The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1909-04-01
FIRE AT PRISON.
Four buildings We're Destroyed
at sort LeavenwOrth.
Flames Started in Prison Tail
or Shop and Spread Rapidly.
PRISONERS GUARDED.
Required Twelve Hundred Sol
diers to Prevent Escapes.
Rough Estimate by Army Off
GER Places Loss at $4,000.
PRISONERS GUARDED,

Leavenworth. Kan, April lit took
1,200 United States soldiers to MAIN
tain order and to prevent prisoners
from escaping during fire which Ae-
stroyed four buildings of the federal
military prison here early today. All
the 800 prisoners were marched out of
their cell houses when it seemed that
the whole prison certainly would be
destroyed, and were held under heavy
military guard until the fire was got
ten under control, then after some of
the cell houses had cooled sufficiently
they were marched back again.
The fire was discovered by a sentry
before midnight. who fired his pistol
and the call was sounded and the en-
tire garrison of Fort Leavenworth
turned out The Thirteenth infantry
armed with rifles was thrown around
the entire prison The fire which prob
ably started in the prison tailor shop,
gained rapid Roadway against the
prison guard working with buckets
and small hose. The fire department
of Leavenworth answered an emer-
gency call and joined forces with the
soldiers in battle against the flames.
The fire was confined to the central
row of buildings and consumed the in
dustrial departments of the prison, in
Guiding the paint shop, the tailor shop,
carpenter shop and laundry. The build
ings contained many combustibles and
the flames threatened the buildings.
The cell house rapidly became filed
with smoke and got suffocatingly hot.
After bugle calls were sounded. the
first guard line was placed about $50
feet from the prison wall and the men
in it were stationed 10 feet apart. The
second line was 100 feet farther back
order. Through this line no one except
an officer or a soldier on duty was al
lowed to pass.
When the fire first started there was
glee among the prisoners. Let it
burn" they yelled. The water pres
sure was very poor, and as the water
sputtered uselessly from the hoses the
prisoners laughed and cheered. The
flames leaped higher and gust OF
wind whipped smoke into the nearest
of the cell houses.
The tone of the prisoners changed
then. For Gods sake, take US out"
they screamed, battering against the
steel bars in great terror. They
thought they would be burned to
death. Colonel Laughborough saw the
danger of the situation when the leap
ing flames got very near the cell
houses and ordered the prison guard
to unlock the doors. The 800 prisoners
fell in, each convict with his hands on
the shoulder of the man in front of
him. At double quick they marched to
the fartherest corner of the prison in
closure, they huddled while 100 prison
guards guarded them with leveled
rifles. Two of the terror-stricken
crowd of convicts tainted.
City Firemen Helped.
Half on hour after the fire broke
out, the Leavenworth city fire depart
ment reached the fort. Nothing could
be done to save the burning buildings,
however, and the f1remen devoted their
attention to saving the main structure
and keeping the fire from the military
and prison buildings. There was great
confusion until the infantry was called
out All the men at the garrison ran
to the prison, but they were kept back
from the walls by the double guard
line.
All the sick prisoners were removed
from the prison when the fire first was
seen. The records were taken from the
administration buildings also AMI
preparations made to blow it up If
necessary, but this action was not re-
quired.
A new military prison is under pro-
cess of construction and it is not prob
able that the burned buildings will be
rebuilt.
Few Overcome by Heat.
A few men were overcome by the
heat during the fire. Lieutenant w. c.
fully scalded by gust of steam and
hot water from a burning roof. He
was taken to his quarters, where it is
said his injuries would not prove
serious.
Major Thomas H. SIavens, COM
mandant of the prison. said the fire
probably was caused by defective wiz
ing. He placed the damage at $4,000
The buildings burned were among
the oldest at Fort Leavenworth. They
were erected in 1857 and 1858 and un-
der the supervision of General L. c.
Easton and were first used for an
army commissary storehouse. 1t was
many years later that they became a
part of the United States penitentiary
and later converted into a military
prison following the erection of a new
federal prison here.
The prisoners now confined there,
about 800 men. are practically all short
term army Offenders convicted in court
martialS.