Fire at Brooklyn Hills.

New York, 1895

Shortly after midnight Sunday fire broke out in the large three story building of H. W. Lange, corner of Union Place and the Jamaica road, Brooklyn Hills. The fire was discovered on the second floor, which was unoccupied. Lange occupies the lower floor for a grocery, and a family resided on the top floor. The firemen, after an hour's hard work, extinguished the flames. The damage to the building by fire and stock in the store will not fall short of $1,000.

—The Long Island Farmer, Jamaica, NY, June 28, 1895, p. 8.

Horse Killed By Rough on Rats

New York, 1895

A horse belonging to A. F. Huettner of Hicksville, valued at $700, was killed by eating rough on rats Monday night. The poison had been scattered in some empty stalls to get rid of the rats which infested the stable. Mr. Huettner's horse got loose during the night and devoured the poison.


Big Fire at Roslyn

Fire broke out in Hicks Brothers' lumber yard in Roslyn Wednesday morning. The fire was first discovered at 11 o'clock, issuing from the roof of the main office. Before the fire company responded to the alarm the flames had spread to the planing and saw mill, the hardware store rooms, and other buildings. A building which was used to store paints and oils also took fire, but was saved. The other buildings opposite were destroyed, including a large amount of valuable machinery. The fire then spread to the lumber sheds, which were badly scorched but were saved through the heroic efforts of the firemen and bystanders. The loss will reach $50,000 covered by insurance.

—The Long Island Farmer, Jamaica, NY, March 8, 1895, p. 1.

They Wonder Where Shire Is

New York, 1895

The friends of Robert Shire, of Flushing, are anxious to learn his whereabouts. He left Flushing about a week ago, and nobody seems to know what has become of him. Shire conducted a grocery store. He transferred his interest in the store to Charles Ruland.


Hot Water Boiler Burst

The hot water boiler in the kitchen of Mrs. Margaret Burchill's house, at Long Island City, burst Wednesday morning when the servant built the fire in the range and badly wrecked the kitchen.


A Defunct Excise Board

Governor Morton having approved the action of Judge Garretson in removing from office Michel Doyle, John F. McGowan and Frank P. Krug, who composed the excise board of the town of Newtown, County Clerk Sutphin declared the offices vacant on Friday.

—The Long Island Farmer, Jamaica, NY, Feb. 8, 1895, p. 1.

A Female Firebug

New York, 1895

Rhoda Carlton, 14 years of age, was arrested in Brooklyn on Saturday for setting fire to a house owned by Adam Caldwell, her stepfather. The little one confessed that she set the building on fire. She said that last Summer she lived in the family of J. L. Hope at Flushing, and that she set his house on fire three times. Mr. Hope was seen, and he said that his house had been on fire three times while the girl lived there. The last time the fire was started he suspected Rhoda and sent her away.

—The Long Island Farmer, Jamaica, N.Y., Jan. 11, 1895, p. 1.

The Ketchaboneck House Burned

New York, 1895

The Ketchaboneck house at Westhampton, one of the largest summer hotels at the beach was destroyed by fire at three o'clock Sunday morning. The family of Mr. Raynor barely escaped with their lives. Nothing was saved, not even sufficient clothing to keep them warm. The hotel could accommodate about 100 guests. The building and furniture were insured for $10,000.

—The Long Island Farmer, Jamaica, N.Y., Jan. 18, 1895, unknown page number.

Bride Braves Flames for Another's Babes

1920

Alone, She Invades Smoke-filled Rooms on Fifth Floor.

NEW YORK, N. Y. — Thru blinding, gagging smoke, Mrs. Marie Kearney, 20 years old, groped for two children supposedly left behind in the burning five-story house in the Bronx, until she collapsed. She was found unconscious and brought to safety by other women.

Mrs. Kearney, a bride of two months and a former yeomanette, was on the roof of her home when the frantic appeals of a mother who believed her two children were in a top-floor apartment of the imperiled tenement reached her from the street.

Alone, she crossed the roofs and climbed down thru the suffocating smoke, entering all four smoke-filled apartments on the top floor in a vain search for the youngsters. Mrs. Kearney then continued to the next floor, where she met a man who told her the children were safe.

