Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1905-12-21
BIG MILL BURNED.
Wright Underwear Company's
Factory in Pownal Entirely
Destroyed Friday.
TWO W0RKMEN INJURED
We're Caught In Top Of Building and
Obliged ~ Jump from the Windows
woman Has 1lair Burned on
Property Loss RfOO.OOO
without Insurance.
TWO WORKMEN INJURED

Pownal, Dee. 1.-Two employees were
others were endangered during a fire to-
day which burned to the ground the -four
story mill of the Wright Health Under
wear company. There was Il panic among
the mill hands and several jumped from
the window. The seriously injured are
George Maloney. foreman of the spinning
room, hurt internally from jumping, and
John Tight. employed in the same depart
ment. seriously bruised. Other persons
were slightly bruised in the rush from the
burning building Mrs. James Morgan
was caught ny the flames and her hair
burned. The loss is 100000 and practical
~ no Insurance. The mill was the town
only industrial plant.
Many acts of heroism were performed.
All hands were at work when the fumes
were suddenly discovered in the picking
room on the ground floor. Without warn
ing the fire had leaped from the big dus
ter used 30 clean the cotton and commune
Gated with the inflammabic cotton. al
labcut and then with the woodwork. \
sudden burst of the flames struck Mrs.
Morgan and burned all tho hair from her
head. Tho woman f.ll unconscious. but
was raised by other employees in the de-
partment and carried out with them as
they ran into the open air.
Men on the ground floor either shouted
a cry of warning mp tho elevator shaft or
ran up the stairway To the second and
third floors. BY this time. however. tho
flames were passing through into the sec
ond story and the thick smoke which
rolled inward and outward from the
building warned every person within il
that their lives were mperillcd. Already
the stHirways were damned by mill hands
rushing to the exits. and those WHO came
down from the fourth floor found the
smoke so thick they were forced to CROP.
their way to the open.
! That the lives of some nj those on
| the top floor were not lost is believed to
he due tn Maloncy Who, when the fire
was discovered. rushed from the second
story to tho fourth 10 warn the opera
tives. Not only did he warn them but
he assisted the women TO reach the stair
ways safely. The last persons on the tor
floor were Malonev and Tiaht. who whcr
ready to leave. found their way barroc
by flames. which had leapod up the ali
and elevator shafts. spread through The
flooring and developed the stairways.
and jumped to the roof of the dryhous'
underneath. From here they we're re-
moved by the other workmen. Maloncy''
face was cut and bruised. his right ankle
sprained and he was injured internally
as a result of the jump while Tight wa:
bruised about the legs and body. Towns
people responded when the news OF the
fire circulated and a bucket brigade wa
formed. The great Roadway tn" lire ha'
, gained tho attempt To check it was IN
effectual. Efforts were then turned 4
saving nearby property. Within an hou
almost the entire mill was reduced t.
ashes The mill was built in 1868 and dam
aged by fire 10 years later The compan
has branches at Troy and COhoes. n. y
solomon Wright is manager. The fire /
believed to have been started by frictio
caused by some foreign substances fall
ing into the buster.