The Manitowoc pilot. [volume] (Manitowoc, Wis.) 1859-1932, 1905-08-10
FIRE WIPES OUT
DOCKS AND DEPOT.
LOSS OF A MILLION AND A HALF
CAUSED BY CONFEDERATION
AT HOBOKEN.
Great Ocean Steamers Threatened with
estruction-Blazing Ferryboats
on River.

New York, Aug. Sire last night
and early this morning swept the main
depot of the Delaware, Lackawanna a.
Western railway on the Hoboken side
of the Hudson, with its 600 feet of train
sheds. the ferry house, a hotel nearby
known as Dukes house, the terminal of
the street railway. new immigrant sta
ton, and burned two ferry boats. FOR
half an hour it threatened the entire
water front III the vicinity, including the
Hamhurg-A American and North German
Lloyd steamship docks, at which several
big vessels were lying. Hundreds OF
lives were imperiled.
Loss Is SI,5oo,ooo.
The flames were under control by ,
O'Clock this morning, when the property
loss was estimated ut Sl.5oO0OO.
For more than an hour huge tongues
OF flame leaped from the wooden struct-
ures on the Lackawanna docks, lighting
the New Jersey and New York water
fronts. For a time it threatened loss
larger than that of the big dock fire sew
eral years ago. when the North German
Lloyd piers were destroyed, with a great
sacrifice of life.
Blazing ferry boats cut from their
docks tioated in the river. wandering fire
shlpS which for time endangered ship
ping i'll the river.
Fire Spreads Rapidly.
The flames started from an unknown
cause on the old wooden ferry boat
Hopatconc. which had been tied up in
the open slip. between the Hamburg
docks and Christopher street ferry slip.
The fire was discovered about II o'clock
1t was then leapinG from the boiler room
fa. Il.
room and attacking the wooden super
structure
y Waterman on the ferry dock turned
in calls for the city department, and also
for the Lackawanna fire brigade. Al
most before the cOnpany's men could lay
a line of hose, and before the city fire
men could reach the scene, the flames
had leapcd to the ferry office building.
between the piers, and then to the new
ferry boat. Bnghamton, which was lying
in the northern slip of the Barclay street
line.
From these it leaped in few sec
onds to the high frame structure above
the waiting rooms, and in five minutes
after the fire was seen the entire build
ings covering many acres were burning.
Twenty minutes after the blaze was first
seen the high tower which surmounts the
building crashed down all ablaze. Tween
~ minutes after the alarm il looked as
If the entire lower part OF lloboken,
including the Hamburg piers, would 20.
Hundreds Race with Death.
There were four slips with high pill
ings and these burned tercely and sent
the fire southwark into the freight piers.
These had been destroyed for the most
part by n great fire on May -, 1904,
and had just been rebuilt.
From the adjoining room the flames
lcaped into the train shed, and so rapid
was the spread there that engines which
were drawing out the ears TO be ready
for use in the morning had to be hurried
ont. Seven coaches We're left behind. but
there had been time enough to save
about thirty others.
The two burning ferry boats were
flowed ont into the stream by tugs. The
IiopatcOug sunk ter. 1t is feared Il
part of its crew were burned to death.
The wind was blowing out of the
north and carried the flames on the
lIopatcong away from the Hamburg
American pier into the Superstructure of
the ferry terminal
Destroys Immigrant Station.
While the fire was held by the fromon
to the north and west it was spreading
along the freight piers TO the southwark,
where only tugs and hrcbUatS from Man
haitian could attack it. Here it caught
the now immigrant station. This build
iug was of brick and stone and had been
occupied only two weeks. 1t cost SO
GOO and was supposed 10 bc hrcpT0of.
hut was soon mass Of flames. the in
terror burning rapidly. only a lew per
sons were in il at the time ot the out
break and they were hurried out.
The flrryhoat MuSconctcong. loaded
with several hundred passengers. had a
narrow escape, just backing out and
missing the burning llupatcong.
Just as the alarm was given the men
on the railroads terminal bridges were
making ready for the arrival of boats
from New York. The captains of the
approaching ferry boats however, saw
the tire and stopped their heavily loaded
craft.
Two trains of Pullmans were made up
and waiting in the station with pasSen-
gers asleep in herths. one was a mid
night express for Buffalo, the other n
Chicago express. Both We're got out
and taken to the Lackawanna round
house. half mile away, which railroad
officials turned into station for pas
sengcr service.
There were few persons in the wait
ing rooms at the station, and they fed
through the transhed into Iloboken.
To Transport Suburbanites.
Strenuous efforts were made by the
I management Nl lllt l-uNhdNuHllu TO-DAY
TO bring into New York the thousands
of commuters whose homes are along
its route and to overcome the handicap
imposed 10y the destruction of the rail
roads station. ferry slips and the loss of
two ferry boats last night. After a
hurried consultation with the officials of
/ the Erie and Pennsylvania railroads. the
i Lackawanna railroad trains were di-
verted to the stations Of those two rail.
] roads in Jersey City. A hundred extra
trolley cars were sent through the su.
4 burhan section of New Jersey to bring
the commuters to the Newark station OF
i the Pennsylvania railroad. Extra fer.
ry boats were added to the ferry lines
I Of the Erie and Pennsylvania railroads
! TO take care Of the heavy increase OF
traffic thrown on those two lines.
1t is estimated the loss to the Lacka.
wanna railroad by the fire will be $500,
600. To repair the damage every me,
chanc on the line who can be spared has
been ordered to come to Hoboken and il
was announced within n week the Lacka
wanna road will be apie TO handle its
own traffic.
NDCO E0TnCATr