotel the evening be-
fore only IL succeeded in escaping
from the burned building with all Of
their personal property. Miss Sim
clair, daughter of one of the proprie-
tors OF the hotel, had a very narrow
escape, losing all her wearing appar-
ell, diamonds and other personal prop
erty. Mrs. Harris of Milwaukee, lost
everything. Miss Blanche Hall, daugh-
ter of a Chicago theatrical manager,
lost a valuable wardrobe and jewelry.
MI. and Mrs. Davis, who were mar
ried in Cincinnati two weeks ago,
were spending their honeymoon at
the hotel. They escaped with very
meagre wardrobes.
Fifty or sixty female employees of
the hotel, who were CHARTERED in
rooms on the upper floor of the new
bath house, which had just been COM
pleted, at a cost of $4,000, escaped
uninjured. This building, with the
hotel, was also destroyed.
The fire was discovered shortly
after 1 o'clock and by 1870 the pro-
gress of the flames was so rapid that
the entire building was a mass Of
ruins. The building was provided
with fire escapes and on the front of
the building extending from the
ground to the roof was an escape
built in spiral fashion.
It vas through this that many Of
the guests got out. During the rush
for safety four ladies became wedged
in this escape and while in this posi-
ton someone on the upper floor start
ed a small trunk on it's rapid descent
down the winding chute. The ladies'
were scratched and bruised and were
relieved from their awkward posi-
ton until n of the guests ran up
the chute and after a vigorous tug
succeeded in relieving the tension and
all the ladies slid to the ground in
Colonel Wing, of Cincinnati, who is
a member of Governor Nash's staff
and also police commissioner of Gin
.cinnati, occupied a room in the cir
Gle rel the kitchen. He had a very
narrow escape. Colonel Howard, gem
eral agent Of a life insurance COM
pany of New York, barely escaped in
his night clothing. A gentleman from
st. Paul, whose name could not be
is said to have locked his
door and lost his key. He CROPPED
in the dark and when nearly
by smoke his door was
bursted in by Henry Allenburg Of
Ellwood, and this gentleman carried
him in safety to the lawn. He ar
from Minnesota last night in
pitiable condition from the effects
Of rheumatism. He was conveyed to
the French Lick hotel, two miles
away.
Superintendent Clark, of the ELL
wood Plate Glass works, and wife,
were among the guests. In the ex-