Bridgeton pioneer., 1907-04-04
FIRE SWEEPS
MAURICE RIVER.

Piyslve, March 30.-Fire last night
.,nost completely destroyed the oyster
~harves and shipping houses OF Mau-
.;oo River, just over the river from
this place.
7. was a most serious confagration
and nut a lot of people out of business.
Of the many shipping and packing
bouses along the Maurice river front,
but five are standing unharmed by the
oonfagration.
How the fire started is conjecture.
Nobody knows anything about it. The
fire was discovered about ten O'Clock
last night. 1t seemed to have started
in the office of the West Jersey g Sea-
shore Railroad Company. The flames
spread rapidly and in but short time
The hole river front was ablaze, the
frame structures burning rapidly.
In Joseph Garrison's big grocery
store was Powell Garrison, OF Divid-
ing Greek, a clerk. He was only
QWAkoubu w btiO AZ htOb
he was sleeping. was burning, ana he
had to make his escape through win.
dow. He did not have time to even
get on coat.
All of the men about Maurice River
and Bivalve started at once!to save the
property. The tug boat "West Jer-
aey" was on the Bivalve side, and..its
crew soon had tue little steamer in
action, and great service was per-
formed by the boat in saving five of
the shipping houses. The tug was
used as fire engine.
A number of valuable vessels were
tied up to the oyster wharyes on the
Maurice River side, and these were
cut away from their moorings and
were worked out into the stream.
None of them we're damaged by fire,
although the men in the boats had
thrilling experiences.
The oyster floats along the wharves
were fred by the flames, and they
were cut loose, and were soon out in
the stream floating mass of fire.
The floats would collide with the
drifting boats, and much hard work
was necessary to keep the boats from
being seriously damaged. The spec
tacle was beautiful one as the drift
ing burning floats cast fantastic
shadows upon the black waters.
In the meantime the men on the
Maurice River wharves were battling
the flames as best they could. Great
danger attended their efforts. All of
Fhe buildings were built over the
water upon pilings and the plank
wharves burned as freely and tiercely
as did the buildings.
The shipping houses and offices OF
she following were burned:
West Jersey & Seashore railroad
company.
W. L. FidIer.
G. 9. Yates.
State Oyster Commission.
Bateman & Blizzard.
+. R. Demars.
Joseph Garrison.
L. A. Rogers & Son.
Henry & Buzby.
Howard Sookwell.
Ogden & Candy.
Hearn & 90.
Ihe few offices and buildings that
were saved were those of
Z. j. Cooke.
M. P Hewlett
flthisn & Sutton.
Hearn & Co.
Anere we're few oysters about the
"narVes last night, pretty much every
'n'ng being shipped yesterday after
noon' This morning the scene pre-
seh'ed 81 Is one that beggars description.
1ne charred and burned ruins are
oiohen through the damaged wharves
anu Iailen in shapeless mass in the
nurAy waters of the river below it.
telephone and telegraph wires melted
on from their connections by the in
'ehsS neat, are dangling everywhere.
All OF the offices were equipped
with big heavy safes. Everyone of
snese have crashed through the floors
VI ene buildings, plunged down into
tne river and have sunk deep into the
soit mud below 1t is quite likely
'has most of these safes will be found
W oe IN good condition when tney can
70 nSned out. Many valuable records
anu accounts VIII thus be saved.
Ahe state oyster Commission had
.'s ). once on the Maurice River side.
superintendent A. T. Bacon said that
pfotty much all of the records of the
= commission are in these safes and
'ney Will be probably be fished out
| NJ, So J.