—The Saturday Blade, Chicago, Aug. 7, 1920, p. 1.

New Hampshire Neighbors — Sweden

New Hampshire/Maine, 1916

Leslie Chandler, who got so badly burned by the bursting of a gasolene torch while soldering some milk cans recently, is gaining.

The remains of Miss Louise Brackett were brought from Cumberland Mills to her sister, Mrs. Martha Chandler's. The funeral was held Thursday. [*]

Sweden grange held its regular meeting Saturday evening, Sept. 9, with nine members present.

Charlie Bailey hauled stove wood for Walter Evans Monday.

Miss Mable Trimback is doing housework for Mrs. W. E. Evans.

M. E. Perry and wife and Mr. and Mrs. Floyd Moulton were in Portland Saturday, going in Mr. Perry's new auto.

Mr. and Mrs. James H. Bennett are visiting his brother, Charles Bennett.

Mrs. Fordyce Gammon and daughter Emily are visiting her sisters, Mrs. Ernest Bennett, and Cleora Saunders, also her brother, Lindon Merrill.

Mr. and Mrs. Fred Saunders and daughter of Portland are visiting his father, Lincoln Saunders, at O. P. Saunders'.

Miss Marion Moulton is visiting Mrs. Charlie Bailey and Mrs. Forest Hutchins.

Miss Louisa Moulton has gone to Massachusetts to visit her sister.

George Thompson and Ernest Bennett cut corn fodder into the silo for Lindon Merrill Thursday afternoon.

Hugh Smart helped Thell Bennett get in oats and hungarian Saturday.

—The Fryeburg Post, Fryeburg, Maine, Sept. 12, 1916, p. 3.

[*] Note: Original newspaper breaks this line "Thurs-" followed by "Number Four. [another linebreak] No. Four."

New Hampshire Neighbors — Hiram

New Hampshire/Maine, 1916

On Tuesday Mr. Albert F. Berry was sworn as Assistant Postmaster at Hiram Postoffice. This is a very good selection. Mr. George C. Bray, who has given excellent service as postmaster, has resigned and will soon leave the State to engage in other business.

Lieut. John W. Hubbard of Fryeburg visited his daughter, Mrs. Arthur W. Sadler, and his sister, Mrs. Mary E. Young, Tuesday.

We have not seen but about half a dozen fruit trees this year that have been stripped of foliage by brown-tailed moths.

Mr. Eli C. Wadsworth, whose buildings were burned July 29, has bought of Mr. Calvin F. Clemons, the farm formerly owned by Hon. John H. Spring, of 160 acres with ample buildings and he removed to it September 4th. Mr. Wadsworth was born upon the Spring farm, which adjoins his homestead. Llewellyn A. Wadsworth, who was severely burned at the fire on his back, right arm and shoulders, went to East Brownfield Tuesday to be treated by Dr. Marston. He is improving.

Mr. Cyrus H. Goodwin went to Brownfield Tuesday.

We note with pleasure that our old friend, Col. Abram W. Smith, of Topeka, Kansas, a native of South Hiram, has recently been selected at the primaries as a Republican candidate for Presidential elector. As he received 1889 votes more than any other Republican and 44293 votes more than any Democrat, it looks as if he would get there. He is a typical son of Maine. He went to Pennsylvania at the age of 17 and enlisted in the Union army, serving four years. He was in a rebel prison 18 months. He went to Kansas after the war. He was chairman of the Board of Managers of the Kansas Department in the Columbian Exhibition in Chicago in 1892. He has also served as state senator, speaker of the House of Representatives, candidate for Governor and U. S. Pension Agent. His lecture on the "Romance of the War," has won for him a reputation as one of the finest orators in the West, and his many friends have watched with pleasure and pride his long, useful and successful career.

James Evans, Esq., a prominent citizen of East Hiram, died Sept. 5, of Bright's disease, aged 77 years. A more extended tribute to this excellent man will be given later.

Master Charles Rounds of Malden, Mass., a grandson of Hon. Charles E. Hubbard of Kezar Falls, is visiting his aunt, Mrs. Mary E. Young. On Sunday morning he attended the Universalist church, and sang "The Holy City" as a solo. His wonderful voice and singing were a rich treat to all who heard him.

