The Jersey City news., 1902-07-21
FOUGHT AFURNACE
Splendid Work of Firemen
Saves Two Grand Street
Tenement Houses.
SHANTIES SWEPT AWAY
Two Horses, Wagons and
Other Stock Worth $1l,o 900
Destroyed-One Man
Badly Scorched.

a lively fire which threatened for q
time to sweep away many tenement
houses in the neighborhood of Grand,
yarick and Gilchrist streets occurred
yesterday morning, destroying barn ana
wagon shed with contents and damaging
two other stables and the rear walls OF
two large tenement houses, one vacant
and the other occupied by half dozen
families. Two horses were burned to
death in the flames, a man was badly
scorched while escaping from the lott
of stable where he had been sleeping
and the six families were driven from
their homes, which were ruined by
deluge of water. The total damage was
estimated at $1,000
The flames stated in a one-story frame
stable owned by Patrick McCloskey. the
piano mover, at the rear of his residence,
No. 40 GiIchrist street, and had gained
great headway before an alarm was sent
in from box 141 at 6:25 o'clock.
TERRIBLE HEADWAY.
When the firemen arrived they found
yeritable furnace in the rear of the
tenements and realized that they had
lots of hard work ahead of them.
second alarm was sent in before line OF
hose was run in.
There were three horses in the stable,
only one of which was saved Inns
horse saved himself by breaking ms
halter and running blindly through the
smoke against the stable door, knocking
it down.
Patrick Salmon, forty years old, was
asleep in the stable when the hre start
ed. He was awakened by the cries Oh
ssFire.'' the whinnying of the horses and
the cracking of the flames. He groped
his way through the smoke, and, IN
plunging through the blaze was badly
burned on the left arm. He was taken
to the City Hospital by friends
DWELLINGS IN PERIL.
The fire quickly spread to one-story
wagon shed in the rear of No. II Gll-
christ street, owned by William Dundas,
and rented by McCloskey. The structure
and its contents, consisting of furnl-
ture van, two buggies, surrey, piano
wagon and six sets of harness, were
destroyed.
The firemen turned their attention to
saving the tenements which hemmed III
the burning shanties and had their hands
full.
McCloskey's house caught fire in the
rear and was badly scorched. Then the
flames swept over against Julius Schoen-
wetter's three story frame tenement, NO.
375 Grand street, occupied by Schoen-
wetter. A. J. Schoenwetter. his son,
Frank Jones, James McManus, Mrs.
Sarah Ulfer, Charles Hansen and their
families, all of whom rushed down the
front stairs into the street. Many OF
them were only partly dressed. The
rear wall of the tenement was/ charred'
and the kitchens of the apartments were
damaged. The principal loss was by
water. all the furniture being thoroughly
drenched. ~,
An unoccupied three story frame build
ing in the rear of No. 23I Varick street,
owned by James Anglesy, caught flre.
Only the west side was burned. one
story frame stable owned by j. Dixon y
Rrother in the rear of No. A Gilchrist
street and another building of similar
character in the rear of No. 3I9 Grand
street. owned by Harney & Sons, real
estate agents, corner York and Grove
streets. were slightly damaged.
The great crowd which turned out to
see the big blaze were generous in their
compliments to the fremen for the splen-
did way in which they fought the fire
and prevented the destruction of the im-
mediate neighborhood.
The last fremen were ordered home
at 7.53 o'clock.