Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1913-09-07

A portion Of the west and south walls
about twenty feet above the foundation
the entire tower fell in on itself. So
complete was the collapse that the
great mass OF stone was piled around
the base Of the tower and did not ex-
tend beyond the curb OF the street.
street, and the great tower. 1853 feet
high seems to have come crushing
down In nearly a straight line. The
only portion of the tower remaining
ty-five or thirty feet high. The north
half Of the tiled roof as far back as
the lanthern was crushed in. por-
ton OF the stone gable in front is In
ruins and the large central window
with its stone arch is broken. The
walls east Of the tower remain IN
tact, and with the exception of the
fall of one-half of the west roof the
disaster is confined to the tower"
According to the reports d OF the st d lay
building said that during the night be,
fore the morning. Of the fall he had
heard cracking noises. and he thought
that the tower was settling all through
o'clock in the morning. The west side
bulged out first, and then the south
face bent outward. Then the tower
crushed down, shaking the earth near
by and filling the adjacent streets with
dust. It would seem from the current
accounts that the noise did not arouse
the neighborhood and that there was
very little excitement. At the time
of the collapse Of the tower the church
building was nearly complete, but the
installed.
The commission named on the part
Of the District government to invesu-
gate the causes Of the towers fall
were Bernard r. Green, civil engineer;
Thomas B. Entw1stle, inspector OF
buildings, and Clifford Richardson. in
spector Of asphalt and cement for the
District OF Columbia The report of
that commission gives the height OF
the tower at the time Of its fall as 1873
feet The commission found that on
August Fl, the day before the collapse.
a big stone block in the tower had
been heard to crack and that mortar
and small pieces OF stone had been
heard to fall. The tower. it was Off
cially reported. sank down vertically.
and the commission concluded that the
foundation masonry was not strong
enough for the weight imposed on 1t;
IQdL the CSiucHt vas uhii1 ~ uSS' S,'~--
the mortar was bad, and that even the
designs and specifications were faulty.
In The Star of October 20, 1888. may
be read these interesting paragraphs
relating to the rebuilding OF tina
'The work of rebuilding the tower OF
the Church Of the Covenant is oeing
pushed rapidly forward: It is expected
that the structure will be completed
and ready for dedication about the Isl
carried out and for the present tho
tower will be finished only up to the
roof, so that the building can be In.
closed Next spring it is expected that
the tower will be completed.
The work is being done in most SUD
sta ntiaI manner The walls are being
backed I'm with hard brick laid in cement
and the stones of the tower are laid in
Portland cement. Practically the tower
viii be independent of the rest OF the
building, 20 that any settlement Will only
affect the walls Of the tower. Inc side
walls Of the church carry very little
weight, as the lantern is supported by
the largo pillars in the interior.
''The decision Of the church authorities
to execute the original design meets with
general approcal from not only the mem
bers Of the congregation. but also from
outsiders and 1t is considered that the
church will be one Of the finest specl-
mems OF architecture in the city, ana TOT
this reason It was the general desire that
the original plans should be followed"
A great deal Of water has run under the
BRIDGES and has come down the Washing
ton aqueduct since the August morning
when the great tower FELL