—The Fryeburg Post, Fryeburg, Maine, Sept. 12, 1916, p. 3.

How Water Causes a Fire

1901

One would hardly believe that a bottle of water standing harmlessly on a table could be the cause of a fire. Nevertheless such is the case.

In my laboratory the other day I detected the odor of burning wood and, seeking the cause, noticed a tiny wreath of smoke rising from the counter. Setting aside a flask of water that stood close by I sponged over the burning spot with a damp cloth. Shortly after I again detected the odor of burning wood, when, to my surprise, I discovered another burning spot on the table close to the water flask. The flask was standing in the sunlight, thereby concentrating the rays to a focus on the top of the table, acting in this case as a burning glass. A handful of highly combustible material was thrown over the burning spot, catching fire almost immediately.

I cite this instance merely as a warning to chemists and apothecaries, who may not realize how easily a fire may be started in their storerooms by the sun shining through bottles, flasks and carboys of liquid, converting them for the time being into burning glasses of great power. I have in mind now the instance of a fire originating in a storeroom from this cause. — New York Times.

How the Burmese Make Fire

1901

One day a Burmese messenger brought me a note. While he was waiting for the reply. I observed an object something like a boy's popgun suspended around his waist. On asking what it was he showed me that it was an implement for producing fire.

It was a rude example of a scientific instrument employed by lecturers at home to illustrate the production of heat by suddenly compressed air. A piston fitted into the tube; the former was hollowed at the lower end and smeared with wax to receive a piece of cotton or tinder, which when pressed into it adhered. The tube was closed at one end. Placing the piston at the top of the tube, with a smart blow he struck it down and immediately withdrew it with the tinder on fire, the sudden compression of the air having ignited it. I was so much struck with the scientific ingenuity of this rude implement that I procured it from the Burman and sent it to the Asiatic society of Bengal, with a short description of its uses. — "Recollections of My Life," by Surgeon General Sir John Fayer.

Flames Put Out by Hand Extinguishers

Syracuse, NY, 1912

In an awning fire at the Snowdon apartment house Saturday evening hand extinguishers used in the building put out the flames before the arrival of the Fire department. The blaze was started by a lighted cigarette thrown from a window. The damage was slight.

--The Syracuse Herald, Syracuse, NY, June 10, 1912, p. 7.

Advice to Outdoor Sleepers

1915

Two of the light-weight army blankets are warmer than a single six-pound blanket. On a cold night the camper sleeps in fresh underwear and socks, trousers, sweater, Mackinaw, German socks and moccasins. (It is no hardship, then, to get up and replenish the fire.) With the half-ax a regular backlog fire can be built and plenty of night wood laid in. Don't use wood that snaps and shoots out embers. If a snowfall is anticipated, cover the tent-frame with evergreen boughs and thatch with browse (evergreen twigs). This will also effectively screen the tent from sparks. Then build the fire as close to the tent as safety permits. If you know how to manage one, it may be within four feet.


1900

A Curious War Relic

W. C. Freeman, a commercial traveler, whose home is at 811 Mulberry street, has presented to Robert M. Scranton a ring that carries with it a realistic suggestion of the civil war. Mr. Freeman, who was a member of the Seventh Pennsylvania cavalry, took it from the finger of a dead confederate in front of Petersburg, Va., in 1863. The ring is made of hardwood, is fashioned handsomely, and has a gold top in semblance of a sunburst. — Scranton (Pa.) Republican.

Wood for Resisting Fires

1896

A report from Consul Robertson on the free port system of Hamburg, just published by the State Department, contains the curious item of information that in the great new warehouses constructed in the German port wood is being substituted for iron to secure better protection against fire.

These buildings were originally provided with iron beams and girders, but when one of them was burned some years ago it was found that the iron had been so bent and twisted by the heat as to become a source of great danger to the adjoining structures. "In all the warehouses, therefore, which have since been built," observes Mr. Robertson, "it has been deemed advisable to substitute wood for iron as much as possible." Probably a heavy wooden beam, imbedded in some non-conducting material that would exclude the air, would be as nearly fireproof as anything except brick or stone. It might be charred on the outside, but the interior would probably remain sound in any ordinary heat.

