The Republican journal., 1913-06-05
some days. except Of the simplest and
most easily digestible kind. 1t was a

narrow escape they had from actual
starvation, aside from the perils of the
sea. Great was the joy of their friends
and neighbors when news came of their
safety. The sole survivor above re-
ferred to is our venerable friend and fell
low citizen Mr.. William Quimby.
During the winter of 1901 the wealth
er up to the early part of February was
excessively severe; at one time the Bay
was frozen entirely across to Castine;
which afforded occasion at the time for
the very sage remark that chad such a
severe frost happened while the enemy
was in possession of Castine during the
late war, great facilities would have
been afforded for his dislodgement from
that maritime stronghold Of the State;;"
for "dislodgement' substitute "smug-
Cling and the remark quoted would be
sensible one; one which, probably,
would have been practically illustrated.
This year, 1921, Belfast had her first
notable experience in the matter of con-
f1agration; it was quite a matter for the
day, but was the anerest ''sprinkling"
compared with the Baptism of fire.
through which she has since then passed.
On the night of January I'd a fire broke
out in a large two story wooden build
ing situated on Main street where the
stores now occupied by Messrs. Albert C.
Burgess and Blodgett and Co. stand; the
first story was occupied by Ladd and
Morrill,, traders, and two of the cham
bers by Rufus B. Allyne, Esq. Attorney
at Law, and Sylvanus Gallison, tailor;
this building and dwelling house adjoin-
ing. were entirely consumed A wooden
building standing four feet easterly
from the one in which the fire began was
saved by suspending sails from the
roof and keeping them drenched with
water carried up on ladders, in pals
The Gazette of the 4th in giving an ac-
count of the event attributed the limited
extent of the conhagration to "the ex-
emplary alacrity with which the citi-
zens assembled' and to the fact that
1.-THE town pump was in good order. y
The ''town pump" was on the west
wardly side of High street in front of
the building now occupied by the Bel
fast Livery Company. A double line
was formed from the pump to the scene
of the fire for the purpose of passing
water and re-passing empty buckets.
That was the day when woman 8
rights" were recognized; among them
the right to take her place in the line
and pass the empty buckets; and nobly
did she exercise the right on that cold,
bleak night in January; and no man
scoffed at her. Before the close of the
year Ladd and Morrill, had covered the
burned district with a two story brick
block containing three stores; it was the
first brick building erected in town; the
brick block on Main street with granite
front now covers the same ground.
The good people of the village accepted
the fire as ''Providential intimation of
the duty they owed to themselves" and
took immediate measures to give effect
to the ntimation by forming Fire Club
and providing ways and means for the
purchase of an engine, tire-hooks, lad
ders, &c. An engine was purchased at
the cost of $500 and an engine company
organized; the same engine was after
wards called the "Vigilance " 1t did
good duty in its day but was at last
thrown aside to make room for others of
greater power and improved mechanism.
After its place was thus supplied it was
used for several years for watering
vessels" 1t was burned in the great fire
of 1873, charred fragment of one of
its brakes is in possession of the COM
I pi Ter, the only tangible memento of the
first hre-engine ever owned in Belfast,
or which he ever saw. A house for the
hearse and engine was built; its dimen-
sions go by II feet on the ground, feet
high, shingled on the outside, with a
plank floor 1t was erected on ground
now covered by Johnson's Block, stooc
there many years until it was removed
to Franklin street near the southwester-
ly corner of the lot now owned by the
United States; it was demolished about
the time the Custom House was built.
The Fire Club, styled the Belfast Fire
Club, was originally composed of twenty.
four of the most prominent residents in
the village. Col Daniel Lane was its
President, George Watson, ESQ.,, Vice
President, Hon. J ohm s. Kimball, Treas.
urer. Col. Phillip Morrill,, Clerk: Col
Lane, who died in 1873, was the last sur.
viving member. Its Constitution pro.
vided that every citizen of Belfast who
shall furnish himself with two good sub.
stantial leather buckets, IL inches ir
length and inches in diameter, markec
with his name, and good substantial
bag, feet in length and feet inches
in breadth, marked with his name, may
become member of the Club on sub
scribing to its rules and regulations and
paying twenty-five cents.' 1t is very
apparent that the founders of the Club
did not intend there should be any shirk