Courier Democrat. (Langdon, N.D.) 1891-1920, 1901-05-09

Block of Business Houses Go Up
Before the Flames We're Con-
1uered-Six Lives Said to BE Lost.
Jacksonville, Fla, May 5.-The most
disastrous fire in the history of this
city began yesterday shortly after
noon in a small factory from a defect
i've wire, according to the best belief.
and burned for nearly ten hours. In
that time property damage estimate
at from s10,O00.OO0 to s15.0O0.O00 was
caused. According to the city map 100
blocks We're burned, many of them in
the heart of the business and resi-
'dence section The estimate of houses
to the block is ten, hence 1900 of them
went up in smoke. Many of the finest
public and private buildings were de-
stroyed. including hotels. theaters.
churches and residences. The casual
ties cannot be accurately estimated.
That there We're several seems to be
we'll authenticated. Among them was
that of the fire chief, who sustained
bad fall.
The mayor ordered all of the sa-
looms closed and has impressed help
to clear the wreckag e. When the fire
furnace without any prospect of being
put under control The local military
companies We're called out to keep back
the crowds and the fire department
Began to Use Dynamite
to blow up the houses block from the
fire and thus prevent the fire from
spreading. So fierce was the blaze,
however, and so strong had become
the wind that millions of sparks and
flying burning shingles spread over
five or six blocks. setting the roofs of
the houses on fire in advance of the
department.. Soon Senator Taliaferro's
residence, then the adjoining houses
or that block were ablaze. and in
spite of all efforts to save the Wind
sor and the st. James hotel. both hos
telries were quickly enveloped in
flames. For about an hour the guests
in the Windsor had been busy packing
their trunks and went away loaded
with trunks and grips, some unfortu-
nately to the United States hotel, but
most of them to the Riverside.
Leaping madly across the street
from the Windsor, the flames attacked
the Sells house and then the Metho
dist parsonage, and in a few moments
the Trinity Methodist church was
block followed and the Richards and
Livingstone boarding houses came
next. A desperate effort was made to
save the Baldwin mansion, which was
recently purchased by the Elks for
$4,000 No earthly power could save
this building and the entire block and
the one west was quickly a mass OF
hames. Once the fire got started on
Main street the closely adjoining
buildings
Went One After the Other.
Paint shops with barrels Of oil were
plentiful in this district, and as they
caught fire one after another, the blaze
rising hundreds of feet high, quickly
set fire to the buildings across the
street. Then the Hubbard hardware
store caught and the people scattered
when they saw what had happened.
Hundreds of pounds of powder and a
great deal of dynamite were stored in
this building. In ten minutes there
was a roar and the building collapsed
like an eggshell. The dynamite and
powder had exploded. Here again there
was much danger for the firemen.
Cartridges began to explode and bull
let's began to fly around and the effort
to fight the flames at this point had
AOI q l1IllC W NC dOdLuO1lSu. AIio " 40
only the start of the most intense part
ing was soon ablaze and then quickly
the Gardiner building was also a mass
of flames. Down the street the
Fire Spread With Rapfdity
and the entire section of Day street
from Market to Main street and ex-
tending for five blocks back, was
burning all at cnce. The city build
ing went, the fire department building,
the armory. the county court house,
the city Jail and the graded schools
and the Catholic church and orphan
age, st. Johns Episcopal church and
the convent. All this destruction was
wrought in less than four hours At
$3.50 the fire was checked at the inter-
section of Laura and Bay streets,
where the Commercial bank is located,
which went up in the flames, the West
ern Union Telegraph Office being just
across the street and not damaged.
Among the prominent hotels burned
were the st. James, the United States,
the Placide and the Windsor 1t is
impossible at this hour to ascertain
the losses, but it is estimated by in
surance agents that it will be between
eight and nina million dollars Six
lives are reported lost.
Thouxands Are Homeless.
At a. m. this morning the situation
was one approaching desolation in a
large section of the city. The burned
district reaches from Burbridge street
on the north to st. Johns river on the
south, a distance of not quite two
miles. The width of the desolated
area is thirteen blocks. Within this
space practically everything is black
ened ruins. On Bay street, the princ-
pal mart of trade, the Western Union
Telegraph companys building is the
first building standing, going west.
Everything west Of Laura and Bay
is gone. At 1915 o'clock the fire was
under control, having practically
burned itself out.
Meetings of the city council, the
commercial bodies and the charta BILE
institutions will be called Saturday
morning to devise ways and means
for meeting the situation. Mayor
ROuv6en at O'Clock this morning saws