It is a curious speculation to imagine what would have happened if the present method of construction in Chicago had been in vogue before the great fire. A twenty-five-story, steel-cage building warping into a corkscrew and boring a hole in the sky would be a spectacle worth going miles to see.


Derivation of Whiskers

The word whiskers is derived from whisk, and the Anglo-Saxon wisch, which means a slight brush. Less than a century ago the expression was unheard of, the whiskers as well as the mustache being spoken of as part of the beard. It was only when the latter was divided, and the true whiskers disappeared as well, that their name was changed to the mutton chop part of the beard left on the cheek.

Judge F. S. Gardner

Leon, Iowa area, no date given

One of the best known citizens of Decatur county, passed away at the home of his son Frank A. Gardner five miles northwest of Leon last Saturday.

Judge Gardner was born in Syracuse, New York, April 10, 1821, where he lived with his parents until manhood, when he came west. In 1850 he went to California and spent several years in the far west, returning to Chicago where he engaged in the wholesale lumber business and amassed a fortune, but it was swept away in the great Chicago fire. He then came to Decatur county and purchased several hundred acres of land and engaged successfully in farming and stock raising.

He was married to Miss Maria E. Reynolds on Jan. 26, 1847, and to this union were born three children, one daughter and two sons, the eldest son dying in infancy. Mrs. Gardner died in 1887, the surviving children being Frank A. Gardner who lives on the home farm and Mrs. Ellen Perry.

Funeral services were held at the home on Saturday, March 18th, at 11 o'clock, conducted by A. M. Pilcher, pastor of the Leon M. E. Church, interment being in the Leon cemetery.

Judge Gardner was loved and respected by all who knew him and he was a polished gentleman of the old school. He loved to gather his friends around his home, and until the death of his wife, "Ocean Farm," as he named his beautiful country home, was the scene of many pleasant social gatherings. A few years ago he was severely injured by his horse falling on him and of late years has been in quite feeble health.

Note: The article had Marie E. Reynold, without an 's'.

Sad Death — Emma Osborn, Leon, Iowa — Clothing Caught on Fire

Leon, Iowa area (no date given)

The school-house two miles east of Leon, where Miss Alice Dilsaver is teacher, was the scene, Friday morning last, of one of those startling accidents, so chilling and saddening to those who happen to be eye witnesses. Emma, the ten year old daughter of Mrs. Lydia Osborn, whose husband, Joel Osborn, it will be remembered by many, died very suddenly on the 29th of August last, went to school as usual, arriving at the school house at about half past eight o'clock. No other children were in the room when Emma got there and Miss Dilsaver was at her boarding place close by, not having yet [gone] to open school, though two or three [—] were playing near the house. Her clothes caught fire either by her standing against the stove or opening the stove door to stir the fire (Miss Dilsaver thinks the latter,) and the first any one knew of it was when she came out in the sight of those boys, she being badly frightened, the flames reaching upward and around her, presenting at once a pitiable and horrid spectacle. Orin Wilson, a scholar in the same school began to do all he could to subdue the flames, burning his hands considerably in the attempt, and though working like a hero, he made poor headway until Mr. High Manchester and his sister Lydia, came along the road, joined in the effort to save the child. They tore what clothing was not burned off of her and thus stopped the fire, but alas, too late. The fire had already done deadly work and it became at once apparent that the life of the unfortunate little one was doomed. However, she talked quite cheerfully when rescued from the flames. The Manchesters wrapped her up in a comforter and took her speedily to her mother and family whose feelings on beholding her condition may be imagined but not described.

Dr. Van Werden was called and he did all that could be done to relieve the awful agonies of the little sufferer but to no avail. She talked hopefully to Dr. who says she was quite heroic for one of her years. Her sufferings were terrible until midday, about which time the vital powers appeared to fail quite rapidly and from then onward it was apparent that the last ray of life would soon flicker; and that she was not conscious of pain. She had the closest attention of a goodly number of sympathising friends throughout the day, but with all they could do they were powerless to assuage one pang or to prolong her young life by even one breath. She rested quietly the last six hours and ceased to breathe at seven o'clock in the evening, ten and one-half hours after she was burned.

