The Worcester spy. [volume] (Worcester, Mass.) 1898-1904, 1901-10-26
Before Eyes Of People in the
Street, Who Were PoWerIess to
Aid, Two Men and a Woman
Were Slowly Burned to Death
PHILADELPHIA FIRE
COST EIGHTEEN LIVES
ConfIagration Was in High Build
ing in Which Many Were at
Work-Some Mad From Fright
Leaped From Dizzy Heights to
Pavement

Philadelphia, Oct. rs. - Eighteen
known dead and property loss amount
ing to upwards of 100000 is the awful
result Of a fire which occurred today
in the business section Of the city.
The number Of injured is not known
definitely, but fully score Of victims
were treated at various hospital to-
night. Police and fremen are delving
into the ruins in search of bodies sup-
posed to be buried beneath the debris,
for it is feared that others besides the
known dead may have lost their lives
in the flames.
The buildings destroyed were the
eight-story structure, 1918 and 1921 Mar
ket Street, occupied by Hunt, Wilkin-
son & Co., furniture dealers, and three
story buildings occupied by small mer-
chantmen.
The big furniture building extended
back a ha1r block to Commerce Street
and was owned by Henry c. Lea. The
list of known dead is as follows:
Dorothy Kramer Martha Baker. Mar
garet Hebden, Susan Gormley, Harry
House, H. A. Sparrow. Charles e.
Sparrow, Walter Sterley ]. Armstrong,
Mrs. Arthur Banks (colored. Mrs.
Mary Mitchell (colored), Margaret
Grady, Frederick Wilmington, Charles
Lands, one unknown white woman,
three unknown white men.
1t was 1920 o'clock this morning that
the flames broke forth in the building
occupied by Hunt, Wilkinson Co.
They were first seen shooting up the
elevator shaft from the basement by
an employe. The origin of the confia-
grafton is unknown. 1t is said that an
explosion of naphtha or gasoline in the
basement was the cause, but this is
denied by Mr.. Wilkinson, who says
there never was a sufficient quantity OF
either explosive about the building to
be responsible for today's terrible dis
aster
1t is also rumored that an elevator
constructor at work in the basement
permitter the flame Of his lantern to
communicate with some Of the gseous
LIQUIDS stored in the basement, and
that this was the cause Of the conflag-
ration.
Such a disastrous fire attended with
so great a loss of life in such brief
period was never before known in Phil
adelphia.
Men and women died terrible deaths
in the presence of thousands Of spec
tators who were unable to lift hand
to their assistance.
The rear of Hunt. Wilkinson & Co.'S
building faces on Commerce Street, a
small thoroughfare. On the fire escapes
at this end Of the building two men
and one women were slowly roasted to
death, while the horror stricken throng
on the street below turned sick at the
sight.
In the front on Market Street a
woman, driven to desperation leaped
from a window on the top floor and was
dashed to death on the pavement.
Seventy-nine Of the 100 persons In
Hunt. wilkinson & CO.'S building when
the fire started were employees and the
remainder were customers and work.
men who were engaged in putting the
finishing touches on the new eighth
floor More than half of the firms
employees were on the upper five floors
and it was among these that the
greatest number were killed and in
jured With the exception possibly Of
the engineer. who Is missing. all per-
sons on the first three floors got out OF
the building safely Most Of those
killed were at work on the sixth floor,
where women were engaged in sewing