The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1904-02-25

street, Charles street and Fayette
street was soon in ruins, and up Char
les street the fire spread to O'NeilIs.
at the corner OF Lexington This
marked its farthest point north on
Charles street. Sweeping across
Charles, the Union Trust Company's
Building, corner of Charles and FAY
cite streets, shortly after 9 o'clock at
night, caught, and was soon DESTROYED
as were all the neutrality-suspicious. block
between Fayette and Lexington, ex-
cept the Central Sayings.Bank Build
ing, at the corner of Lexington
and Charles. The militia had by this
time been ordered out, and a Gordon
was formed about the burned district
by Brigadier General Riggs, who was
in command.
The flames were defeated in their
effort to consume the Courthouse.
but the sky-scrapers along Fayette
street and Baltimore street were soon
IN ruins. After leaving them nothing
but smoking and blackened walls,
the flames swept on to the Falls,
wrecking everything on East Balti-
more street to Fronton the north side.
Here the wind changed to the north,
and the fire took southerlv course
down to the waterfront burning everv
thing on the south side of Baltimore
street to the Falls, including,the Mary
land Institute oyer Marsh Market
space and everything between Light
street and the Falls. and Baltimore
street and the Waterfront. At 500
O'Clock Monday afternoon theHflames
were among the lumber yards along
Union dock, and, Acting IChief Nc
Afee approaching that the key of the
situation was being contested. and
that II the flames reached beyond the
Falls nothing could keep them from
continuing their destructive course
through East Baltimore, concentrated
his efforts at this point q Engine after
engine was rushed to the. scene, and
with the gallant assistance of the fire
boat Cataract, under Captain Ger
man, the great fire was at last con-
qnered and became history.
The militia immediately stretched
theircordon about the burned district,
which, roughly speaking, today Gov
ers all that part of Baltimore between
Liberty street on the west, Jones
Falls on the east, Lexington steeet on
the north, and the waterfront and
Pratt street on the south, and the
work OF razing the walls.and clearing
the streets was immediately begun by
a force of several thousand city work
men. After six days, imany of the
streets through the} ruins have been
stripped of all debris, and the work
OF counting the cost and adjusting
insurance has begun with a will.
baltimoreans are taking an optimis-
tic view of the situation, and more
than200 firms have already announc-
ed their intention of rebuilding, either
on their old sites or on new ones. and
in the meantime temporary quarters
have been secured elsewhere. All the
newspapers lost their plants in the
flames, but all have been publishing
daily editions of their journals in
Washington, on the plants of their
Washington contemporaries.
From Observation-Disclosures, the
fire was one of the most magnificent
in history, particularly when the
flames were raging among the great
sky scrapers in thelfinancial district.
Great tongues of fire leaped into the
air for hundreds of feet. and were
distinctly seen at points more than 100
miles from Baltimore in Virginia and
Pennsylvania.
Some idea of the size of the district
which has been swept may be gathered
when it is stated that it includes more
than 175 acres of ground-all of it in
the heart of the business section.