The Salt Lake herald-Republican. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1909-1918, 1909-10-26
TWO HUNDRED THOUSAND
DOLLAR BLAZE.
Continued from Page {

company plant was destroyed before wa
ter touched any of the buildings and tn
buildings north and south of the lumbe
yard in the rear of the mill had ignited
Buildings across South Temple stree
were warping in the fierce heat, and tn
police department had arrived an
stretched their ropes before an attemp
was made to stop the spread of the fir
through the block eastward.
Several watchmen and persons arOun'
the building in the immediate vicinity 0
the mill were unable TO say when or hoS
the fire started, a clerk in the GOdbe
Pitts drug store having been the first L
see the blaze and the first to send in al
alarm to the department
E. A Pierce says that he telephones
the department from the coSner of Firs
South and Main streets at 1850 O'Clock
and waited until eos O'Clock before h
central station and start for the fire. H
says that he then ran to the scene of tn
fire, and was there ahead of any of tn
hose companies. Several other person
enough that the cOnflagration was plainl,
to be seen from the central part of tn
city before any fire company turned out
The drying and dried lumber i'm tn
milling company plant was consumed lik
finder before q draft, and the intens
heat ignited the interior of the D. Cont
q Co. hotel Making its way through tn
bare brick wall to the westward an
driving the inmates of the house in terro
into the street Women fled from tn
hotel in their night garments and seveTa
jumped from the windows with bed
clothing in their arms. Joe CantOlH. Al
inmate of the ToOming house. was badl-
gashed about the head by jumping head
long through a window on the secon
floor, but had his fall broken by tw
heavy blankets which he had wTappe
about him.
Hotel Guests Are Safe
D. Conta. one of the owners Of the no
tel, said that all of the guests ha
reached safety before the fire reached tn
interior of the building. Joe POlleti. pro
prietOr of the roOming house to the west
ward OF the milling company. estimate
his loss IN household furniture at S2.O0(
The house, two-st0ry frame struetur1
was ignited and destroyed within fiftee
minutes time.
The flames spread rapidly southwar
from the mill to the lumber yards Of tn
Sierra-Nevada Lumber company an
TaylOr-ArmstrOng, threatening the Arm
strong shingle mills and the buildings @
the other lumber company. BY centerin
the fire in an area which included tn
mill, the hotel and the rooming house an
a portion Of the two lumber yards, tn
tiremen were able to successfully cOmba
the flames after about thirty minutes
hard fighting, during which time onl
five or six streams of water were direct
ed on the blaze. At 1.45 o'clock eigh
streams of water were being DIayed on tn
fire and it had been gotten under cOntro
Piles of lumber, lath and shingles in tn
lumber yards were quickly wiped out G
existence, and the harm on the Taylor
Armstrong property was destroyed
Three or four horses were rescued frOI
the path of the flames at the last me
ment by being blindfOlded and led on
The loss on the Armstrong barn is est
mated at $500.
sured for $1,000 and there was 5000 II
sUrance on the contents, making the tots
net loss about $4,000.
Several cars of valuable hardwood stui
had only recently been received by tn
Sierra Nevada Milling company. and TIL
made the loss in this building sewers
thousand dollars more than il would Otl
erwise have been. The loss in the mi
was complete. not a splinter Of the mi
standing uncharred, the fire having Ger
tered here ard not having. been touche
by a single stream OF water during til
progress Of the fight.
A Spectacular Blaze.
The buildings of the Sierra-Nevad
Lumber company were saved from tn
fire which swept through the northwes
corner of the yards, destroying the pile
of lumber in that section and taking
portion of the Taylor Armstrong stOc
Immediately to the eastward.
The blaze was one of the most spectacU
lar in the history of the city, and severs
thousand persons were attracted to tn
scene by the light, which could be see
for miles in every direction. The blaZ
lit up the foothills to the nOrthward. mak
ing them as light as though daylight ha
dawned, and offering a beautiful spectacl
for those who were abroad on Main an
State streets after midnight
So far as could be ascertained, no pei
son was seriously injured, although fall
ing electric wires and breaking glass VIII
dOws menaced life. and there were severe
narrow escapes from injury. South Ter
pie street was impossible for an hour {
more, owing to the intensity of the biaz
There were many narrow escapes frol
the rOOming houses on either side of II
Sierra Nevada Lumber company mill, an
it is possible that when the ruins of til
rOoming house at the west are cleare
away there will be some charred bOne
as the only evidence of fatalities. tt
building was an Old-fashiOned dol
house, which was occupied by forty Is
borers, about thirty Of whom were tia
ians.
Fatalities Are Feared.
The spread of the fire was so rapid thu
there was no time to give warning to II
foreigners until some were awakened b
the smoke from the burning windo
frames. Dominick Laviera. one Of ii
rOomers. was distractedly looking for n
brother until nearly morning. He sal
he was awakened by the flames as Il
window of his room cracked, and jumll
ing up hastily he called to six others WI
were sleeping in the room and then ia
to the window on the north side an
Jumped to the ground. Clad only
trousers and shirt, Laviera kept on ruI
ming None of the men who escaped frol
the house could tell whether there wei
others who were overcome by smoke b.
fore they could escape.