Richmond times-dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1914-current, 1919-12-09
THEATERs FORCED TO CLOSE
AS WELL AS LARGE STORES
Hundreds of Workers in Office
Buildings Climb Many
Flights Of Steps.
TROUBLE EVENTUALLY LOCATED
"Ground" Somewhere on Broad
Street Between Sixth and
Twelfth Causes Tic-Cp.

Practically half the stores. almost
all elevator service. the United States
postal service. both the Western Union
and Postal Telegraph companies ser
vices, some few manufacturing plants,
one newspaper and almost all OF the
electric lights in Richmond were Grip
Piled yesterday when a ground" wire
put the direct current electric dis
,ribution system out Of commission n
few minutes after o'clock in the
afternoon.
trouble" force of the Virginia Rail-
way and Power Company 10 locate the
exact trouble failed up 70 IL o'clock
last night.
Trouble Psint Found.
At S:1J o'clock, however, the dis
,ribution department had discovered
that the difficulty was situated some
where between Sixth ana Twelfth
Streets on Broad. BY cutting the cable
On each side of the ground" lights
and power We're returned TO some OF
the Office buildings.
1t was declared last night at the
Virginia Railway and Power offices
that certain districts OK the city would
be isolated today: but that in many
dcnce again.
Harry Lawdcr. superintendent OF
mails, declared tha; the postal ser
afternoon for several hours because of
the failure OF electric lights. and the
:nabilit yof postal clerks to see their
work. AT o'clock the gas jets were
equipped with mantles, and substituted
for electricity.
Many Stores Close.
]. Hunter stribiing, superintendent
of distribution for the Virginia Rail-
way and Power Company, was per-
sonally experimenting the work OF
finding the trouble III the service all
yesterday afternoon and late into the
night.
Many Broad Street merchants and
business houses were forced TO close
their doors in mid-a ftcrnoon because
they were deprived OF light. and could
not obtain sufficient substitutes for
electricity to show their goods to
AT the Western Union Telegraph Of
fees nthc Travellers Bulldinh, where
messages arc rclayed throughout the
entire south at the rate of 10000
DAY, the service was declared to- have
been crippled so per cent by the fail
urc OF The electric current here.
Halts Telegraph System.
Service was not entirely shut off.
but the duplex system, by which four
messages are relayed at once on one
machine. was put out OF order. Single
messages were relayed over the wires
by drawing on current from other
places. At the Postal Telegraph the
situation was the same.
AT $3.50 o'clock last night the West
ern Union reported that the service
was again at normal by the return OF
power, and that an additional force of
men was at work on the accumulated
kilograms.
Many business houses we're transferred
TO other electric distribution systems
1t was stated. and heavy VoltaEes nee
essary TO support the overloaded wires
burned out switches. lights and fuses
in several places
Elevators Are Tied Up.
Ofice buildings in all sections of the
city We're affected. Elevators in The
Travellers Building, the American Ma
tional Bank Building, the Mutual
Building. The Times Dispatch Building
in Richmond where direct current is
used to operate the elevator motors
were put out of business. Business men
having offices on tho eighth tenth
were compelled TO use their legs as a
means of elevation to and from the
ground.
Theaters interrupted.
Both the Colonial and the Victor
Theaters were compelled to close their
aoors from o'clock in the afternoon
untii $50 o'clock last night because of
the failure of power. As far as could
be learned last night these two thea
ters were the only ones which closed.
others aftected by the trouble operating
tanned from nonclcctric sources.
At O'clock the lights began to fail
and so did business" declared William
Is; b;r, mdIhan1himer,, TT of the. firm of Thai
minutes we had gone back sof vears ~
candles and oil illuminations. If yoi,
1'h peat that you're going some"