The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1903-05-11
HUNDREDS OF
HOUSES BURNED
Ottawa. Ontario, Visited by a
Destructive Conflagrstion.
MANY PEOPLE ARE HOMELESS
FIRE SUPPOSED TO BE THE
WORK OF AN INCENDIARY.

n TTAIvA. Ont, May IA Ere, sus-
pected of being of incendiary origin.
this afternoon and evening destroyed
hundreds Of houses and millions of feet OF
lumber IN this city. john White. who
had just been released from the peniteu-
tiary. after serving a term for arson, was
caught near where the fire was first dis
covered He was taken TO the police sta
ton and viii be charged with starting to-
days cOnfa grafton.
, The fire originated within a stones
throw of where the great HUI IRE OF
April %. 1860. was checked. The HUH fire
started on the opposite side of the river
millions of dollars worth OF property II
burned out near where the Ottawa 4
Parry Sound railway enters the western
part Of the city and II was in the lUIn-
her yards near the railroads that today
fire originated
Water Main Damaged.
An hour before the principal fire started
two smaller blazes were discovered and
quickly oXtinguished in the lumber yards
near the Canadian Pacific railway IL
was 800 when the third was discovered
When the brigade arrived at the scene II
was found that the water mann hao Deen
damaged and no water could be Obtained
When the brigade did get water the IRE
was utterly beyond its control. II swept
along over the same ground that the for
mer IRE had gone. the only difference be
ing that it was going IN the opposite d.
TGHlEQU-
below a large Cliff which extends from the
/ Ottawa river into the corner OF Margaret
and Preston streets At Two or Ihree
points it came very near getting over the
cliff and had IL done so EOthing would
! have saved the city. At $50 o clock To-
/ night the FIRE was under control. having
/ been confined to the following area;
Area Burned Over.
+ The Ottawa & Parry Sound Railway
on the south. Division street on the east
/ First avenue on the west and the INlch-
/ mOnd road on the north from the Parry
Sound road to the Richmond road IS a1out
! one mile, and from First avenue TO DIV
/ sion street is about One-quarter OF
/ mile
/ While these fires were burning ferccly
/ among the lumber piles all the brigades or
/ the city had been summoned but were
J forced to remain idle For an hour not a
! drop of water was thrown InLo inc
/ flames : stiff southwest wind was blow.
! ing and by the time the water main had
/ been repaired the lumber yards were
i'' From the Timber yards the flames
/ spread to a group of frame houses on
/ the outskirts Of the city, formerly known
! as RochesteTville. but now united 70 INC
| city Every house in the little settlement
{ Another lumber yard in a thinIy settled
/ section northeast of ROChestervihe was
swept bv the fire in an incredibly short
time. This brought the fire to the more
thicilly settled sections.
Stopped at the Cliff.
After leaving the lumber piles the
] flames swept over to Pine street which
runs east and west. down Willow Pop
lar and Anderson. F.cASles- Scrno1Hef
spruce. Elm. Maple Albert and on TO the
! Richmond road. or. properly speaking
wellington street where it was stoppe,i -
short distance from the Canadiar; Pacific
/ railway depot. At p m it was feared
that the fire would get over the clln. on
! the top of which Is St Jeannie Baptist
church \ short distance back from the
: church is the residence of the late David
! Mills from which the hearse was IN
readiness to move the remains Of the dis
tiDglIished- Canadian. should the necessity
arise The firemen. however. succeeded IN
keeping back the flames
Fifteen million feet of lumber. belong
ing principally to !. R Booth. were de
stroyed. causing a loss Of about 500 u,1-
The buildings burned were principally
DWELLINGS and stores, most Of which were
built since the last great IRE and were
mostly of brick II is difficult TO place
the loss on these. There are nearly S''
families homeless Mayor Cook SAYS the
CITY would oppose aid being asked from
I outside Canada
/ The loss on buildings is estimated AT
SsG0O0 making a total loss of S600.00o