The funeral was set for Sunday last at Welcome school house, where a large concourse of people assembled to show their sympathy and to listen to a well timed and beautiful funeral service by Elder S. A. Garber, on the death of Emma and also that of her father from the text of Scripture: "What is your life." At the close of the services the people filed around in a solemn procession to look for the last time on the calm features of the loved and lost one, who in her serene calmness, accompanied by her own beautiful doll, which had been placed beside her by a tender hand, creating as it were a delusion; for it did not seem so much like death, only we all knew it was death.

Thus passed swiftly away as a meteor one of earth's beautiful and bright gems. Had little Emma stayed to witness the coming of the 6th day of another spring time, or the daisies bloom again, or another return of the song birds, the music of the rills, the awakening to life of the leaves and flowers, all the emblems of childhood, she would have reached the [*1 - tenth mile] stone on the precarious and uncertain road of this earth life.

Who would dispute a mother's trust that her child dwells [*2 - in a land] where the bright and beautiful [*3 - ones reside]?

X.

Notes:

[*1] A piece missing, and faded letters. But it looks like her birthday, not stated anywhere else, must have been the 6th day after the first day of spring. It looks like it must say "reached the tenth mile stone" but the article already says she was 10. Maybe they meant she was in her 10th year or virtually 10.

[*2] Letters between 'e' of 'dwells' and 'and' of 'land' are missing.

[*3] Letters between 'beautiful' and 'ide?' are missing.

The other brackets cover a small piece missing and filled in. The phrase "two or three — were playing near" has room for "kids," if that was a word they used.

There is an Emma C. Osborn to be found on the internet from the area. But she was 20 years old when she died.

A Woman's Odd Victory

1896

At a country fair held near Dedham, Maine, the prize offered for unhitching and hitching up again in the shortest time was won by a woman, and won under circumstances comic as well as curious.

The winner was Mrs. Linus Pond, of Dedham, who, since the death of her husband, two years ago, has carried on the work of the farm alone. She does the plowing and hauling with a Hereford bull, and works the bull just as she would a horse.

When she goes to market she hitches the bull to her wagon with a pair of traces and guides it by ropes running to a ring in its nose. In the harnessing contest she had the Hereford unhitched and hitched again in a twinkling. — New York Sun.


Deer On The Track

Three deer jumped on the railway track a few hundred yards or so ahead of a locomotive near Trout Lake, Michigan, a few days ago, and remained staring in surprise at the headlight until they were struck by the pilot and tossed from the track.

Instances of a single deer being thus attracted by a locomotive headlight and falling victim to its curiosity are not uncommon in Michigan, Maine and other regions where deer abound; but for a trio of the animals to be hypnotized in this way at one time is a novelty. — New York Sun.


Saved By A Cracked Plate

Two hundred barrels of oil, part of the cargo stowed between decks of the steel steamer W. H. Gilbert, shifted during a gale while the vessel was rounding Kenawee Point, on Lake Superior. Ten of the barrels were broken and the oil rolled down into the fire hold and was ignited by the furnace fires.

The crew turned to and fought the fire with but little impression and it was thought the vessel was doomed. The heat of the blazing oil, however, cracked one of the steel plates below the water line, through which the water poured in volumes, and, converted into steam, smothered the fire.

The pumps were started and, finding them adequate to keep the steamer afloat, she continued on her way and reached Duluth, Minn. The vessel was bound from Buffalo with a cargo of general merchandise. — Chicago Times-Herald.

Natural Act For Mother

1910

Women Understand That Not Heroism but Simply Love Prompted Self Sacrifice

A few days ago, in a somewhat squalid neighborhood, a house caught fire. The flames shot quickly through the litter on the floor and the untidy array of clothing on the walls. A woman talking with a neighbor ran screaming to the house and without an instant's hesitation sprang through the smoking doorway into what already seemed an inferno. A moment later she staggered out, her hands and face blackened and blistered and her clothing on fire. In her arms she bore her baby, safe from harm.

