The Calumet news. [volume] (Calumet, Mich.) 1907-1938, 1913-12-30
IR0QU0IS FIRE
10 YEARS AGO
652 Persons, Mostly Women and
Children, Lost Lives

today Chicago was thc scene OF a fire
catastrophe that shook the whole civ
ilized world the burning Of the new
lroquois theater m which G52 persons,
mostly women ana children. lost their
lives.
Today a large proportion of the
cIty's population paused i'm the pur-
| suit of their usual occupations To pay
tribute 10 the memory Of the dead.
hundreds of persons Joined in The pro-
gram of meromial services held at the
| lroQpois Memorial Emergency hos
| rital Similar services were held ia
q number of churches. In the down
| town district the flags on many build
| ingS We're AT half mast. Silent pill
grmages were made 10 the various
cemeteries, whore wreaths were laid
on the graves of the victims Of the
disaster.
The burning Of IN" Iroquois thcater
was IN most appalling disaster Of it's
kind in the history of America, and
viii long be remembered by hundreds
81 families who lost one or more 81
their members in tn" catastrophe
Fire Originated on Stage.
Tn" ire originated on the stage ~
the thcater during tho matinee per
Torrance Of Dec 30. 1903. al q time
when every part 81 the house was
crowded. win the usuol holiday audi
encc Of women and children. The tho
ater was practically new. having been
opencd only - few weeks previous to
the fire. II was q playhouse of the
first class and was or so-callcd fire. |
proof construction. Ns matter Of
fact the house ITSELF suffered com
parativcly little damage from the fire |
The official Investigation showed that !
The great loss Of life was the result |
81 panic among the spectators.
The attraction at m" theator on the |
fatal day was the Christmas specta- |
Gle of "RHobeard.' which had peen |
running a. the Iroduois since the
opening Of the theatcr II was The |
general reucf that sparks from one |
Il the spdtlights stationed in tho !
wings 81 the stage ignitcd some OF
The himsy pieces Of scenery and in "A |
few moments the blaze spread up. |
wards toward the nics
Some Of the actors and employees
tried to beat out the flames, hut did !
not succeed and the signal was given
10 lower the ireproot curtain. owing
10 the fact that a rope, with which
the aerial ballet was manipulated, had |
heon So fastened that II obstructod
the movements of the curtain, the
latter could not he lowered FOR some
time
when the curtain was finally re-
leased the fire had made such prog
ress on tho stage that the employees
became panic stricken and opened
the large double door In the rear ot
the stage This resulted la "a terrific
draft that caused the asbestos cur
tain To- bulge out into the auditorium.
In a few minutes the curtain tore ANA
fell and an immense volume al smoke
and flame poured into the house.
When the curtain fen the most Of
the seats on the orchestra floor had
been emptied by The panic stricken
spectators, and they were cruwding
through the exits as fast as thcV
could. When the smoke and flames
poured into the auditorium, sweeping
The whole interior, hundreds were
overcome. They fell in heaps at the
exits aud were surfocated by the
smoke and heat.
Exits Were Locked.
Those on top Of Ia" pile of human
ny were scorched beyond recognition
The situation was made worse ny the
fact that the ushcrs had fled a. the
lrst alarm, without stopping long
enough To unlock the safety exits
with which every floor was provided.
The spectators, finding the safety
exits bottled and locked. were COM
PEELED "a seek their way out through
he main entrance and lobby of tn"
heater. This entrance Immediately
became iammed ana hundreds perish
"a before they could reach the oper
,r \ few fortunate ones saved their
ives by way Of planks stretched from
he uppel floors Of the theatre across
m alley To the buildings opposite.
The fire was, soon under control. Al
iirst II WAS not thought that the loss
If life had been great and the fun eX
tent Of the disaster was not realized
until the hromcn reached the balcony
and galleries of the house, where theY
found the dead piled up six or eight
feet high.
The catastrophe plunged the entire
'ity In mourning. The police depart
nent took charge Of the removal Of
The hundreds of bodies and they were
taken to the various undertaking cs-
and improvised morgucs.
where they were laid in rows on tho
bare floor To await identification.
Many of the victims were so terribly
burned that recognition was mpossi.
Die. Many of the bodies were not
IDENTIFIED until months after the dis
istcr and some of them were never y
dentifed The unidentified bodies {
were buried side by side in one of the
cemeteries and on each anniversary !
heir graves are decorated with flow I
YRS by the Iroquois Memorial society I
--4-.--------- .
Should Also Have Morgue-
st. Petersburg Slorsli, the Russian .
NH... l.. a