Newark evening star and Newark advertiser. [volume] (Newark, N.J.) 1909-1916, 1914-01-05
GRAIN ELEVATOR
VISITED BY FIRE.
Ffremen Skilfully Combat
Blaze for Five Hours Be-
fore conquering It.

For five hours yesterday Newark
firemen were kept busy combating
fire that broke out in the grain
elevator of the J. c. Smith & Wal
lace Company, In Ogden street at
the foot of Division street, sometime
between and $50 o'clock in the
morning
The fire was skilfully fought from
all sides, the loss as estimated being
limited to $4,000. The origin of the
blaze has not been determined
At $3.50 o'clock the first alarm was
received at the central station in
the City Hall, from box 443 the
private box in the Smith & Wallace
building, which is in direct commu-
nication with the system at head
quarters. There was a quick re-
Spouse by the apparatus that answers
the first alarm from this station,
which was demonstrated by the fact
that at 1854 second alarm from Box
445 was sent in by Battalion Chief
George F. Lynch from the scene of
the fire. One minute prior to this,
or at 1858, the alarm was received at
headquarters over the A. D. T. sys-
tenn
wash 1 IcC6SSdIy 10 dCJ OIL ILLS
call, as the matter had been attend
ed to with the first alarm three min
utes earlier
Inc back taps. denoting that the
IRE was completely extingulshed,
We're sent in at 1903 in the afternoon.
Chlef Engineer Paul j. Moore
reached the scene of the fire almost
simultaneously with the arrival of the
nrst alarm apparatus. and immedi-
mi - a. ert,&
ing forces The flames had made
rapid Roadway in the first floor and
smoke in dense volumes was pouring
from all windows.
Remembering the disastrous fire of
some years ago, the firemen got to
work with extraordinary alacrity and
within a few minutes eleven powerful
streams OF water were pouring into
the building. Chief Moore stationed a
force of men with two loaded lines of
nose on the Lackawanna railroad
bridge, within a few feet of the win
dows facing out of the large elevator
shafting, with orders to "let go" with
the full limit of water pressure
should the flames show at this par
tlcuiar danger point Special atten-
ton was also paid to the shipping
room, where, according to Arthur
Newton, colored of 127 Sheffield street,
the company's Waterman, the first in
dica ton of fire was seen.
The fire was confined to the lower
floors of the structure.
On the north side of the building
the windows were INSTRUCTED with
barrels and bags, allowing no chance
Tor the water to enter. These were
kept wet and the fight directed at
the other sides.
A number of chickens were con-
fined in the boiler-room in a two
story brick extension to the elevator
These We're saved by the firemen, and
u score or more pigeons were
liberated from a coop near by when
the smoke threatened to suffocate
them. AS the firemen worked on the
building they were surrounded by the
chickens and pigeons, which walked
and flew about in confusion. A large
building near by, containing baled
hay. was several times threatened byl
the flames.
Word Of the fire was sent to Colonel
Allan B. Wallace at his home in Sum-
init, and, with past experience In
mind, he lost no time in reaching this
city. He was grati1ed at the sue
,cessfu1 work of the fremen, and so
expressed himself He had expected,
he said, to find the place totally de-
molished, as it had been by a fire
thii teen years ago. Inc contents OF
the building at present, he added,
were volued at over $4,000
On June %, 1901. fire broke out in
the brush mandatory of J. F. c.
Martin & Son, in Ogden street, ad-
joining the Smith & Wallace grain
elevator. The alarm was sent in from
box 443 at 2:01 O'Clock in the after
noon and after the flames were sup
posed to have been completely extin-
guished and all fire apparatus having
returned to quarters, leaving the Sal
wage Corps in charge of affairs. which
Is the custom, the flames broke out
anew with extraordinary fierceness
This was at o'clock. and an alarm
was Immediately sent in, being fol-
lowed at 1904 by second, and eight
minutes later by a third.
The fire was one of the most spec
tacular and fiercest in Newark de-
partment history. The flames speed
lily wiped out the brush factory and
spread to the iron-clad frame grain
elevator of the Smith & Wallace
Company, thence to the Lackawanna
railroad bridge. The flames were
fought from rowboats in the river,
from the railroad bridge and from
every possible point of vantage.
The adjusted losses at this fire were
j. F. c. Martin & Son. $1S,000 the ].
c. Smith & Wallace Company, $685.
000 and on the Lackawanna bridge
$4,000 q total of $50 900,