The daily morning journal and courier., 1902-09-08
SHAKES BUSTON
i GOVERNMENT POWDER MAGA-
 ZINE BLOWS UP.
One Man Killed aud Five Injured Near Old Fort Winthrop on Governors Islnnd-Terrible Force of the Ex- Windows Broken in the city -GOvernmemt Careless About Safety of the 1IaonZine.
of the Magazine.

Boston, Sept. 7.-One of the govern ment powder magazines at old Fort Winthrop, on Governors Island, upper Boston harbor, blew up this evening with detonation that was apparent all over the city and which was heard at points twenty miles away. The cause of the explosion is not known. One dead man and five injured were brought to the city by the police boat, and while the casualties, it is possible that others may be found suffering from the force of the concussion.
 The dead mans name is Albert H. Colton, married, of Somerville.
 The injured are: James A. Crowley, aged twenty-one years, single; Chris tian Knudson, aged thirtynine years, married; Charles Flanagan, aged twenty three years; Dennis J. Swanson, aged twenty-four years, married, and Paul Barry, aged twenty-six years, all having flesh wounds, besides suffering from shock
 The missing are Joseph E. Wakefield, of Maiden, and James Ryan, of East Boston.
 1 The powder that exploded consisted | of about six tons and was stored in one of the numerous casemates that were | built underground around the citadel | The other casemates were empty. Each of these apartments was built with granite walls twenty-five feet thick and covered with earth and masonry to the depth of thirty-five feet. At first 1t was supposed that the bonfires set on i the island caused the explosion, but lat CT when the police learned that it would be impossible for fire to have reached the powder by accident from the out side they decided that the cause is un- l explained.
 l During the afternoon there were sev- eral hundred pleasure seekers on the island. and of that number fully one hundred and fifty were within radius of one hundred yards of the fort All were covered with dirt and other debris, and many were thrown to the ground by the terrific concussiun. That all of them were not killed is considered all most miraculous.
 | Negotiations have been pending some time for the release of the island by the government to the city as q part of the latter's park system and although the transfer has not been formally com
 pleted, the guard over the island has been somewhat relaxed of late and as a result numerous clubs and pleasure
 parties have made use of it, especially on Sundays, the governments only rep
 resentative there being an ordnance sergeant who has to maintain a watch
 over the entire island. There are sev-
 eral old ramshackle wooden buildings
 at the southerly end of the island but
 the fort itself, only little of which is
 visible above ground. is of stone. some
 of the granite blocks being of immense
 size.
 The force of to-day's explosion is shown by the fact that some of these
 great blocks were hurled several yards,
 while one of the largest was sent into the air and came down through the cit adel in the center of the fort, making a hole large enough to drive team of
 horses through. All over the island the
 effects of the explosion are visible,
 while in East Boston. South Boston and
 in the city proper the concussion was
 severe enough to break windows and
 shake buildings to their foundations. |