The Forrest City times., 1904-04-22
Five or SIX Million Dollars Worth
of Business Property a Mass Of
Smouldering Ruins.
TWO H0SDRED and FIFTY FIRMS
HAVE BEEN PUT OUT or BUSINESS.
Been Lost. and Ffrc-Chief Thomp-
son Had Narrow Escape. Break
ing n Leg in a Desperate Leap for
Life.

Toronto. Ont. April 21-The fre
that ragged throuehou, the night aad up
TO an early morning hour IL Torontols
wholesale and 9etaH business dlstriet
was the most destructive in the his
tory OF the city The total loss is coz
servaliyely estimated n between 81
GOO 900 and g. TOO .0o0 TIE principal
warehouses Of The CITY wee REFUGE,
to ashes and nearly 20 firms were put
out Of business The area covered b.
the fire 5 three blocks II length and
varies from half a block % two blocks
in length, ana from hall
block 10 two blocks in width.
Every building CT Bay street
from Melinda street southwark
to the Esplanade al the water from.
was wiped out and the FIRE spread en-
Wellington and Front streets AM the
Esplanade along the water front. from
their intersection with Bay street for
distances Of q few hundred feet 20 4
whole block The total number OF
buildings destroyed were. Bay street.
east side. 20; west side - Yelling
ton street. north side. l.. south side.
:; Front street, north. .: south, -:
ESp.anadae /. Piper street. /
The Principal Losers.
Following IS q list Of the more i'm
portant firms burned out: E & 5. Cur
RE. ties: Pugsley. Dingman & Co. To-
ronto Soap Co. loss. S10o. 600. insur-
ance. $4,000; Gillespie. Alley & Co.
matters; " r. Brock Co. dry goods.
loss on stock. $500 600 insurance. $780,
GOO; Rolph. Smith & Co autograph
ers; Brown Brothers. stationers. loss.
5000 600. insurance. $3.50. 000: Gordon
Mackay & Co, dry goods. loss, $3.50 0oe.
insurance, $500. 900 Atkinson Bro her..
fancy goods; Cockburn & Rea. MILL
ners; Dignum q Moneypeuny. wooens.
loss. 100000. insurance SO 900 Dodd
Medicine Co; Laight & Westwood. no
tons. loss 100000, insurance. s75 600:
Richie Ramsay. paper. E W Gil
more & Bros. silverware; C1nada
Paint Co; Crown hotel. Brereton <
Manning. furs; W. J. Gage & Co. sta
TONERS. loss 5000 900. insurance. $3.50
goo, Copp, Clark & Co. stationers. loss.
s20o000 insurance. s175. 900: Warwick
Bros. & Rutter. loss. $500 600, insur-
ance, $3.50, 900; Gale Manufacturing Co.
white wear. lozs. $4,000. insurance.
sl0e0 600; Gutta Percha & Rubber Co.
loss, $500 900, insurance. $500 600:
Charles Cockshut & Co. wcolens. loss.
$500 600, insurance. s250 000: O. Eek
ardt Casket Co. loss, 5000 600. insur-
ance 800 GOO; Wyld, Darling Co. dry
goods. loss, $500 600, insurance. S400 :
600; Dominion Fence Co. loss. 1925
Goa, insurance $500: Buntin, Reid
Co. stationers, loss. 100000 iusur-
ance s1o5 900; Corticslli Silk Co: Car
law building; Gault Brothers & Co. dry
goods
Narrow Escape-t Missing Man.
At an early stage of the fire Chief
Thompson was forced to jump from
the top of building when trapped by
the flames. A network OF wires broke
his fall and saved his life He es-
capped with a broken leg. When the
chief made the leap for his life. trav-
eler from Montreal was on the roof
with him. and no trace of him has
since been seen. It is probable that
he persisted in the flames.
The IRE started in the elevator shaft
in the rear Of the Currie building. Then
the flames spread across the street 10
Brown Bros. and from there east to
Bay stree. The wind. which had been
brisk, increased TO a gale A general
alarm vas sounded, but before all the
force had rea~hed the scene the fire
had leaped TO the high buildings occu-
pied by Anley & Co. and Pugsley. Ding
man & Co. Then Sucking & Co s
building. adjoining Currie's on the
east. caught fire. Almost simultane-
ously flames began to shoot out of
the Brown building, and the fremen
were obliged 10 split their forces. The
roof of Dingman & Moneypenny' 5
building, on the northwest corner Of
Bay and Wellington streets. was the
next place to burst into flames In
an incredibly short time Stockings
Curie's, Browns and Dingman a
Moneypenny's were all a mass of
flames, and the streams of water
thrown into them had no apparent ef-
feet
The Gale Manufacturing Co 5 i'm
mense plant. in the rear of Anley &
Co, ~as the next to fall prey to the
fire, and shortly afterward the flames
from The east side of Dingman &
MOneypenny's were carried across to
the east side of Bay street to the Once
Specially building.
Saved Ky Park.
II was here that the fremen united
forces and made a desperate stand to
check the progress of the flames north
ward in the heart of the city. They
won, but not until they had lost con
troll of the flames which were now
sweeping down Bay street toward the
river front. Tie Office Of the Evening
Telegram. the next building north of
the Office Specially building. was
slightly damaged in the two hours
fight WITH the raging flames.
1t was only the intervening park that
saved the Queens hotel. one of the