Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1908-04-13

0ren were removed 10 Tie ,INdNdi HoSpltdt
in an ambulance. In addition to the pa
tients at the burned hospitals who were
removed to other hospitals, number Of
persons critically i'll were taken from pri-
yate houses to the Naval and Marine hos
pitals.
DR.. Magrath said at 10 o'clock that
two bodies had been found. One found
at the corner of Essex and Highland
streets, the medical examiner believed
to be that Of young woman. perhaps
20 years of age. The other body was
found in front of the ruins of a build
ing at II Watts street. This also is
thought to be that of woman. The
only possible means of Identifying
either of the bodies Is by teeth pecu-
liarities. Both the bodies were removed
to the North Grove street morgue.
At this time it was reported also
that the bodies of a man and woman
were in the ruins on Broadway, but it
was impossible to make any search I'M
til the ruins became cooler.
The fire started near the corner Of
Cypress and Cd streets and was swept
about southeast by the gale. 1t spread
out to some extent as it advanced but
die not cross the eastern division
tracks of the Boston & Maine Railroad
which bound the fire area on the
northeast. 1t extended west to I'd
street and kept on down that street to
Broadway.
Crossing Broadway it spread out
| over the entire section southeast, but
did not reach the water front on Chel-
sea creek until after crossing Willow
street, so that it's southwesterly bounds
| were I'd street, Essex, Middlesex as far
as Willow and then to the water front,
along which it burned until it met the
| tracks of the Boston & Albany divi-
| sion of the New York Central, shortly
after they branch off from those of the
Boston & Maine Railroad.
The burned area was in the nature of
an ellipse, about one and a half milee
| on its long axis and from one-third to
three-quarters of mile on it's short
axis.
the fire started was the most densely
populated section of the city. The
| three-Story tenements held from six to
eight families.
| Most of these families consisted of
from six to eight persons with many
| small children and almost invariably
some one aged or infirm.
So rapidly did the fire sweep along
that nearly all were driven into the
| streets with scarcely more than the
| clothing which they wore at the time.
To the east of Broadway the houses
| We're more isolated and were about
| two and a half stories in height. Near
| ly everyone in these houses realized
| the danger by noon, but even then
| there were many persons who refused
| to leave their homes until their roofs
| were blazing over their heads. Some
| were able to save household goods, but
those who heaped them in great piles
| in Bellingham square had everything
| swallowed up in the flames an hour af-
| forwards.
In addition to those already men,
toned the following plants were de-
| stroyed entirely or in part
Leonard Il Ellis, oil dealers on Chel-
sea river. --l
LOTUS Grease Works on Eastern av-
| enue.
! r. Y. Russell G. Sons. box factory.
I Independent Ice Co. plant on Beach
street.
| Two large Oil barges tied at the
wharf of the Tidewater Oil Co., and
containing 5000 gallons of oil each were
burned and for time it was feared
| they would drift across Chelsea creek
| and ignite the Standard Oil plant on
the East Boston side. Two tugs made
| desperate efforts to tow the barges out
into the harbor, but the hawsers were
| burned and before the barges could be
| removed they were burned at the
| docks.
Commissioner Charles w. Parker of
the Boston fire department stated to-
night that Boston would lose three of
her engines and several hundred feet
of hose which had to be abandoned.
| Boston. April 12.-Fire devastated
| more than one square mile of the
manufacturing, business and tenement
| district of Chelsea today, entailing a
loss estimated at fully 100000. The
| fire started at 1910 A. NJ, near the
Boston Backing Cos. works on West
| Third street near the Everett city line
and crossed the city, a distance of one
mile and a quarter to Marginal, op-
| posite the East Boston shore. The fire
was still burning furiously this even
ing. but the firemen hoped to control
it before the night was far advanced
| So far as can be learned there was
but two fatalities, but half a hundred
persons were injured.
Reports at o'clock from the tenn
porary police hospital, the Marine and
| Naval hospitals show that at that hour
there had been one death and about
so people treated for injuries. A great
| portion of these injuries were of a
minor character, but three cases were
considered as probably hopeless. In
| the cases of two absolution was given
by Roman Catholic priests.
| Aid was asked from the Boston
| Nurses Home and a corps of nurses
was dispatched to help out the various
| hospital STATS. The Marine and Naval
hospitals were filled up at Z o'clock
and the Parkway Social Club building
in Everett was pressed into service.
The Day Nurses Home was burned
and IS children removed in safety.
Among the buildings burned were 10