BROOKLYN, NY: Dec. 2, 1908 - A blaze broke out in a two-story house at 96 Pine St., trapping a mother and her young daughter. The first-due unit arrived and initiated a punishing search in hot, thick smoke. Captain Abraham Turner and Fireman Thomas Smith of Engine 136 found the mother and child and both were removed to safety. The gleeful child hugged Smith tightly around the neck until she realized her mother was dead. The child fainted and eventually was revived by an ambulance surgeon who also treated the burns suffered by both firemen.
PORTLAND, ME: Dec. 4, 1908 - A difficult blaze at the Grand Trunk Railway piers was battled for hours. The fire destroyed two of the company's eight piers and extended to a docked ship, the SS Cornishman. Firemen kept the flames from spreading to the remaining piers, two other ships and two huge grain elevators.
NEW YORK CITY: Dec. 13, 1908 - A fire broke out in the basement of a five-story building at 550 West 126th St. in Manhattan. The flames extended upward with tremendous speed, trapping occupants. The block of buildings where the fire occurred was known locally as "Bluecoat Row" due to the large number of policemen and firemen who lived there with their families. Battalion Chief John Howe transmitted three alarms as his men accomplished many spectacular rescues.
NEW BRUNSWICK, NJ: Dec. 13, 1908 - Fire destroyed St. James's Methodist Episcopal Church at Schuyler and Bayard streets. The blaze, discovered at 5:30 in the morning, was raging in the cellar as the entire fire department raced to the scene. The roof collapsed two hours later despite the best efforts of the firemen and the church's pastor, who pitched in and helped battle the flames.
PARIS, FRANCE: Dec. 19, 1908 - A fire that was started by a short-circuit in the temporary central bureau of the Paris telephone company was quickly controlled by employees. The temporary office had been set up after the main telephone bureau building was destroyed by fire three months earlier.
QUEENS VILLAGE, NY: Dec. 20, 1908 - Charles W. Franklin Jr., a grocery wagon driver off from work while serving on jury duty, attempted to soften a can of varnish on his kitchen stove. The ensuing explosion seriously burned the man and set fire to his home. Also injured in the explosion were his wife and two young sons, all suffering burns to the face, head and hands. Franklin extinguished the flames burning his children and himself while a neighbor raced to help his wife, who was ablaze and running in a circle. The house also suffered severe damage.
MOBILE, AL: Dec. 20, 1908 - A fire that started in a wholesale candy store on Commerce Street near St. Francis spread to stored Christmas fireworks, igniting them. The exploding pyrotechnics filled the structure with flames and arching rockets and bursting shells. Four carloads of fireworks cooked off during the blaze, characterized as the most spectacular fire ever seen in the city. Explosions toppled walls, nearly killing several firemen.
MIDDLETOWN, NY: Dec. 25, 1908 - A Christmas event held at the village schoolhouse proved to be a near disaster for Santa Claus and spectators. Santa, in the person of Henry Campbell, was distributing presents from the tree when candles ignited his long white whiskers. In a moment, his entire beard, hair and hat were ablaze. As the audience fled in panic, friends rushed to Santa's aid, extinguishing the flames and stripping the smoldering costume from the burned faux elf.
PHILADELPHIA, PA: Dec. 31, 1908 - A general alarm was transmitted for a fire in the wholesale wool district. The fire was discovered at 2 A.M. in the five-story building at 34 South Letetia St.
PAUL HASHAGEN, a Firehouse® contributing editor, is a retired FDNY firefighter who was assigned to Rescue Company 1 in Manhattan. He is also an ex-chief of the Freeport, NY, Fire Department. Hashagen is the author of FDNY 1865-2000: Millennium Book, a history of the New York City Fire Department, and other fire service history books.
