New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1915-08-30
S15o,0OO BLAZE
RUINS FOUNDRY
Costly Architectural De-
signs Lost in AS
tOria Fire.
FOUR ALARMS SENT;
BOATS JOIN FIGHT
Glare on Misty Sky Stirs City
Thousands View Sight from
Greensboro Bridge.

Valuable architectural designs that
cannot be replaced brought the total
loss to $4,000 when the pattern shop
of the Peterson G. Brooklyn Foundry
Company, Orchard Street and the Boule-
ward, Astoria, was destroyed by fire last
night. Four alarms were turned in,
summoning apparatus from Long Island
City and Brooklyn to prevent the
flames spreading to rdjCining lumber
Yards along the waterfront.
For more than an hour the fire. It's
reflection deadened enough by dry
cling mist to be elusive from a dis
lance, puzzled residents of The Bronx
and the East Side From The Bronx II
appeared that buildings either on KAN
dall's or Wards Island were on hre,
AMI East Siders, drawn out in the mist
by reports Of red glow against the
sky. concluded that the Metropolitan
Hospital, on Blackwell's Island, was
doomed Six inquiries came to Inc
Tribune over the telephone from per-
sons who wanted to know where the hre
was and what was burning.
1t was no delusion to thousands who
lined the greensboro Bridge and
watched the two story wooden structure
glow like furnace and then crumble
TO pieces. Residents in Long Island
City, Astoria, Ravenswood, Steinway,
{. roma and other neighboring districts
agreed that a more spectacular tlre mad
no. lighted up the Lon Island shore in
several years. One report had II that
large section of Long Island City was
on fire.
Surrounded by a network of larger
three story buildings, the pattern shop
extended 300 feet 10 the East River and
200 feet along Orchard Street, pratt
cally taking in the entire block. When
TIE Waterman was making his rounds
between 3 and o'clock he smelled
smoke, and discovered that it was is
suing from beneath the main door to
the pattern shop. AS he unlocked and
opened the door, 70 use his own de-
scription, the whole building seemed to
burst into flames. The Waterman
turned in an alarm.
When the first Astoria fire fighting
apparatus arrived the building was too
far gone to think of saving it. An
ether alarm was rung in, while the hre-
men devoted all their attention to pro-
tecting adjoining foundry buildings and
lumber yards that skirt the waterfront.
With their sirens blowing full blast
two fireboats from Manhattan cut
through the mist off Hallet's Point.
drew into Pot Cove and played streams
of river water on Tisdale's lumber yard.
Deputy Fire Chief O'Hsra, of Queens.
ordered third and a fourth alarm
turned in as a precautionary measure
TO insure the safety of neighboring
property. On apparatus from Williams
burg came Deputy Chief Maher to as
sist Both deputy chiefs said that the
fine rain was of great assistance to fire
engines and fireboats.
At first the loss was estimated at
$4,000 until officials of the foundry
company reported that valuable de-
signs which had been used in archi-
tectural construction in many cities
had been destroyed. AS the designs
cannot be replaced, the loss estimate
jumped at once to S150,000.
The building was owned by A. d. H.
Ellis. of 81 Wall Street, Manhattan.