The afternoon papers came out with the story, printed under headlines extolling this mother's heroism. Men read it on street cars, and as their eyes gleamed with the stirring of the spirit which leaps to greet noble deeds they said: "That woman dared to do what most men would be afraid to do." But the mothers who read it at home did not think that way. Perhaps the danger to the baby, the wrecking of the home and the burns the woman suffered brought moisture to their eyes, but to them the act was not one of heroism — it was simply what any natural mother, no matter how timid, would do under the same circumstances. — Cleveland Leader.


Lengthening Her Stay

Little May wanted permission to go somewhere, and her mother asked her if she would slay just a little while. May replied: "I'll stay two whiles, mamma."

House Cat is Nearly Baked

1914

The Family Pet Slept in Oven of Cook Stove and Is Nearly Burned to Death

Waynesboro, Pa. — M. B. Ayers, Hamilton avenue, Waynesboro, almost cooked a new dish at his home.

When he retired at night he left the oven door of the kitchen stove open. To get away from the cold the family cat crawled into the oven and there curled itself up for a sleep that lasted all through the night.

When Mr. Ayers went downstairs in the morning to stir up the fire he closed the oven door. The cat slept on and made no protest. Then Mr. Ayers turned on the drafts and thrust the poker into the bed of coals, and in a short time he had a good fire going.

He heard the mewing of a cat, but he couldn't see a cat, and he fancied the animal might be on the outside. But the cat grew more persistent in its mewing and added a tone of anguish to it, and then Mr. Ayers bethought him of the oven. He opened the door and the cat sprang on to him, almost knocking him off his feet.

The animal was burned terribly. Its feet were badly charred and its body was almost baked. It is still living and is on the road to recovery.

San Francisco Almshouse Burns, A Few Patients Lost

1908

FIRE IN ALMSHOUSE

Two Patients Frightened to Death and Another Dies Later

San Francisco, March 10 — One of the buildings of the city and county almshouse was burned this morning. In it when the fire broke out were 141 persons, mostly patients recently removed from the city and county hospital. So far as known all were removed in safety, though five are reported to have been injured. The almshouse is located near the Lake Honda reservoir of the Spring Valley Water company.

The fire broke out on the second floor at 9 o'clock this morning and is supposed to have been caused by a defective fuse. It quickly spread to the roof and the whole building was soon a mass of flames. Good work was done in removing the inmates to places of safety.

Three patients lost their lives. Two of these were old men, whose names are not known, who died from fright. Edward Korn, who had just undergone an operation, died soon after being taken from the burning building.

It was only by the most strenuous work that the aged people were saved. The nurses and attendants formed brigades and carried most of the old people from the building, as many of them, on account of their extreme age and their minds being dulled, refused to leave their rooms.

But one building was burned. The fire was caused by a defective chimney.

Their Long Span of Life -- "Same Razor Everyday, 53 Years"

1922

London — Setting forth a compilation of the longevity of many of the common-place things in life — things which though soon every day are scarcely given thought — the London Mail points out that the length of useful life possessed by articles of man's handiwork forms an interesting speculation, and one which is full of surprises.

"For instance, an artificial leg had been worn by its owner for sixty years and was still serviceable at the end of that time.

"The average life of a locomotive engine is about twenty years, but there are many cases on record of this term being greatly exceeded. One built in 1846 worked for a period of over fifty years, first as a passenger, then freight, and finally as a shifting engine. Another completed over two million miles, equal to one hundred year's service, on the ordinary basis of twenty thousand miles a year.

"In the year 1913 a town in Wales was using a fire engine which had been in active service for seventy years on end. But this record pales when compared with that of an engine which was still in use at the beginning of the present century by a firm of metal rollers in Birmingham. This, a beam engine, was erected in the year 1767, and worked continuously for one hundred and thirty-six years before it was last pulled down and replaced.

"There is a case on record of a man using the same razor every morning for fifty-three years."

—Appleton Post-Crescent, Appleton, Wisconsin, Jan. 23, 1922, p. 4.


1899

A Long Service

In remote parts of Scotland the old Covenanters' love for long services on the bare hillside still lingers. At Dingwall a recent communion service in the open air lasted from 10 a. m. until 4 p. m. without exhausting the staying power of the congregation.